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Skunk Works
- A Personal Memoir of My Years of Lockheed
- Narrated by: Pete Larkin
- Length: 12 hrs and 8 mins
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Publisher's summary
From the development of the U-2 to the Stealth fighter, the never-before-told story behind America's high-stakes quest to dominate the skies. 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 20th century.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.
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Famed investigative journalist Eric Schlosser digs deep to uncover secrets about the management of America's nuclear arsenal. A groundbreaking account of accidents, near misses, extraordinary heroism, and technological breakthroughs, Command and Control explores the dilemma that has existed since the dawn of the nuclear age: How do you deploy weapons of mass destruction without being destroyed by them? That question has never been resolved - and Schlosser reveals how the combination of human fallibility and technological complexity still poses a grave risk to mankind.
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A miracle that we escaped the Cold War alive....
- By A reader on 02-16-14
By: Eric Schlosser
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Chasing the Demon
- A Secret History of the Quest for the Sound Barrier, and the Band of American Aces Who Conquered It
- By: Dan Hampton
- Narrated by: John Pruden
- Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In the aftermath of World War II, the United States accelerated the development of technologies that would give it an advantage over the Soviet Union. Airpower, combined with nuclear weapons, offered a formidable check on Soviet aggression. In 1947, the United States Air Force was established. Meanwhile, scientists and engineers were pioneering a revolutionary new type of aircraft which could do what no other machine had ever done: reach mach 1 - a speed faster than the movement of sound - which pilots called "the demon."
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Not at all what it purports to be
- By John A Stevenson on 11-20-18
By: Dan Hampton
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A Fiery Peace in a Cold War
- Bernard Schriever and the Ultimate Weapon
- By: Neil Sheehan
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 19 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
From Neil Sheehan, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning classic A Bright Shining Lie, comes this long-awaited, magnificent epic. Here is the never-before-told story of the nuclear arms race that changed history - and of the visionary American Air Force officer Bernard Schriever, who led the high-stakes effort. A Fiery Peace in a Cold War is a masterly work about Schriever’s quests to prevent the Soviet Union from acquiring nuclear superiority, to penetrate and exploit space for America, and to build the first weapons meant to deter an atomic holocaust.
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Schriever rhymes with beaver.
- By John Gardner on 11-13-09
By: Neil Sheehan
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The Crash Detectives
- Investigating the World's Most Mysterious Air Disasters
- By: Christine Negroni
- Narrated by: Christine Negroni
- Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In The Crash Detectives, veteran aviation journalist and air safety investigator Christine Negroni takes us inside crash investigations from the early days of the jet age to the present, including the search for answers about what happened to the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370. As Negroni dissects what happened and why, she explores their common themes and, most important, what has been learned from them to make planes safer.
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MISSLEADING TITLE.
- By Daniel Schneider on 11-02-16
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Flying from the Black Hole
- The B-52 Navigator-Bombardiers of Vietnam
- By: Robert O. Harder
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 9 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Air Force navigators and bombardiers have long labored under the shadow of pilots - their contributions undervalued, misunderstood, or unknown to the general public. This was especially the case with the non-pilot officer aircrew in the Vietnam and Cold War-era B-52 Stratofortress. Of the six people who operated the bomber, three wore navigator wings - two of those men were also bombardiers, the other an electronic warfare officer. Without the navigator-bombardiers in particular, executing the nuclear war strike plan or flying Southeast Asian bombing sorties would have been impossible.
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Today I learned something new.
- By Rob Wilson on 02-20-21
By: Robert O. Harder
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Freedom's Forge
- How American Business Built the Arsenal of Democracy That Won World War II
- By: Arthur Herman
- Narrated by: John McDonough
- Length: 16 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
New York Times best-selling author and Pulitzer Prize finalist Arthur Herman pens this fascinating look at how two businessmen turned the U.S. into a military powerhouse during World War II. In 1940, FDR asked General Motors CEO William Knudsen to oversee the production of guns, tanks, and planes needed for the war. Meanwhile, industrialist Henry J. Kaiser presided over the building of “Liberty ships” - vessels that came to symbolize America’s great wartime output.
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Enlightening. Amazing, Great Narration
- By G. Sanders on 08-26-12
By: Arthur Herman
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Topgun
- An American Story
- By: Dan Pedersen
- Narrated by: Jim Meskimen
- Length: 9 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Dan Pedersen takes listeners on a colorful and thrilling ride - from Miramar to Area 51 to the decks of aircraft carriers in war and peace - through a historic moment in air warfare. He helped establish a legacy that was built by him and his "Original Eight" - the best of the best - and carried on for six decades by some of America's greatest leaders. Topgun is a heartfelt and personal testimonial to patriotism, sacrifice, and American innovation and daring.
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I loved it!
- By "airplane_cfii" on 10-09-19
By: Dan Pedersen
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The Taking of K-129
- How the CIA Used Howard Hughes to Steal a Russian Sub in the Most Daring Covert Operation in History
- By: Josh Dean
- Narrated by: Neil Hellegers
- Length: 15 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In the early hours of February 25, 1968, a Russian submarine armed with three nuclear ballistic missiles set sail from its base in Siberia on a routine combat patrol to Hawaii. Then it vanished. As the Soviet navy searched in vain for the lost vessel, a small, highly classified American operation using sophisticated deep-sea spy equipment found it - wrecked on the sea floor at a depth of 16,800 feet, far beyond the capabilities of any salvage that existed.
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One of the great stories in history
- By Ben Newman on 11-21-17
By: Josh Dean
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Vulcan Boys
- From the Cold War to the Falklands: True Tales of the Iconic Delta V Bomber
- By: Tony Blackman
- Narrated by: Roger Davis
- Length: 11 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
The Vulcan, the second of the three V bombers built to guard the UK during the Cold War, has become an aviation icon like the Spitfire, its delta shape instantly recognizable, as is the howling noise it makes when the engines are opened for takeoff. Vulcan Boys is the first Vulcan book recounted completely firsthand by the operators themselves.
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a compelling work but slow to start
- By Josh Boyle on 08-06-16
By: Tony Blackman
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First Man
- The Life of Neil A. Armstrong
- By: James R. Hansen
- Narrated by: Jeremy Bobb
- Length: 16 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
When Apollo 11 touched down on the Moon’s surface in 1969, the first man on the Moon became a legend. In First Man, author James R. Hansen explores the life of Neil Armstrong. Based on over 50 hours of interviews with the intensely private Armstrong, who also gave Hansen exclusive access to private documents and family sources, this "magnificent panorama of the second half of the American twentieth century" (Publishers Weekly, starred review) is an unparalleled biography of an American icon.
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Not really 'unabridged'
- By A Reader on 06-06-18
By: James R. Hansen
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SR-71, the Blackbird, Q&A
- By: Terry Pappas
- Narrated by: Chris Abell
- Length: 4 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Higher, farther, faster - what every real aviator aspires to. The SR-71 was the epitome of this dream for three decades. The only way to beat the SR-71 was to rocket into space, and every astronaut in the office with me in the 1960s would have loved to have flown the Blackbird. In many ways it placed greater demand on piloting proficiency than any spacecraft.
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Great in sight on life and times of Blackbird crew
- By J Bo on 11-11-15
By: Terry Pappas
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Never Mind, We'll Do It Ourselves
- The Inside Story of How a Team of Renegades Broke Rules, Shattered Barriers, and Launched a Drone Warfare Revolution
- By: Alec Bierbauer, Col. Mark Cooter USAF (Ret.), Michael Marks
- Narrated by: David de Vries
- Length: 10 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Never Mind, We'll Do It Ourselves is the character-driven story behind the origins of the Predator drone program and the dawn of unmanned warfare. A firsthand account told by an Air Force team leader and a CIA team leader, Never Mind, We'll Do It Ourselves takes the listener into the back offices and secret government hangars where the robotic revolution went from a mad scientist idea to a pivotal part of global air power.
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Excellent story
- By Nestor Perez on 02-08-22
By: Alec Bierbauer, and others
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Higher, farther, faster - what every real aviator aspires to. The SR-71 was the epitome of this dream for three decades. The only way to beat the SR-71 was to rocket into space, and every astronaut in the office with me in the 1960s would have loved to have flown the Blackbird. In many ways it placed greater demand on piloting proficiency than any spacecraft.
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What listeners say about Skunk Works
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
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- Allstar
- 11-05-16
Ben Rich's life story...but not in that order
Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?
This book would be less than half its current length if told in chronological order. It jumps around a lot in time, starting with the F-117, then jumping back to the start of the U-2 development, following the history of the U-2 from the mid '50's into the Clinton administration, then jumping back to the early '60's to the SR-71. He ends up describing a drone they made at length as a basis of comparison for the F-117, then later in the book they go back to describe that drone's development. The book is thus very repetitive.
Has Skunk Works turned you off from other books in this genre?
No. There's quite a lot of interesting information and anecdotes in this book, and others may not have the style problems this book has.
What three words best describe Pete Larkin’s performance?
Only one voice. The book contains quite a bit of dialog and quite a few narrator switches, but the book is read by one man in one voice, so it's hard to keep up with who is speaking.
Was Skunk Works worth the listening time?
Honestly, no. It's probably a better idea to read this book in print rather than listen to the audio book version.
Any additional comments?
The actual meat of the book is very fascinating. These are personal anecdotes mostly from an engineer and later manager of the Skunk Works, along with other engineers, men from the CIA and Air Force, and pilots of the various aircraft. Unfortunately, these amazing stories are done a disservice by the non-chronological style.
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59 people found this helpful
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- Jean
- 08-04-15
Awesome
Skunk Works is a personal memoir written by the chief engineer of Lockheed’s Skunk Works Ben Rick. The book tells of his first experiences at Lockheed during the 1950s; it ranges all the way past the First Gulf War.
The author describes the varied events that occurred and projects that were undertaken at Lockheed’s aerospace development wing. The first four chapters are about building the first stealth bomber. Rich tells how the name Skunk Works came about. He describes the U2 project and Blackbird.
Rich also tells about his co-workers and particularly his boss the genius Kelly Johnson. He also discusses his colleagues from other agencies such as the Air Force and the CIA. Rich covers many of the technical details and challenges that the Skunk Works’ team faced overcoming engineering problems as well as the difficulties of funding and politics. Rich also covers his personal life including the death of his wife. I enjoyed the comment from various fellow workers from Lockheed, Air Force offices and the various Secretary of Defenses and other political appointees.
This is a great book as it describes the almost impossible challenges the engineers rose to solve. The book is well written and moves right along. This is a book you will want to keep to use as a reference book. Pete Larkin narrated the book.
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51 people found this helpful
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- Nar
- 09-19-15
Nice work for a techie or aero interested
Overall liked it a lot. Performance was good. The narrator tried to alert you when the chapter or passage was someone else other than the principal contributor but it would be more helpful if those passages were voiced by a different voice actor.
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30 people found this helpful
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- Felipe Ferreira
- 02-26-17
Amazing book
Amazing book for anyone who likes cold war stories or aviation story. An inside look on the development of the most amazing airplanes ever developed.
The audio book could have benefit from multiple readers, sometimes it's hard to keep track on whom is telling a specific story as everyone is interpreted by the same reader. The book does not follow a linear storyline, it goes back and forth on time, so you need to pay attention to not get lost
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28 people found this helpful
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- Count B
- 02-02-17
AN INSIGHT BEHIND AREA 51's BLACK PROJECTS
Any additional comments?
Captivating, informative, and very engaging read - but I think the information is presented in such a way that a reader from any background can appreciate and understand the story and the amazing achievements to design the Stealth Bomber, U2 & more. Is very often very amusing. Area 51 is not what you think, it is to me even more fascinating than I guessed.
This book adds a huge amount of perspective and previously unknown background info to the story of the iconic Lockheed planes, it tells the story in many chapters written by the author, but also in other chapters from the different perspectives of people that designed and flew the planes, among others. Rich and his co-writer go into interesting details about the engineering challenges faced and the benchmarks required of some of the best and most secretive airplane programs of the Cold War era.
It provides a window into the personality and character of the iconic Lockheed Skunk Works, figures of this time period. Also, a great deal of interesting added perspective on the military industrial complex contract-garnering process. This book is a very interesting historical account presented in a page-turner format.
As for UFO's, he says: "Problem is you have to make them spin, & the aliens would not tell us how to do that". Then he abruptly changes the subject. Interesting indeed.
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17 people found this helpful
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- Brad Safranski
- 03-12-16
Intriguing look behind the most amazing aircraft
A personal, no-BS account of the drama and politics behind these high budget, cutting edge technology projects. Great balance between the ins and outs and human sides of developing world class aircraft, plus an interesting treatment of the aircraft design legend Clarence Kelly Johnson. Multiple contributors make it a little tough to follow who is talking but overall it is great to hear from pilots and other team members. The reader clearly had a cold while recording the last few chapters but still a solid performance. Excellent listen for Cold War, technology, aircraft, or engineering enthusiasts especially as well as the average reader.
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- Gian Johl
- 07-27-15
Great listen
A little hard to keep up with who the author is speaking for but great book and story on skunkworks
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14 people found this helpful
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- The Duke of Boston
- 08-19-15
Awesome book.
Thank you for all the hard work. Who knows what would have happened without them
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9 people found this helpful
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- Richard
- 08-14-15
Engrossing tale of the skunk works
What made the experience of listening to Skunk Works the most enjoyable?
The details about the SR71 and U2 aircraft
If you could give Skunk Works a new subtitle, what would it be?
Skunk works up to 1990
Any additional comments?
Too bad the story ends about 20 years in the past
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8 people found this helpful
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- LooptyLoop
- 07-29-16
Good, but an hour too long
A fun book, but the hour-long exposition on the value of defense spending and the skunk works development model was a boring and pointless ending.
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7 people found this helpful