Salvador Mafé Huertas – författare

The Tactical Leadership Programme (TLP), founded in 1978, is one of Europe's longest-running military training programs, focused on improving the tactical leadership and flying capability of NATO air forces. Its primary goal is to enhance interoperability between NATO members and provide a flying laboratory for new tactical employment concepts.With ten founding member countries—Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States—the TLP has trained thousands of pilots from various European and North American air forces. Over the decades, it has adapted to four technological generations of aircraft, training pilots during the Cold War, the post-Berlin Wall era, and through the rise of global terrorism.The book covers the history of the TLP, detailing its training syllabus, course rigor, and evolving air bases. It also features interviews with commanding officers, highlighting the importance of skilled commanders for leading multinational air formations. Veteran non-commissioned officers discuss the coordination of diverse teams across languages and cultures.

Developed in the early 1950s for the US Navy and US Marine Corps, the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk first flew in June 1954. A compact, lightweight, and versatile aircraft for its time, it quickly found a strong export market. Argentina was the first foreign operator, eventually acquiring 130 A-4s.In 1963, the Argentine Navy sought to replace its aging Vought F4U-5 Corsair and Grumman F9F-2 Panther. After studies, it was proposed that the Douglas AD-5 Skyraider would replace the Corsair and the A-4 Skyhawk would replace the Panther. However, negotiations with the United States proved difficult. In response to Argentina considering the British Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR.Mk.1, the US approved the sale of A-4 Skyhawks to deter the UK deal. This led Argentina to purchase 165 A-4 Skyhawks—129 for the Air Force and thirty-six for the Navy.The Skyhawks became the first jets to launch from a Latin American aircraft carrier. During the Falklands War in 1982, they achieved one of Argentina's greatest successes by sinking HMS Ardent, operating from the naval air station at Rio Grande in Tierra del Fuego. Despite this success, the Skyhawks faced challenges, including being in poor condition due to a US arms embargo placed on Argentina in 1976.Argentine Skyhawks in the Falklands War explores the training, preparation, and operations of the Skyhawks during the conflict. Operating from the aircraft carrier 25 de Mayo, these Skyhawks included interceptors armed with Sidewinder missiles and attack divisions with MK-82 bombs. The book focuses on key engagements, such as the Royal Navy's ships in San Carlos Water and the attack on Ardent in Falkland Sound. Featuring numerous first-hand accounts from Skyhawk pilots and lavish illustrations, this book provides unique insights into Argentine operations during the Falklands conflict.

The Grumman F-14 Tomcat was a cornerstone of US Navy air power from the 1970s through to its retirement in 2006. Designed as a twin-engine, two-seat, supersonic interceptor, the F-14 was engineered to dominate the skies, primarily to counter Soviet aircraft during the Cold War.The Tomcat’s sleek, angular design and distinctive variable-sweep wings gave it a menacing yet elegant silhouette, embodying both agility and raw power. Capable of adjusting its wing angle mid-flight – sweeping back for high-speed dashes or forward for enhanced manoeuvrability – the Tomcat adapted seamlessly to diverse combat scenarios, achieving speeds exceeding Mach 2.3 and a range of approximately 1,600 nautical miles. As would be expected with an aircraft that remained in service for a number of decades, the F-14 had an impressive operational career. The type saw combat during the end of the Vietnam War, and was involved in the Lebanon Crisis in the early 1980s, Operation Desert Storm in the Gulf War, the Balkans Conflicts of the 1990s, flew strike missions during Operation Desert Fox (1998) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (2003). and even flew over Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom in the early 2000s. It was in these conflicts that the Tomcat proved its mettle in reconnaissance, air superiority, and later, precision strike roles with the addition of the LANTIRN targeting system.Beyond its technical prowess, the F-14 gained cultural fame through its starring role in the 1986 movie blockbuster Top Gun, and its subsequent sequel, cementing its image as a symbol of American military might and pilot bravado.Though retired by the US Navy in favour of the F/A-18 Hornet, the F-14 remains operational in limited numbers with Iran’s air force – a fact which is given due attention in this study. The Tomcat’s legacy endures as a marvel of engineering and a cultural touchstone of aviation history all of which is revealed in this visual feast.

The birth of the Ninth Squadron (Novena Escuadrilla) of the Spanish Navy Fleet Air Arm (Flotilla de Aeronaves in short FLOAN) took place in 1987 with the receipt of the first three AV-8B aircraft from McDonnell Douglas factory in St. Louis on October 6 of that year. Deliveries continued for a total of 12 AV-8B Harrier IIs (numbered 01- 901 to 01-912) commonly known as “Day Attack” to differentiate them from later models Night Attack and AV-8B+ or “Radar” Aircraft. On January 29, 1996 the first AV-8B Plus 01-914 joined the squadron. Then continued deliveries up to 01-921, which makes a total of eight AV-8B+ that greatly enhanced the operational capabilities of the squadron. On 1 October 2000 the unit received TAV-8B 01-922, which is the only two-seater with the squadron and together with the simulator allows it to be totally autonomous in the adaptation to training new pilots just graduated from the U.S Naval Aviator pipeline.  On July 30, 2003 were received from the now Boeing factory in Saint Louis the first two AV-8B to be remanufactured as AV-8B+  numbered 01-923 and 01-924. On 21 November the same year the last three planes in the remanufacturing programme, 01-925, 01-926 and 01-927 were ferried to Rota Naval Sation flown by Novena Escuadrilla pilots.