Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1958-1959

Jane's is the recognized leader when it comes to information on military equipment.  Jane's All the World's Aircraft was founded in 1909 and first edited by Fred T. Jane.  These books are a lot of fun to look at...even if you are not particularly into aviation.  But if you are into aviation, they offer a complete index of all that has happened in aviation since the earliest days of powered flight.

Today' post features a copy of Jane's All the World's Aircraft from 1958-1959.  The thoroughness of these books is what makes them so fascinating.  There are countless aircraft presented here that most people, whether avid fans of aircraft or not, have probably never heard of.  

In the picture above is a page from the Bell Aircraft section featuring the Bell X-14.  This was a one off experimental Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) aircraft.  I actually saw this plane rotting in a field when I used to work at Ames Research Center in Sunnyvale, California.  It has since been salvaged and isnow located at the Ropkey Armor Museum in Indiana.  

Prior to cracking this book open today, I had never even heard gof the Breguet Type 763.  Looks like an interesting, albeit bulky passenger/cargo aircraft.  Sort of reminds me of the Boeing 377 that I posted on a while back.  

Finally...I wanted to comment on the "Airlines of the World" section.  When I saw this today, my initial thought was that it would make a great reference for the aviation postcard collector.  For example...looking at the page scanned here, I can see all of the aircraft that Air France had in it's fleet in 1959.  I suppose it is not unreasonable to expect that the company probably published postcards featuring these aircraft.  So, in a way, this section almost serves as a checklist for someone collecting vintage airline images.  

Until next time...