Lockheed C-5 Galaxy

Warbird Tech Volume 36
By Bill Norton
Specialty Press, 2003
ISBN 1-58007-061-2
Softbound, 104 Pages
Available from Specialty Press for $16.95

Reviewed by Chris Banyai-Riepl

When it comes to memorable aircraft, the C-5 has to rank near the top of the list. Originally designed in the mid-1960s, the C-5 was the largest aircraft in the world when it rolled out for the first time. A pressing need for airlift in Vietnam pushed the C-5 forward faster than perhaps it should have been, but once the bugs were worked out the C-5 became a strong part of the strategic airlift program of the U.S. military.

This latest title in the Warbird Tech series does an outstanding job of covering the fascinating development and operations of the C-5 Galaxy. The author is quite knowledgeable on the subject, having been a flight test engineer in the Air Force. His careful retelling of the Galaxy story is well written and results in a book that is hard to put down. From the initial design studies to the early teething problems to the final C-5B program, the text covers it all.

Supplementing the text are plenty of photos, both in black and white and in color. Most of these photos have probably been seen in other publications, but this is likely the first time they have been presented together, and they follow the story quite well. Some of the more interesting photos include one showing a pair of F-5s inside the cargo hold, a C-5 air-launching a Minuteman I ICBM, and a color photo showing rewinged C-5As, with their original gray and white colors accented with Euro 1 camouflaged wing boxes.

This is an excellent book on the C-5 and another great addition to the Warbird Tech series. With so few books out there on the C-5, this book fills an important niche in U.S. cargo aircraft history, especially when coupled with the Warbird Tech volume on the C-17. Let’s hope that the folks at Specialty Press bless us with a Warbird Tech on the C-141 and thus round out the series of U.S. cargo aircraft.

Our thanks to Specialty Press for the review sample. Check out their website for other titles in the Warbird Tech series.