An in-depth look at these Cold War-era bombers, in the words of those who flew them-includes photos.

The Vulcan, the second of the three V bombers built to guard the United Kingdom during the Cold War, has become an aviation icon like the Spitfire, its delta shape as instantly recognizable as the howling noise it makes when the engines are opened for takeoff.

Vulcan Boys is the first book about this bomber recounted completely firsthand by the operators themselves. It tells the story of the aircraft from its design conception through the Cold War, when it played out its most important job as Britain's nuclear deterrent; it also reveals the significant role its bombs and missiles played in liberating the Falkland Islands, for which it gained much celebrity.

These individual accounts detail how hours at a time were spent waiting to be scrambled to defend the country in the event of a third world war, and how pilots'...