An in-depth look at some of the 20th century's notoriously terrible aircraft.
Many aircraft, some famous and some rare, gained a reputation for being difficult to fly and sometimes downright dangerous. This book looks at some of the worst culprits over a period spanning World War I to the age of supersonic flight. The following aircraft are included . . .
B.E.2: The Royal Flying Corps went to war in it in 1914. The B.E. was easy to fly and very stable-but it was difficult to maneuver and very easy to shoot down.
Tarrant Tabor: The Tabor was grotesque, a massive misfit of an experimental bomber that predictably came to grief on its first flight.
Avro Manchester: The twin-engine Manchester would fly all the way to Berlin and back-only to burst into flames over its own base.
Messerschmitt Me 210: The Me 210 was developed as a successor to Goering's Destroyer, the Bf 110. It was a disaster with a phenomenal accident rate.
Martin B-26 Marauder: They called the B-26 the "widowmaker," fast and powerful, with some savage characteristics.
Reichenberg IV: The manned version of the V-1 flying bomb was a desperation weapon, and its pilots intended to fly suicide missions against Allied shipping.
Tu-144: Rushed prematurely into its test program to beat the Anglo-French Concorde, the Tu-144 was intended to be Russia's supersonic dream.

Robert jackson specializes in Aviation Military History.