The JF/J2F "Duck" was one of those military workhorses moving around in the background before and during WWII which did a tremendous job but never got the publicity of its' more glamorous teammates. Some said the Duck could be more aptly named the "Ugly Duckling." Be that as it may; when no other bomber could be found, it carried bombs; when no other transport could be found, it transported; when no other photo plane could be found, it photographed and when no other rescuer could be found, it rescued. When it came to "Utility Craft," the JF/J2F was the definitive.

Russian military aviation has undergone several upheavals in the post-Soviet era. There have been two driving forces behind these changes. First, the Russian experience of air power in conflicts has led to an increasing integration of the various branches of the armed forces. Today's VKS was created as a result of the absorption of the Air Defence Troops (VPVO) by the Air Force (VVS) in 1998, and then a merger of the Air Force with the Aerospace Defence Troops (VVKO) in 2015.

Looks at the life of Betty Greene, a World War II WASP pilot who helped create the Mission Aviation Fellowship, an organization that provides aviation services and humanitarian aid to missionaries and villages around the world.

The company that Leroy Grumman founded in 1929 has been linking with the aircraft of the US Navy since 1930. Grumman aircraft have been in every major conflict from the Second World War through Korea and Vietnam to the Gulf and Bosnia. Their factory in Bethpage, Long Island, New York, (affectionately known as the 'Ironworks') produced some of the best carrier-borne aircraft ever made including the TBM Avenger (most successful torpedo bomber of all time), the Hellcat and Wildcat as well as the F-14 Tomcat and A-6 Intruder. Grumman-built Lunar Modules were used in the Apollo space missions and successfully landed men on the moon. The Ironworks is a comprehensive history of the Grumman Corporation and its many aircraft, both civil and military. -- Back cover.