Skunk Works

Fülszöveg

Skunk Works is the true story, told for
the first time, of Americas most secret
and successful aerospace operation. As
recounted by Ben Rich, the operations
brilliant boss for nearly two decades, the
story of Lockheed's legendary Skunk
Works is a high-stakes drama of cold war
confrontations and Gulf War air combat,
of extraordinary feats of engineering and
human achievement against fantastic
odds.
The windowless Skunk Works hangar,
tucked into a corner of the Burbank,
California, airport, produced the most
spectacular aviation triumphs of the
twentieth century. Ben Rich arrived in
1954 as an entry-level engineer, awed by
the commanding presence of Clarence
"Kelly" Johnson, founder of the operation
and one of aviations pioneers. Richs first
project was the U-2 spy plane, built for the
CIA, which overflew the Soviet Union at
supposedly unreachable heights and
photographed its most sensitive military
secrets, resulting in the greatest espionage
coup of the... Tovább

Fülszöveg

Skunk Works is the true story, told for
the first time, of Americas most secret
and successful aerospace operation. As
recounted by Ben Rich, the operations
brilliant boss for nearly two decades, the
story of Lockheed's legendary Skunk
Works is a high-stakes drama of cold war
confrontations and Gulf War air combat,
of extraordinary feats of engineering and
human achievement against fantastic
odds.
The windowless Skunk Works hangar,
tucked into a corner of the Burbank,
California, airport, produced the most
spectacular aviation triumphs of the
twentieth century. Ben Rich arrived in
1954 as an entry-level engineer, awed by
the commanding presence of Clarence
"Kelly" Johnson, founder of the operation
and one of aviations pioneers. Richs first
project was the U-2 spy plane, built for the
CIA, which overflew the Soviet Union at
supposedly unreachable heights and
photographed its most sensitive military
secrets, resulting in the greatest espionage
coup of the cold war. Among the others
that followed, the SR-71 Blackbird stands
out: a reconnaissance airplane right out of
Flash Gordon, which ranged at heights
and speeds long thought unattainable —
faster than a rifle bullet, at more than
three times the speed of sound. And a
crowning achievement is the revolutionary
F-l 17 Stealth fighter, virtually
undetectable on enemy radar screens, that
flew the most dangerous missions of
Operation Desert Storm with such
stunning accuracy it changed forever the
way air combat will be conducted.
Skunk Works is dramatic and
immediate, direct from the cockpits of
these astonishing aircraft, with first-
person narratives from the CIA and Air
Force pilots who flew the many classified,
risky missions. Filled with telling personal
anecdotes and high adventure, Skunk
Works is a tribute to genius and
patriotism in the unrelenting contest for
mastery of the skies.
Ben R. Rich headed the Skunk Works
from 1975 until he retired in 1991. He was
honored earlier this year with the
Pentagon s highest civilian award, the
Distinguished Service Medal, presented by
Secretary of Defense William Perry. He
now serves in an advisory capacity on
several government intelligence
committees. Leo Janos is the coauthor of
Yeager, the acclaimed bestselling
autobiography of test pilot Chuck Yeager. Vissza