wanttaja@ssc-vax.UUCP (Ronald J Wanttaja) (12/18/85)
I had intended to post this a little earlier to Christmas, but, what the heck.... Well, how 'bout some recommendations for books for aviators? I have a liking for historical type books, so here are some of my favorites. Don't remember the authors of some, but the titles should be accurate. All but a couple are available in paperback. _YEAGER_ What else can I say? A facinating book, full of detail of the life of a test pilot in the post-war period. Very frank, Yeager shows that, for the most part, he wasn't the cool, calm, unflappable sky jock of his reputation... nightmares concerning a bad stretch of X-1 testing, etc. But he is probably the closest thing to the image that ever existed. Occasionally, the book suffers from this... you'll read a section, then a little later, you'll go, "He did WHAT?" and have to turn back and reread it. Some of the stories he tells should be aviation classics. If you don't want to spring $18 for the hardback, be first in line when the paperback comes out. _THE_BLUE_MAX_ Forget the Peppard movie. The main plot of this story is that drunkards can be heroes, and Bruno Stachel is both. A facinating character study, and note that the movie ending was wildly different from the book. It also clears up some ambiguous points from the movie, such as the downing of the British observation plane over Stachel's aerodrome. The movie implies that the rear gunner was coming back into action, but in the book, Stachel is committing murder. Author: Jack Hunter. Forget also the sequel, _THE_BLOOD_ORDER_, unless you really like the first book. _GOSHAWK_SQUADRON_ The BLUE MAX of the British side. Hilarious in points, it very well points out the expected lifespan of pilots during WWI. _PIECE_OF_CAKE_ Written by the same author as _GOSHAWK_SQUADRON_, it is the WWII version, set in a Fighter Command squadron during the first year of the war. It starts in the Phony War, and ends on September 15, 1940. One bad point about this book, the Phony War period is very much like the real Phony War... Boring! But the action sequences, and glimpses of life within the squadron, are very well done. This one should be out in paperback soon. _FLY_FOR_YOUR_LIFE_ The war biography of Robert Tuck, one of the British aces of WWII. A little melodramatic at times, it is a very good read. Paul Brickhill's _REACH_FOR_THE_SKY_, about Douglas Bader, is similar, but more heavily into the melodrama... and Brickhill seems to share Bader's deep hatred of the Germans. Read _FLY_FOR_YOUR_LIFE_ first. _THE_GREAT_ESCAPE_ Ok, there's no flying in it, but the subjects are RAF pilots. Paul Brickhill's account of the mass escape of 78 POWs from Stalag Luft III, and the subsequent murder of 50 of them. Brickhill treats the Germans a little more fairly in this one, especially when you consider he knew the 50 who were killed... Brickhill was also a prisoner in the camp, and was initially slated to be one of the escapees. The movie simplified the book enormously (as one must expect), but the depictions of camp life were quite true to the book. _FIREFOX_ A standard epionage thriller during the first half, the book (and movie, incidentally) takes off when Mitch Gant takes off in the stolen Firefox. _FATE_IS_THE_HUNTER_ by Earnest Gann. Again, forget the movie (Gann demanded they remove his name from the credits), a good episodic account of Gann's airline career. Lotsa pucker-factor stories. Well, that's it for now. Stay tuned, boys and girls, and in a few weeks I'll post a similar list of aviation movies to look for in the TV Guide/VCR store. Ron Wanttaja (ssc-vax!wanttaja) "Are they good? Sonny, Yeager and Hoover could fly right up your ass and you'd never know why you were farting shockwaves."
lee@doc (12/26/85)
I just bought my father a book called "Celluloid Wings" (don't know
the author). It is a history of flying movies from "Wings" to the
WWII films of the 50's. It has a lot of pictures, very interesting
text, and two very good appendixes. One of them list important films
from this time period, with technical info including types of planes
used and pilots who flew them. The other lists types of planes and
the films they were used in. All in all an indespensable reference
guide for flying film fans.
Also, any of Martin Cadain's (sp?) flying books are great. "The Last
Dogfight" and "Whip" are especially good. The bestWWII memoirs I
have read is "Thunderbolt" by Robert Johnson. He was one of the
leading aces in the European theater and went through some amazing
times. I don't know if this book is still in print, my copy is at
least 20 years old and about read to death.
Coming in on a wing and a prayer..
Lee Cochenour
allegra!convex!ctvax!trsvax!doc!leerfw@lan000 (12/31/85)
I have not read an Ernie Gann aviation book with which I have been
displeased. Look for his works in the library in several areas:
fiction, applied science (aviation), and history (aviation).
Richard Bach's books are quite good. Keep an eye open for his
books wherever you find Gann's.
I have forgotten the titles of two quite interesting books on
Alaskan bush pilots, but I found them in applied science. Authors
were Helmricks for one and Shelton for the other. Needless to
say, both authors are bush pilots. I found these quite interesting
since these guys do remarkable things with ordinary planes such
as Cubs and 172's.
An interesting story of constructing, flying, and learning
acrobatics in a homebilt biplane is Norm Weis's book with
"Starduster" (name of his plane) in the title.
Sorry about the general lack of titles, but I don't think you
can go wrong with the authors.
Randy Wright Lantech Systems {allegra,ihnp4,uiucdcs}!convex!infoswx!lan000!rfwkastin@aecom.UUCP (Steven Kastin) (01/07/86)
This is possibly more of a good "look" than a good "read",
but I would highly recommend the book "WINGS", published
Thomasson-Grant. It has fantastic photos by Mark Meyer,
and even a forward by Chuck Yeager. This book is aviation
photography at its best.
Steve Kastin
philabs|aecom|kastinlmiller@ucla-cs.UUCP (01/08/86)
Here's a fun one that'll keep you busy looking for the rarer planes for a long time to come: A Field Guide to Airplanes of North America (How to identify over 300 airplanes of North America: illustrations, descriptions, and specifications. by M. R. Montgomnery & Gerald Foster Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1984, $12.95 "The purpose of this book is simple: to allow anyone interested in aviation to *identify* the factory-built, fixed-wing aircraft seen in North America. It is a field guide, not an encyclopedia or a history of aviation. The organizing principle is visual, and we have made every effort to ensure that airplanes that resemble one another are grouped--if not on the same page, then withing a page or two." This book is a lot of fun, well worth the price. Sort of an airplane junky's equivalent to birdwatching. L. Miller arpa: lmiller@ucla-locus.arpa
rl@ucsfcgl.UUCP (Robert Langridge%CGL) (01/22/86)
Following the request for aviation good reads, no one has mentioned
Antoine de Saint Exupery. His classics are all available at $2.95 to
$3.95 in Harcourt Brace Jovanovich paperbacks.
In descending order of my personal preference:
"Wind, Sand and Stars"
"Night Flight"
"Southern Mail"
"Flight to Arras"
Then there is Richard Bach. Not everyone likes "Jonathan Livingston
Seagull" (I do), but some of his others (all in paperback) must appeal
to all pilots and would-be pilots:
Again in my order of preference:
"Biplane"
"Stranger to the Ground"
"Nothing by Chance"
For good reading with no literary pretensions, but which provides an
anecdotal antidote to the more mystical meanderings of Bach (Richard :-),
I enjoy dipping into the books by Bob Buck ("Weather Flying", "Flying
Know-How" and "The Art of Flying"). Buck is in many ways a compliment to
Yeager - over 30,000 hours, mainly as TWA captain and Chief Pilot, but
with lots of other exciting aeronautical activities - including a world
distance record at the age of 22. His chapter on "The Case for the Glider"
in "Flying Know-How" begins "I fly gliders for fun and research, and because
it's the most fascinating flying there is . . . to me". Lots of solid
advice mixed with, and illuminated by, the anecdotes.
Trivia question: What quotation from an aviation classic is Buck referring
to when he says "Those are beautiful words that we should cherish, . . ."?
(no fair peeking :-)
Bob Langridge rl@ucsfcgl (ARPA, UUCP, BITNET)
Computer Graphics Laboratory
University of California +1 415 476 2630
San Francisco CA 94143 +1 415 476 1540 rl@ucsfcgl.UUCP (Robert Langridge%CGL) (02/07/86)
In article <757@ucsfcgl.UUCP> rl@ucsfcgl.UUCP (Robert Langridge%CGL) writes: > >Trivia question: What quotation from an aviation classic is Buck referring >to when he says "Those are beautiful words that we should cherish, . . ."? >(no fair peeking :-) > Well trivia fans, this is the posting you have been waiting for with bated breath. Buck refers to that classic of the language, the volume we all keep at our bedside and in our flight bags, to wit, the Federal Aviation Regulations, specifically part 91, "General Operating and Flight Rules": _______________________________________________________________________________ " 91.4 Responsibility and Authority of the Pilot in Command. a) The pilot in command of an aircraft is directly responsible for, and is the final authority as to, the operation of that aircraft. Those are beautiful words that we should cherish, wrap up tight in our thinking, savor, and then realise the responsibility they place upon us. In this day and age, with everyone trying to move into the cockpit, the special phrase in that group of words is "and is the final authority." . . . It has to be one person, because a flight is the bringing together of many pieces of information and skills. . . . The only place this puzzle can be put together is in the left front seat, the seat of command. And the only person who can put it together is the commander, you, the pilot." ______________________________________________________________________________ Coming from anyone but Buck (or Yeager for that matter - who doesn't use these words or this quote, but would certainly be 100% in agreement) this might sound a little pompous, but isn't this one of the reasons we all enjoy flying so much? Bob Langridge rl@ucsfcgl (ARPA, UUCP, BITNET) Computer Graphics Laboratory University of California +1 415 476 2630 San Francisco CA 94143 +1 415 476 1540