The contributions of three aviation pioneers
580985
This book deals with the three aviation pioneers Charles Lindbergh, Eddie Rickenbacker and Jimmy Doolittle who are responsible for their achievements to the development of aviation history.

All three men have on thing in common: all contributed to the development of the American aviation. Rickenbacker became the top US flying ace in World War I, Doolittle became the top military test pilot in the 1920s and of course renowned by the Tokyo Raid and Lindbergh became the most famous man alive by flying from New York to Paris.

In this book, Winston Groom traces their lives from their boyhoods until their deaths. Rather then being an biography, central theme in this book are the attributions they made to the American aviation. He handles the most remarkable events which defined them personally and places them in the context of political events.

By solely concentrating on these attributions, the book may not earn the title of biography. However, especially in the case of Lindbergh, the author attempts to give his opinions about Lindbergh, the events surrounding the trial of Richard Hauptmann (The Crime of the Century) and his controversial views on Nazism and communism before Americas involvement in World War II. This would not be a problem if Groom would have focussed more on the developments of aviation in general, but this unfortunately is not fully addressed.

Overall, this book is a fine one, with a good, sometimes dry, narrative style which serves well as an introduction to the three aviators, but anyone who expects a comprehensive biography may be left somewhat disappointed.
1422005
This is a very good reprint of a book from 1921.  It is well illustrated and contains information on many aircraft engines I have never read about anywhere else. I'm happy this title has been reprinted, as an original edition would be expensive. I would highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in vintage aviation.
2550365
A great read about 3 very dedicated, courageous, patriotic, intelligent, and most influential aviators in America.  These men have taken on some of the greatest challenges of flight and helped move aviation to the front page.
2880553
Later in the year, you will, I predict, start seeing centennial reminders of a truly epochal event that has changed us all, and changed our world forever.  On 17 December 1903, a couple of brothers from Dayton, Ohio, managed to get their "aeroplane" in the air, and we haven't come down since.  There are plenty of biographies of Wilbur and Orville Wright, but in _To Conquer the Air: The Wright Brothers and the Great Race for Flight_ (Free Press), James Tobin has told mainly their story of intellectual discovery, and made it clear how much work the brothers did in making their dreams come about.  As such, it tells a great deal about the others who were thinking about flight at around the same time; the Wrights were not experimenting or flying in a vacuum.  The upcoming centennial celebrations ought to be worldwide, and readers of this engaging and detailed chronicle will have a much better idea of just what we will be celebrating.

The other main potential aeronaut was Dr. Samuel Langley, president of the Smithsonian Institution, and he hung his hopes for flight on a powerful but light engine.  The Wrights, on the other hand, started out with the shape of the craft, especially the wings, to lead to flight.  It was to get good wind for their kite and glider experiments, and unobstructed landing points, and also secrecy, that they went to Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, for their trials.  The developed the idea of warping the wing to control the machine, and invented "Kitty Hawk in a box," the wind tunnel, to do scientific lift experiments.  When they discovered that wing warping would not allow full control without the kite yawing into a skid, they added a vertical tail, and it worked; such things could not be taken for granted back then. After successful flights of increasing length on 17 December 1903, the brothers walked four miles to send a telegram home about their success, ending with "INFORM PRESS."  However, the press either printed exaggerated stories, or for the most part, ignored them. Whole nations remained incredulous, and only when Wilbur took a machine to France, and demonstrated it, and had the entire nation excited about him, did the world, including his own country, start paying attention.

 There are fine portraits here of these taciturn men, their extremely close relationship with each other and with the father and sister within their staunchly Protestant family home.  Neither brother married; Wilbur joked that they had no means to support "a wife and a flying machine, too."  There are other players on the fringes here, like Octave Chanute, Alexander Graham Bell, and Glenn Curtiss, who played extremely important roles in flight or in the Wrights' work.  Best of all is the account of painstaking work in an endeavor that all of us take for granted now.  The book quotes one observer, for instance, as saying the flying machine looked absurd; cars, boats, and trains all traveled lengthwise, but an airplane came at you with the full width of its wings.  In the finale of the book, Wilbur takes his machine on a grand sweep around Manhattan, entrancing the enthusiastic crowds beneath.  Readers will be able to feel the enthusiasm.
715666
Definitive, highly regarded study tells the full story of the brothers' lives and work before, during and after the historic flight at Kitty Hawk. Early experiments and glider flights on Indiana sand dunes, exhilarating days on North Carolina's Outer Banks where they perfected the first flyer, the bitter patent fight and legal battles that followed, Wilbur's untimely death, and much more. Sure to thrill anyone fascinated by the early days of flight, this crisply written account which also contains references to such legendary aviation pioneers as Octave Chanute, Glenn Curtiss, and Samuel Langley captures the spirit of an extraordinary era.
4360780
Great Book for aviation enthusiasts. A must read if you are interested in aviation.
2696800
Although a national hero in Australia, Charles Kingsford Smith is not well known beyond the shores of this country. This is a shame.  With little doubt, he was one of the worlds greatest aviation pioneers. Indeed, Charles Lindbergh was quoted as calling him the greatest of long distance pilots.  Some praise!  Some reference!

Peter FitzSimons has produced a thoroughly readable biography of the great man.  He has used Australian vernacular and he has used it well.  The book is a pleasure to read.  It flows smoothly and provides a wonderful chronology of Kingsford Smith who was born in suburban Sydney, went to serve in Gallipoli and the Western Front.  It was in Europe that he learned to fly.  He was quickly intoxicated be the experience.

With the end of the Great War, it seems that Kingsford Smith only wanted to continue flying.  To this end, he led the first successful crossing of the Pacific from Oakland to Hawaii, then on to Suva and finally, Brisbane.  In 1928, this was a stupendous achievement.  Today, we think nothing of crossing this vast stretch of water while fast asleep aboard a jumbo jet.  How times have changed.

Yet, for all his flying skills, Kingsford Smith was a poor businessman.  He was never able to accumulate vast wealth in the manner of Lindbergh.  As a result, he continually set himself new challenges; new records that had to be broken.  In the end, of course, this was his undoing.  He died in 1935 in the Gulf of Thailand trying to break the Britain to Australia record.  His wrecked plane was never found.

I recommend this book to all readers of general history.  It is a great page turner.  Rare praise for a work of biography!
3213104
This was an interesting book with more information about the Wright Family than I had ever heard.  The book went deep into personalities of the brothers, the father and the sister and their never ending endeavors to develop the airplane.  With many trials and some injuries they never gave up.  The detail covered was a bit much thus the 4 stars instead of 5.
965378
The details of the three squadrons (especially my brothers'375th) was the best account of activities at Little Waldon which I visited last year. It illustrates the extent of our pilot losses that I have not seen before.
4536971
Any student of early aviation in America will realized that, in addition to the Wright brothers and Glenn Curtiss, there were many relatively unheralded pioneers who played a decisive role in making aviation accessible and popular. Doris L. Rich, author of the excellent 1989 Amelia Earhart and Queen Bess: Daredevil Aviator, has produced a noteworthy history of the fabulous Moisant family, who contributed no small amount to getting aircraft and the training it took to handle them to the forefront in America. A family of French speaking immigrants from Canada originally, the Moisants had made their fortunes in the 1800s by managing a lucrative sugar plantation in El Salvador. The children of the original Alfred Moisant, "Johnny" Moisant, older brother Alfred Moisant, and their shy sister Mathilde all played a role in developing aviation in the U.S. The Moisant Aviation School and the Moisant International Aviators helped to develop the talents of Harriet Quimby, the first woman licensed aviatrix in America and the Frenchman Roland Garros, who became a hero in the soon-to-come First World War. This book outlines the adventures of the Moisants and the eventual decline of the Moisant aviation combine after the deaths of John Moisant and Harriet Quimby and the retirement from aviation of Mathilde Moisant. An important work on early aviation history and for the earliest efforts of women in aviation.
3440222
In the 1950s and 1960s, three new British airliners forever changed the way we travel by air. They were the De Havilland DH.106 Trident, Vickers Viscount, and BAC/Aerospatiale Concorde.  Two other pioneers were Sud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle, Tupolev Tu-104, and BAC-111; I would love to see these three treated together in another volume.
The Comet was the first production jet airliner, and the plane paid a heavy price for that distinction.  Although De Havilland took strong precautions in designing a pressurized airliner that would fly higher and faster than anything before, the concept of metal fatigue was not well understood.  Several well-publicized crashes doomed the success of the Comet; when the redesigned Comet 4 emerged, the British airliner was easily outclassed by the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8, both of which benefited from what was learned from the Comet.
The Viscount was the world's first turboprop airliner. The difference between the new turbine and previous piston engine was readily apparent and appreciated among passengers; the Viscount heralded a new standard of comfort and reliability in short- to medium-range air travel.  Vickers sold 444 airframes, making it the most successful British airliner ever.  The plane's engines themselves are an aviation classic; the superb Rolls-Royce Dart went on to power the Fokker F-27, Handley-Page Dart Herald, and Hawker-Siddeley HS.748 among other aircraft.
The Concorde speaks for itself.  Though the Tupolev Tu-144 preceded Concorde, the Anglo-French airliner remains the only successful supersonic transport.  With its recent 2003 retirement, the Concorde has attained somewhat of a cult status.
Mr. Stewart has presented three very different British designs, each it its own way a pioneer.  Each section includes a detailed production list, data on types and subtypes, and detailed sketches.  This book is a highly worthy addition to any commercial aviation enthusiast's bookshelf.
2937178
Excellent synopsis from early to advanced aviation topics, writings of the pioneers and adventurers. With excellent typesetting and easy to read text.
4318097
This book provides an inside view of history with much more detail than is commonly known by today's  generation. It shows how these three Aviators lives continually intertwined through the Second World War and set the stage for t he structure of our military in today's complex environment. An excellent read for those interested (or involved) in military aviation, and American history.
3109425
I have a weakness for books about Aviation history so when this book appeared in the new book section of our local library I was attracted to it by the title and cover photo. What could be new about Aviators and aviation history that I hadn't seen before? Was I ever in for a surprise! This is the most readable and informative book about aviation that I have encountered in years and reveals facets of aviation and World War I and II history that I hadn't learned before, especially the role that Charles Lindbergh played in World War II. I came away with a revised opinion of General MacArthur and an enriched appreciation of the three Aviators highlighted in the book as well as Billy Mitchell. Winston Groom handles the behavior of the US government in an informative and sensitive manner while revealing weaknesses that this nation was fortunate to survive. I cannot express my appreciation for the work of Winston Groom sufficiently to match his accomplishment as this book's author. This book is not a rehash of previous tales but a fresh and comprehensive glimpse into aviation history. You will not be sorry you read it!
4783345
Another in the series by Mr. Herris, who demonstrates the value in focusing on the airplane manufacturers in aviation history. Photos are excellent, compromised to a degree by Amazon's practice of using cheaper paper which blurs the images to an extent.  But content is excellent, with attention to Siemens' industrial history as well as the aircraft, from the "Giants" to the tubby little interceptors.  There are an abundance of colored profiles, which I enjoy.  If you enjoy WW1 aviation, you will like this book.
4084331
David's!, My hat is off to u! Fantastic &  Increadable research. My oldest brother Frank built  two experiential airplanes and love to fly,in local air shows..,He died in 2005 I know he would have loved your story . Two brothers with great conviction ,never wavering knowing what Flying/Flight could do for all of mankind. Real history, a great and exciting read.! Thanks I will be sharing ( The Wright Brothers ) with my family& friends sincerely! brother Jim
4762689
John Carver Edwards breathes life into half a dozen long-forgotten flyers. These were not the inventors, but the early practitioners who helped make flying a reality throughout America.
Edwards paints these flawed heroes with all their warts. Each had his flaws, many lost heir lives because of them. They are, nevertheless, individually compelling and collectively fascinating. This is a look into their lives and American life as if existed almost a century ago.
In these pages you fly from Dayton to the Mexican Revolution to bootlegging to barnstorming.
This is a must-read for anyone interested in the early days of flying or in pre-Prohibition America.