Forum: General F-22A Raptor forum

First off, sorry if this is a duplicate thread (gas it if it is mods) but I couldn't find any threads using the search tool that ask what are the good F-22 related books?

I'd ideally like an F-22 book that is recent, as in published within the last year as I figure they'd be the most up to date. Paperback is better for me for cost reasons but hardback won't be ignored. No Sweetman books either as I don't trust his word.
You don't have to buy it for me either... Laughing

Share your bookcase too, if you have the time. Tell us what you've got and make us envious! (I have no books yet to share Embarassed

)

Cheers PS, sorry mods, was going to throw an F-22 pic in there but couldn't find one on the harddrive, I clicked a random pic and it wouldn't clear out the attachments box so you're stuck with it Sad

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shep1978 wrote:

No Sweetman books either as I don't trust his word.

Why? He seems to have a good reputation in the industry, and is regarded by the CIA as a major source on public-domain information on stealth.

That said, I'm aware of a strong reaction against him on various internet forums, but have seen nothing stronger than vague and unsupported allegations that he is 'in the pay' of an aircraft manufacturer. But I'd always put that down to 'sour grapes' by enthusiasts annoyed that Sweetman's reports didn't support their personal beliefs.

mercuriuscantab wrote:

Why? He seems to have a good reputation in the industry, and is regarded by the CIA as a major source on public-domain information on stealth.

That said, I'm aware of a strong reaction against him on various internet forums, but have seen nothing stronger than vague and unsupported allegations that he is 'in the pay' of an aircraft manufacturer. But I'd always put that down to 'sour grapes' by enthusiasts annoyed that Sweetman's reports didn't support their personal beliefs.

Thanks for the reply and strangly enough after looking at the selection of F-22 books on Amazon I was actually very tempted to buy what appeared to be the best selling book on the subject, which just so happens to be written by Mr Sweetman! It did look excellent and had great reviews too.
Trouble I have though is i'm wary because the way I see it with him is there is no smoke without fire. I'm sure i've seen it myself when he's been caught out with stuff in the past, not with the F-22 but rather the F-35, can't but my finger on a specific time story mind.
You seem pretty well up on the subject of aviation to say the least from reading your posts on another board so can I ask - do you own any books published by Mr Sweetman and if so what do you think of them?
Cheers.

I will have to get back to you on the books.

my comment on Mr. Sweetman is that he is pretty high on the F-22 but not the F-35, and you could not tell from his books that he was down on it. It seems that his criticism has been growing in recent years, for reasons he has posted.

Two Cents

Yeah, he's gotten pretty curmudgeony on the F-35 lately, but his books are probably as good as you're going to get on the F-22. He remains pretty neutral, I think stykerxo has it right, it's only recently he's become so entrenched.

This is not a recent book (1999), but it was put out by "Aviation Week" magazine and written by Steve Pace and I think it is excellent. It is part of the Walter J. Boyne Military Aircraft Series. Has a chronology that starts in 1972, quite a few color and black & white photos, the fly off competition, mission explanation, mission possibilities, etc. Check it out!

shep1978 wrote:

You seem pretty well up on the subject of aviation to say the least from reading your posts on another board so can I ask - do you own any books published by Mr Sweetman and if so what do you think of them?
Cheers.

Given that I have written a book or two myself, I don’t think it would be correct for my to express a specific opinion on another author’s work. But my personal library on aerospace/defence contains more than 500 books, and that total includes six books by Sweetman. (There is a seventh, but that was a gift.) So you may conclude that my views on his writing are favourable.

Before anyone asks, the other authors most represented on my bookshelves are Bill Gunston (ten books), Alfred Price (five, with a sixth or order), Jay Miller (four), and Doug Richardson (four). But in practice, since most of my books are purchased to obtain data for a specific project, and the nature of these projects keeps changing, it’s not surprising that there are almost as many authors represented as there are books on the shelves.

mercuriuscantab wrote:

Given that I have written a book or two myself, I don’t think it would be correct for my to express a specific opinion on another author’s work. But my personal library on aerospace/defence contains more than 500 books, and that total includes six books by Sweetman. (There is a seventh, but that was a gift.) So you may conclude that my views on his writing are favourable.

Before anyone asks, the other authors most represented on my bookshelves are Bill Gunston (ten books), Alfred Price (five, with a sixth or order), Jay Miller (four), and Doug Richardson (four). But in practice, since most of my books are purchased to obtain data for a specific project, and the nature of these projects keeps changing, it’s not surprising that there are almost as many authors represented as there are books on the shelves.

Thanks for the reply and cheers to the other guys for their imput too. I've decided Sweetman will be an option and i'll certainly have a look at all the other authors mentioned.
Also, 500 books?! Shocked

Man, thats like a library in itself! You must never be stuck for something to read!

Oh , don't worry either (not that you would be) i'll tell you what book I bought when I do...

If you're talking about the 1998 Bill Sweetman book "F-22 Raptor (Enthusiast Color Series)", by all means, don't stop yourself from getting it. Although a bit dated, it is still an excellent book (I like the program history part of it) and one I highly recommend.

Do you have the 2005 Jay Miller Aerofax book "Lockheed-Martin F/A-22 Raptor: Stealth Fighter"? If not, that is a good one. It has more updated information (also includes some of the YF-22/YF-23 test history which I like) and some good detailed photos of the Tyndall's birds. This title has been out of print though and a bit hard to come by. You can still find it at some places, but the asking price is amazing! Surprising since it's only been out for 5yrs. High demand, low stock maybe? Shrug

Another title I keep as reference is the excellent 1998 "Advanced Tactical Fighter to F-22 Raptor: Origins of the 21st Century Air Dominance Fighter" by David C. Aronstein, Michael J. Hirschberg, and Albert C. Piccirillo. Again, I like reading the history behind the program and this is about as definitive a history of the ATF program to the F-22 as you're going to find. The book can still be found, but it's a little pricy.

I still keep Steven Pace's 1999 book "F-22 Raptor: America's Next Lethal War Machine " and Bill Holder & Mike Wallace's 1998 "Lockheed-Martin F-22 Raptor: An Illustrated History " around as they are good overview books in their day.

I also make sure I keep anything that Rebecca Grant writes/publishes. She's gold.

John D. Gresham is supposedly working on an up-to-date F-22 raptor book with the cooperation of LM. This was in 2009 though and I haven't heard anything since. Shrug

If you're talking about the 1998 Bill Sweetman book "F-22 Raptor (Enthusiast Color Series)", by all means, don't stop yourself from getting it. Although a bit dated, it is still an excellent book (I like the program history part of it) and one I highly recommend.

Do you have the 2005 Jay Miller Aerofax book "Lockheed-Martin F/A-22 Raptor: Stealth Fighter"? If not, that is a good one. It has more updated information (also includes some of the YF-22/YF-23 test history which I like) and some good detailed photos of the Tyndall's birds. This title has been out of print though and a bit hard to come by. You can still find it at some places, but the asking price is amazing! Surprising since it's only been out for 5yrs. High demand, low stock maybe? Shrug

Another title I keep as reference is the excellent 1998 "Advanced Tactical Fighter to F-22 Raptor: Origins of the 21st Century Air Dominance Fighter" by David C. Aronstein, Michael J. Hirschberg, and Albert C. Piccirillo. Again, I like reading the history behind the program and this is about as definitive a history of the ATF program to the F-22 as you're going to find. The book can still be found, but it's a little pricy.

I still keep Steven Pace's 1999 book "F-22 Raptor: America's Next Lethal War Machine " and Bill Holder & Mike Wallace's 1998 "Lockheed-Martin F-22 Raptor: An Illustrated History " around as they are good overview books in their day.

I also make sure I keep anything that Rebecca Grant writes/publishes. She's gold.

John D. Gresham is supposedly working on an up-to-date F-22 raptor book with the cooperation of LM. This was in 2009 though and I haven't heard anything since. Shrug

edpop wrote:

This is not a recent book (1999), but it was put out by "Aviation Week" magazine and written by Steve Pace and I think it is excellent. It is part of the Walter J. Boyne Military Aircraft Series. Has a chronology that starts in 1972, quite a few color and black & white photos, the fly off competition, mission explanation, mission possibilities, etc. Check it out!

Thanks for your kind words re my F-22 book! Steve Pace Laughing

I was going through my library again (about 900 books) and also found another F22 book. It is by Jay Miller & Richard Abrams and put out by Aerofax and it is Aerofax Extra #5 dated 1992. Hope this helps your search also!

Have there been any more recent publications regarding the F-22?

pants3204 wrote:

Have there been any more recent publications regarding the F-22?

And is this only about non-fiction?

firstimpulse wrote:

pants3204 wrote:

Have there been any more recent publications regarding the F-22?

And is this only about non-fiction?

Non-fiction is preferred however if you know of any good fiction F-22 books I would wholeheartedly appreciate those as well.

Forum: General F-22A Raptor forum

F-22 Books!