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Aviation novels and thrillers

A lot of books are written by (ex)pilots, or have some good flying stories embedded into the main plot. During the years I have purchased quite some books. These are the details about the books and my private opinion.....

 

Dragon Jet
Axton, David
1994
Thriller around business jet that flies into, and with difficulty out of, Iran during period of unrest.

Stolen thunder
Axton, David
1992
Mig pilot
Barron, John
1980
The true story of the escape to Japan by Lt Belenko in his Mig25 in September 1976.

The proving flight
Beaty, David
1956
Novel about new giant airplane. The things that go wrong on the first Atlantic crossing, with passengers.

The lonely sky
Bridgeman, William
1956
Runway in sight
Brouwer, Jan + Ommen, Ad van
1983
Chains of command
Brown, Dale
1993
Storming heaven
Brown, Dale
1994
Flight of the old dog
Brown, Dale
1987
Airframe
Chrichton, Michael
1996
Story about airliner with a design problem and investigation of near crash.

The red horseman
Coonts, Stephen
1993
After end of Cold War the nuclear weapons in Russia have not vanished yet.

The cannibal queen
Coonts, Stephen
1992
Flight of the intruder
Coonts, Stephen
1986
Mayday
Cussler, Clive
1996
Dutch translation. Thriller about USAF airbase om Greek island under attack by WW1 airplane. Plot is in modern times though.

The pilot
Davis, Robert P
1976
Imperial 109
Doyle, Richard
1977
Thriller about flying boat, with gold on board and pax, that flies from South Africa to New York in 1939.

Fighter pilot
Dunn, William R
1982
Fly for your life
Forrester, Larry
1956
The story of WgCdr Stanford Tuck

De ijzige landing
Gann, Ernest

Dutch. Large transport airplane makes crash landing in northern Canada after losing their way. Very good story.

Proefvlucht met de dood
Gordon, Donald
1964
A new jetfighter is developed, and a thriller around that.

Runway zero-eight
Hailey, Arthur + Castle, John
1958
Bestseller about pilot who has collapsed in his seat, with 59 passengers behind him, during a stormy night.

G-suit
Halperin, Meray + Lapidot
1990
Forty years of continuous combat by Israeli Air Force. Pilots write their story

The warbirds
Herman Jr, Richard
1989
The fight of the few
Hough, Richard
1979
Aces high
Hughes, William
1976
The story of the men in the RFC, in WW1, when life expectancy averaged 3 weeks. Based on screenplay of movie. Nice

It's me again
Jack, Donald
1977
An intrepid aviator, Bandy, is on the lose when after ww1 he returns to Canada. Later he continues to Russia. Hilarious book comprising the Bandy Papers 3+4

Three cheers for me
Jack, Donald
1974
Wing leader
Johnson, Johnnie
1956
The story of the life in the RAF of Johnson, the top fighter ace of ww2.

Flight into fear
Kyle, Duncan
1972
Thriller with dramatic ocean crossing in small airplane

Talk down
Lecomber, Brian
1978
Excellent book about pilot who becomes ill, and non-pilot who has to land the aircraft. The story has been used by others but this novel describes the problems very well in 287 pages.

Dead weight
Lecomber, Brian
1976
Gold smuggling in the West-Indies, with terrific flying sequences and slimy villains. An adventure story in the best British tradition.

Turn killer
Lecomber, Brian
1975
When daredevil stunt pilot loses his best friend, he vowes to kill the murdering bastards. The aerial intrigue and murderous revenge fly through France to the West Indies. Excellent story.

Fasten your seat belts
Lester, Valerie
1995
Boven de geluidsgrens
Lundgren, W.R
1957
Judas country
Lyall, Gavin
1975
Very good

The most dangerous game
Lyall, Gavin
1964
Very good

The wrong side of the sky
Lyall, Gavin
1961
Very good

Het Jamaica incident
Lyall, Gavin
1977
Very good

Into the blue
McKee, Alexander
1981
The most troubling enigmas of flying history. Stories of pilots who meet inexplicable death and backgrounds

Airport international
Moynahan, Brian
1978
The sky's no limit
Munro, Raymond Z
1985
The action packed story of a remarkable Canadian.

Het grote waagstuk
Robertson, Terence
1960
Fascinating history of British pilots who try to stop the German battleships that are crossing the Channel in their old torpedo planes.

War story
Robinson, Derek
1987
The aces talk
Sims, Edward H
1972
White lie
Templeton Smith, John
1999
High tech thriller about mercenary pilot sent into Columbia by CIA who starts his own war against cocaine cartel. Interesting flying stories, good book

Fire fox
Thomas, Craig
1977
The Mig31 has to be stolen to find out its secrets.

The right stuff
Wolfe, Tom
1979
Excellent novel, later a film was made, about test pilots who become astronauts.

Yeager
Yeager, Chuck + Janos, Leo
1986
Lifestory of Chuck

Beyond lion rock
Young, Gavin
1988
The story of Cathay Pacific Airways