TSR2: Britain’s Lost Cold War Strike Jet Book Review
By David L. Veres
| Date of Review | December 2017 | Title | TSR2: Britain’s Lost Cold War Strike Jet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Author | Andrew Brookes | Publisher | Osprey Publishing |
| Published | 2017 | ISBN | 9781472822482 |
| Format | 80 pages, softbound | MSRP (USD) | $20.00 |
Review
Andrew Brookes tells the terrific tale of a legendary Cold War "What If" in TSR2: Britain's Lost Cold War Strike Jet – fifth in Osprey Publishing's growing "X-Planes" range.
After introductory notes, contents competently survey the saga:
- Introduction
- Origins
- The Airframe
- Engines And Avionics
- Flight Testing
- The Politics
- What Might Have Been
Brookes recaps the TSR2's tough mission requirements – and the considerable airframe and power plant challenges those demands posed.
The program's heavily bureaucratic management structure also faces the author's examination. He claims that, for instance, the warplane's fuel system was "two or three times as complex as it need have been, with a corresponding increase in price".
The impact of politics naturally proves central to any TSR2 discussion. And Brookes dutifully details this, as well.
Was cancellation correct? Read his concluding, highly illuminating "TSR2 – An Operational Success?" – and judge for yourself.
Color and B&W photos, color profiles, drawings, and three action paintings illustrate the account. Extended captions, specifications, selected bibliography, and index further season the story.
Recommended!
My sincere thanks to Osprey Publishing for this review sample!