David Doyle Books

Legends of Warfare
AD and A-1 Skyraider
by David Doyle

Reviewed by Martin J Quinn
January 2021

David Doyle Books has released a new title. This one covers the legendary Douglas Skyraider, which was conceived during World War II and served well into the Vietnam War, with over 3,100 aircraft produced. This book is 112 pages long, and includes a history of the Skyraider, from development through each successive variant, and has over 180 photos.

This book is laid out with an introduction and nine subsequent chapters. The chapters start with the prototype XBT2D-1 and go through the AD-7 (A-1J), followed by the final chapter "Skyraider in Combat".

Each chapter deals with the development of the aircraft as compared to the preceding variant, and describes sub-variants as well, such as the photoreconnaissance, electronic warfare, anti-submarine and early warning versions, among others. The books is full of interesting information: the aircraft was originally going to be named "Dauntless II", the original design proposal was drawn up in one night, the AD-5/A-1E version was wider and longer than previous versions, the USAF didn't start using the Skyraider until 1963, and that the last US Navy use of the Skyraider was in December, 1969, while they remained in use by US Air Force until November, 1972!

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Conclusions:

This is a really nice, high quality, hardcover book. It has lots of great info and tons of terrific pictures, including pictures of existing static displays and airworthy airframes. I think both aviation history buffs and modelers will really like this book. Highly recommended.

The book retails for $19.99, and is available to order directly from David's website. Thanks to David Doyle Books for the review sample.