Defense and Aerospace

Industries

A single dominant customer, cost-plus contracting and programme-level concentration; returns depend on procurement politics.

8 books

Start here

  1. Skunk WorksBen R. Rich, Leo Janos, 1994
  2. Augustine's LawsNorman R. Augustine, 1983
  3. Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of WarRobert Coram, 2002

Books 8

Skunk Works
T1 Skunk Works
Ben R. Rich, Leo Janos · 1994 · Insider account of Lockheed's advanced projects unit.
Open Library
Sam Altman
The Sporty Game
T2 The Sporty Game
John Newhouse · 1982 · The commercial-airframe side of the same duopoly economics.
Open Library
Augustine's Laws
T2 Augustine's Laws
Norman R. Augustine · 1983 · Insider satire-with-data on defence programme cost growth.
Open Library
Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art
T2 Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War
Robert Coram · 2002 · The OODA loop and the reformers' war inside the Pentagon.
Open Library
Morgan HouselPatrick O'ShaughnessyPaul GrahamRyan Holiday
The Wright Brothers
T2 The Wright Brothers
David McCullough · 2015 · Two bicycle makers solving flight through iteration and self-funding
Open Library
Ali AbdaalMohnish PabraiMorgan HouselAusten AllredBob IgerBrian Armstrong
The Pentagon Wars
T3 The Pentagon Wars
James G. Burton · 1993 · Insider account of the Bradley programme and operational testing.
Open Library
Prophets of War
T3 Prophets of War
William D. Hartung · 2010 · Lockheed Martin as a case study in the contractor-state relationship.
Open Library
Liftoff
T3 Liftoff
Eric Berger · 2021 · SpaceX's first four Falcon 1 launches.
Open Library