Walter J. Boyne books

Walter J. Boyne (1929-2020) was a retired U.S. Air Force Colonel, former director of the National Air and Space Museum, and bestselling author of aviation fiction and history spanning 49 books.

Non-Fiction

Title Published Buy on Amazon
The Jet Age 1979 Buy
Flying, An Introduction To Flight, Airplanes, And Aviation Careers 1980 Buy
Messerschmitt Me 262 1980 Buy
Boeing B 52 1981 Buy
The Aircraft Treasures of Silver Hill 1982 Buy
Vertical Flight 1984 Buy
De Havilland Dh-4 1984 Buy
Phantom in Combat 1985 Buy
The Leading Edge 1986 Buy
The Smithsonian Book Of Flight 1987 Buy
The Smithsonian Book of Flight for Young People 1988 Buy
Power Behind The Wheel 1988 Buy
Classic Aircraft 1990 Buy
Flight 1990 Buy
Weapons of Desert Storm 1991 Buy
Gulf War 1991 Buy
Air Force Eagles 1992 Buy
Art in Flight 1992 Buy
Silver Wings 1993 Buy
Clash of Wings 1994 Buy
Clash of Titans 1995 Buy
Fly Past, Fly Present 1995 Buy
Beyond The Wild Blue 1997 Buy
Beyond The Horizon 1998 Buy
Brassey’s Air Combat Reader 1999 Buy
German Aircraft and Armament 2000 Buy
Classic Airplanes 2001 Buy
Aces In Command 2001 Buy
The Best of “Wings” Magazine 2001 Buy
Air Warfare 2002 Buy
The Yom Kippur War 2002 Buy
The Influence of Air Power Upon History 2003 Buy
Rising Tide 2003 Buy
Operation Iraqi Freedom 2003 Buy
Today’s Best Military Writing 2004 Buy
Chronicle of Flight 2005 Buy
Soaring to Glory 2008 Buy
Air Combat Reader 2009 Buy
How The Helicopter Changed Modern Warfare 2011 Buy
The 25 Most Influential Aircraft of All Time 2018 Buy
Golden Age of Flight 2020 Buy

Standalone Novels

Title Published Buy on Amazon
The Wild Blue: The Novel of the U.S. Air Force 1986 Buy
Trophy for Eagles 1989 Buy
Eagles at War 1991 Buy
Dawn Over Kitty Hawk 2003 Buy
Walt Boyne’s Crummy Novel On Sex, Drugs, Planes and Aspergers 2015 Buy

The Jet Age Trilogy Reading Order

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Roaring Thunder 2006 Buy
Supersonic Thunder 2006 Buy
Hypersonic Thunder 2009 Buy

Walter J. Boyne lived the history he wrote about. A career Air Force officer who flew three generations of bombers, he went on to direct the National Air and Space Museum before becoming a full-time author. His novel The Wild Blue became a New York Times bestseller, and The Smithsonian Book of Flight sold around 400,000 copies.

Boyne published 49 books across fiction and non-fiction, nearly all focused on aviation and military history. His fiction traces the development of American air power from the early days of flight through the jet age, while his non-fiction covers everything from specific aircraft types to broad surveys of air warfare. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 2007.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many books has Walter J. Boyne written?

Walter J. Boyne has written 49 books across three series.

What was Walter J. Boyne's first book?

Walter J. Boyne’s first book is The Jet Age, published in 1979.

What was Walter J. Boyne's career background?

Boyne was a retired Air Force Colonel and combat pilot who flew B-50, B-47, and B-52 bombers. He served as director of the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, where he founded Air and Space magazine. After leaving the museum in 1986, he wrote full-time, producing both bestselling fiction and acclaimed aviation history.

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