V-Force by Jonathan Glancey

V-Force by Jonathan Glancey

'Impressive... Glancey has written an engaging and affectionate account of the V-bombers, not least the figures who made it all possible.' Telegraph

THE THREE VERY DIFFERENT models of V class bomber comprising Britain's strategic nuclear strike force - Vickers Valiant, Avro Vulcan and Handley Page Victor - marked a radical change in post-war bomber design. From the time they first entered service between 1955 and 1957, these charismatic, high-flying jets stole the public imagination. Theirs, though, was a terrible beauty. In 1956, over the South Australian desert, Valiant WZ366 was the first British aircraft to drop an operational atomic bomb.

The V-bombers were Britain's premier Cold War aircraft. But frictions in Anglo-American relations alongside
developments in radar and surface-to-air missiles led to the Royal Navy taking over Britain's nuclear deterrent role in 1968. Despite this, the V-bombers enjoyed a second life in conventional roles, most notably when Vulcans undertook the longest bombing raids in history in the 1982 Falklands War.

V-Force sets these formidable, haunting aircraft in the story of the development of twentieth-century weapons of mass destruction, military rivalries and international politics. It is both an extraordinary ode to the V-bombers and a unique lens through which to view Britain's Cold War experience.

Jonathan Glancey is well known as the former architecture and design correspondent of the Guardian and Independent newspapers. A frequent broadcaster, his books include Wings Over Water, The Journey Matters, Concorde, Harrier, Giants of Steam, Spitfire, Nagaland, Tornado and The Story of Architecture.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781838957957
ISBN 10	1838957952
Title	V-Force
Author	Jonathan Glancey
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Atlantic Books
Year published	2025-08-07
Number of pages	352
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.