Skunk Works: A Personal Memoir of My Years of Lockheed by Leo Janos (PDF)

Description

This classic history of America’s high-stakes quest to dominate the skies is “a gripping technothriller in which the technology is real” (New York Times Book Review). From the development of the U-2 to the Stealth fighter, Skunk Works is the true story of America’s most secret and successful aerospace operation. As recounted by Ben Rich, the operation’s brilliant boss for nearly two decades, the chronicle of Lockheed’s legendary Skunk Works is a drama of Cold War confrontations and Gulf War air combat, of extraordinary feats of engineering and human achievement against fantastic odds. Here are up-close portraits of the maverick band of scientists and engineers who made the Skunk Works so renowned. Filled with telling personal anecdotes and high adventure, with narratives from the CIA and from Air Force pilots who flew the many classified, risky missions, this book is a riveting portrait of the most spectacular aviation triumphs of the twentieth century.”Thoroughly engrossing.” –Los Angeles Times Book Review

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐Amazing quantum leaps the Sunk Works made time & time again. Learned a lot I hadn’t seen in other sources. Enjoyed reading more about Kelly Johnson from Ben Rich who worked with him for so long. An engaging read that often kept me up beyond bedtime.

⭐Informative.

⭐If you like military aviation, this books is for you. It does an outstanding job of going over stealth aircraft from the beginning of stealth up to near present day. It also provided an in-depth look at Kelly Johnson, the father of stealth aircraft, and the inner workings of Lockheed and their interfacing with the US government. Highly recommended!

⭐I picked this up at a library several years ago. It stuck with me. I had to buy a copy. Great stories. Great characters. Even better if you know Burbank.

⭐This is the detailed exciting story of how revolutionary aeronautical technology was created and changed aeronautical warfare. It is also a handbook on how high energy strong-willed, technology visionaries like like Steve Jobs, Elon Musk and Lockheed’s Kelly Johnson function as managers. The technology evolution is extraordinary and the lessons about managing in a futuristic high tech environment are outstanding. Chapter 16 on conclusions, is a detailed very specific list of procurement process changes that are necessary If great technology is going to be able to continue to override the political self-interest of individuals in the procurement process. On page 308 the equation describing the Harvard (HBS) summer certificate programs for technology companies says (2/3 of HBS=BS). But as we know, with two variables, two equations are necessary. The second equation in my personal opinion, having been in the courses, should be (1/3 of HBS=Ag), students must sort the BS from the Ag for themselves.

⭐Interesting history of formerly secret programs.

⭐This book was extremely well written. I have a general interest in aerospace stuff, but I wasn’t expecting the different perspectives added in, by pilots, by politicians. I didn’t expect the operational use examples of U-2s, SR-71s (or that it was RS-71 until the president said it wrong, so they had to change it). Fascinating, historical, gives one a sense of pride and danger at the risks those pilots took and take today. The end is clearly biased against the author’s view of how procurement (and sustainment) should work, but it’s a fair and supported perspective. Excellent book that I looked forward to getting back to and finished quickly.

⭐This true story of what took place behind the scenes of the Skunks Works program as well as hearing stories about missions from the CIA and Air Force pilots had me binge reading to where I couldn’t put it down! This book is well written and I highly recommend it!

⭐I didn’t think I’d be very interested in this sort of book, but it was strongly recommended by a friend. It was an absolutely fascinating story – I can’t believe what those pilots and engineers did, so long ago – and a testament to the brilliance of the program is that the U2s are still flying.I have to comment on the way the book is structured – the events aren’t presented in chronological order, but in a confusing series of hops back and forth in time. I’m reasonably certain that this wasn’t the author’s original intention – I suspect it was the publishers’ attempt to jazz up what they thought might be a book of limited interest by pushing some exciting bits of narrative to the front. A shame, really.

⭐I’ve long had a fascination with the Skunk Works, producers of the U2, and of course the legendary SR71 Mach 3+ spy plane. This is an account of the some times difficult struggle to overcome the prejudices and negativity of the beaurocrats especially when the skunk works wished to build the revolutionary stealth fighter, the F117. Fas

⭐Bought this as a sunbed holiday read, amazing read of what can be accumplished when project management and Buracracy are pushed to one side. Insight into the 1960s and 70s at skunk works and the thinking and technology that we still amaze at some 50-60 years later.

⭐A great read and a journey back in time to when life was simpler, there was less red tape and if you surrounded yourself with excellence, you could achieve the unimaginable in a very short space of time. (Caveating this heavily as the boss wrote the book and I’m quite sure the line workers pulled very long hours for little reward).

⭐On page 51 and I’m hooked. I’m not a reader and never have as I never find things that interest me enough. This has survived so far and is very interesting. Amazing to read about how these projects came about back in the day and how they run and hide them from public

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