Avions de Combat de l'Otan: Depuis 1949

More about the book

Created in 1949 by ten European countries, later joined by Canada and the United States, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was originally intended to federate the defense means of the signatories in the context of the beginning of the Cold War, just after the Berlin blockade. Setting up this alliance meant the weapons of the member countries and especially their air forces were very rapidly modernized, particularly under the aegis of the United States, the only country at the time to have a nuclear weapon, the indispensable prerequisite for all deterrence. In the following decades, several nations joined NATO, whereas France decided to go it alone and leave NATO to ensure its own defense. The disappearance of the USSR and the Warsaw Pact in the 1990s meant the role of the Alliance had to be reviewed, as it had lost its main adversary and reason for existence. Meanwhile, it began to participate in various external operations, and a number of countries from the former Eastern Bloc gradually started joining it. In this 300+ page book, the fighting planes of each NATO country's air force, whether a founding member or a new member, are presented in detail, with nations classified in alphabetical order, providing a comprehensive overview of the machines in operation and the camouflage systems and markings used, notably through more than 600 profiles and about 300 period photographs.