Founded | 1939 |
---|---|
Founder | Ernie Gentile |
Defunct | 1986 |
Successor | TAB Books |
Country of origin | United States |
Headquarters location | Fallbrook, California |
Publication types | Monographs |
Fiction genres | Aviation |
Aero Publishers was a publishing company focused on aviation history based in Fallbrook, California. It was known for publishing technical reference books. [1] [2]
Aero Publishers was initially founded in 1939 by Lockheed Aircraft Corporation as an in-house publishing company to educate new emoloyees. After it went bankrupt in 1946 it was purchased by Ernie Gentile, the employee who responsible for its creation as well as a technical writer at the California Institute of Technology. [3] [1] The company was based in the Silver Lake District of Los Angeles until January 1965. [1] The company then moved to a 15,000 sq ft (1,400 m2) facility in Fallbrook, California. [4] It experienced a downturn in the early 1970s, but by 1974 it had published an estimated 150 books and was selling an average of 4,000 to 5,000 copies. It had also began expanding into automotive history. [1]
For a time, it was the only publisher that was present events such as the Air Force Association national convention. [5]
The company was in the process of being sold to TAB Books when its building was destroyed in a pair of arson fires in 1985, with the latter leaving it a total loss. [6] [7] The following year construction on a new building at the same location was underway. [7]
The Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka is a purpose-built, rocket-powered human-guided kamikaze attack-aircraft deployed by Japan against Allied ships in the Pacific Ocean theater towards the end of World War II. Although extremely fast, the Ohka had a very short range, so it had to be carried into action as a parasite aircraft by a much larger bomber, which was itself vulnerable to carrier-borne fighters. In action during the Battle of Okinawa in 1945, Ohkas succeeded in sinking or damaging some escort-vessels and transport ships, but never sank any major warships. The Japanese developed improved versions in an attempt to overcome the aircraft's shortcomings, but they came too late for deployment.
The Boeing P-26 "Peashooter" is the first American production all-metal fighter aircraft and the first pursuit monoplane to enter squadron service with the United States Army Air Corps. Designed and built by Boeing, the prototype first flew in 1932, and the type was still in use with the U.S. Army Air Corps as late as 1941 in the Philippines. There are two surviving Peashooters and three reproductions on display, with two more under construction.
The Douglas TBD Devastator was an American torpedo bomber of the United States Navy. Ordered in 1934, it first flew in 1935 and entered service in 1937. At that point, it was the most advanced aircraft flying for the Navy; however, by the time of the US entry into World War 2, the TBD was already outdated.
The Grumman F6F Hellcat is an American carrier-based fighter aircraft of World War II. Designed to replace the earlier F4F Wildcat and to counter the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero, it was the United States Navy's dominant fighter in the second half of the Pacific War. In gaining that role, it prevailed over its faster competitor, the Vought F4U Corsair, which initially had problems with visibility and carrier landings.
The North American XB-21 and sometimes referred to by the name "Dragon", was a prototype bomber aircraft developed by North American Aviation in the late 1930s, for evaluation by the United States Army Air Corps. Evaluated against the Douglas B-18 Bolo, it was found to be considerably more expensive than the rival aircraft, and despite the ordering of a small number of evaluation aircraft, only the prototype was ever built.
The North American A-36 is the ground-attack/dive bomber version of the North American P-51 Mustang, from which it could be distinguished by the presence of rectangular, slatted dive brakes above and below the wings. A total of 500 A-36 dive bombers served in the Mediterranean and Southeast Asia theaters during World War II before being withdrawn from operational use in 1944.
The Flakpanzer IV Kugelblitz was a German self-propelled anti-aircraft gun developed during World War II. By the end of the war, only a pilot production of five units had been completed. Unlike earlier self-propelled anti-aircraft guns, it had a fully enclosed, rotating turret.
The Berliner-Joyce XFJ was a United States prototype biplane fighter aircraft that first flew in May 1930. Designed by Berliner-Joyce Aircraft for the United States Navy, its lower wing, placed below the fuselage and just two feet above the ground, apparently gave it a tendency to ground loop when landing, and it was never ordered for production.
The Boeing XF6B-1 / XBFB-1 was Boeing's last biplane design for the United States Navy. Only the one prototype, Model 236, was ever built; although first flying in early 1933, it rammed into a crash barrier in 1936 and the design was not pursued further.
The North County Times was a local newspaper in San Diego's North County. It was headquartered in Escondido. The final publisher was Peter York.
The Holyoke Publishing Company was an American magazine and comic-book publisher with offices in Holyoke, and Springfield, Massachusetts, and New York City, Its best-known comics characters were Blue Beetle and the superhero duo Cat-Man and Kitten, all inherited from defunct former clients of Holyoke's printing business.
Rare Bear is a highly modified Grumman F8F Bearcat that saw major success at the Reno Air Races over multiple decades.
Buzz number is a term applied to the large letter and number combination applied to United States Air Force military aircraft in the years immediately after World War II, through the early 1960s. This moniker evolved from aircrew speculation that the large numbers were meant to dissuade "buzzing" by increasing the likelihood of being identified and punished.
The Sikorsky XBLR-3 was an experimental bomber design developed by Sikorsky Aircraft to compete in the United States Army Air Corps "Project D" design competition of 1935. In March 1936 the USAAC canceled the Sikorsky XBLR-3 in favor of the remaining two competitors: the Boeing XBLR-1 and the Douglas XBLR-2. The XBLR-3 was one of the last fixed wing aircraft designed by the Sikorsky company.
Edward T. Maloney was an American aviation historian based in Southern California.
The Caproni Ca.161 was an aircraft built in Italy in 1936, in an attempt to set a new world altitude record. It was a conventional biplane with two-bay, staggered wings of equal span, based on Caproni's Ca.113 design. The pressure-suited pilot was accommodated in an open cockpit.
The Curtiss XP-31 Swift was a 1930s American experimental monoplane fighter built by Curtiss for the United States Army Air Corps.
The North American NA-40 was an American prototype bomber aircraft developed by North American Aviation in the late 1930s for evaluation by the United States Army Air Corps. Although unsuccessful, it led directly to the North American B-25 Mitchell medium bomber.
Leopold Feist, was a pioneer in the popular music publishing business. In 1897, Feist founded and ran a music publishing firm bearing his name. In the 1920s, at the height of the golden age of popular music, his firm was among the seven largest publishers of popular music in the world. The company used the motto "You can't go wrong, with any FEIST Song."