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Rating: 
Summary: Just the thing for those long connections
Review: This book is perfect for the frequent traveler with time on his or her hands at the airport! It is designed to make it relatively quick and painless to find the aircraft you're seeing BEFORE it rolls out of sight -- and I've found that this design works for me.What's more, the book is the perfect size to fit into the upper pocket on a Travelpro Rollaboard® suitcase -- so it's always easy for me to get to, when that unknown aircraft rolls into view. The book is very much like "A Field Guide to the Airplanes", in the Roger Tory Peterson tradition -- a way to quickly identify common (and sometimes obscure) aircraft quickly and accurately. If you're looking for detailed descriptions, or the real difference between a 737-300 and a 737-400, then you'll have to look elsewhere. But if you want to quickly know if that airplane out there is an Embraer 120 or a Fairchild Metro, this is the book for you. I can't wait for the third edition to appear (hint, hint)!
Rating:
Summary: Just the thing for those long connections
Review: This book is perfect for the frequent traveler with time on his or her hands at the airport! It is designed to make it relatively quick and painless to find the aircraft you're seeing BEFORE it rolls out of sight -- and I've found that this design works for me. What's more, the book is the perfect size to fit into the upper pocket on a Travelpro Rollaboard® suitcase -- so it's always easy for me to get to, when that unknown aircraft rolls into view. The book is very much like "A Field Guide to the Airplanes", in the Roger Tory Peterson tradition -- a way to quickly identify common (and sometimes obscure) aircraft quickly and accurately. If you're looking for detailed descriptions, or the real difference between a 737-300 and a 737-400, then you'll have to look elsewhere. But if you want to quickly know if that airplane out there is an Embraer 120 or a Fairchild Metro, this is the book for you. I can't wait for the third edition to appear (hint, hint)!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent for new spotters
Review: This book starts with a taxonomic chart (match what you see and go to that page) and branches off until you find the right plane group/subgroup. After that you have to flip through the pictures/descriptions in the subgroups to find the right plane. If you're sitting at an airport and have a good view with plenty of time to watch individual planes, this book is tops. However, if you're working at a distance with field glasses it won't really help. I agree that the specs are limited if you're a hard-core spotter. I too am still looking for a book with proportional drawings. However, I think this is the best book I've seen so far. IMHO, when compared with _Civil_Airliner_Recognition_, this book has more practical comparison/distinguishing notes, better photos, and better views for distinguishing characteristic identification.
Rating: 
Summary: Very Handy Reference Material
Review: This is a very nice guide to help the novice spotter ID today's aircraft. Small in dimensions (just a little bigger than pocket-sized), but loaded with nice pictures and facts about every major airplane type. A good buy.
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