True North: Exploring the Great Canadian Wilderness by Bush Plane
 

Wunper, I haven't read George Erickson's book, but Amazon.com customer reviews suggest that the author indulges himself in frequent anti-religious rants: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...glance&s=books

I'm an atheist myself, so this probably wouldn't offend me, but it sounds tedious and distracting. Can you confirm or deny what the reviews say?

MLS-12D

Thanks. Is there not also a book 'I learned about flying from that' or is it only the series of articles in Flying?

I found a couple more:

Robert Mads Andersen - 'Antonovs Over the Arctic' written together with Shane Lundgren, son of the founder of Air Berlin, and line pilot himself.

Norman Barfield - 'Broughton, from Wellington to Airbus' which you can get signed at Brooklands, where Norman is curator.

Len Buckwalter's The Pilot's Night Flying Handbook' (Aah those heady days before GPS...!) and

Weems - 'Air Navigation' THE authority on celestial navigation, LORAN, dead reckoning, etc. Fascinating to read what you had to know in the pre and just postwar (WWII) era.

Because they are such great photgraphers I've got to mention:

Gordon Bain - 'Silvered Wings', and

Charles E. Brown - 'Camera Above the Clouds', plus anything by Austin 'Ozzie' Brown.

A couple of coffee table sized books I enjoy are

Jonathan Elwes - 'Glasmoth', particularly because I have known 'Toly Gorbatov for a number of years, and

Tony Cowan - 'Chipmunks Around the World', in which I played a modest role, enjoying a brilliant p***-up later at the RAF Club.

My latest acquisition is John Zukowsky's 'Building for Air Travel', which, although not new, I picked up for almost a song (but he only accepted cash!).

And if you are looking for an excellent Xmas present, for yourself or your best buddy, you can't go wrong with the Aviation History Book from Jeppesen.

Happy Holidays!

Aerohack

Lucky fellow - mine could be anywhere, but once I find it, it's going to be shrunk-wrapped and put away (after a gentle read!)

brgds

atb1943,

You're quite correct, there are at least two ILAFFT books published by Flying magazine. They are edited to separate the stories into topics such as mechanical problems, getting lost, inadvertant flight into IMC, etc. Lessons to be learned in each vignette.

Len Buckwalter's book still has some good stuff in it today. I would like to get one of the flare rigs he writes about! I don't know if you are familiar with Paul Garrison's Night Flying in Single Engine Airplanes, but he starts the book with an implausible story about a businessman without any real night experience safely flying himself through the fog-shrouded mountains east of Los Angeles. I'm not sure of the point of that story; presumably it is to suggest that night flying is really no big deal. :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

MLS-12D

Negative, my collection does not contain too many American books, mainly English, German and Russian (not that I speak or read the latter, but collect them all the same). Oh yes, and at least one French book - MiG - by Belyakov and Marmain, signed by both, to which Jacques Marmain added 'with my best sentiments aMiGaux'. Sad that he has departed, he was a brilliant journalist with a great sense of humour.

One book in German I am happy to have is 'Mit einem Menschen an Bord' by Mark Gallai, translated out of the Russian and signed by him in August '97. I had met him previously at Zhukovsky in 1995 in the company of Mrs. Gromova, wife of another famous test pilot for which the flight test centre is named. It's about Gallai's involvement in the Russian space program, whereas an earlier book dealt with his career as a test pilot. He was, for example, one of the three pilots assigned to fly the Tu-4, Russia's copy of the B-29.

Happy Holidays!

"China Pilot"

http://www.danford.net/felix.htm

The story of a colorful pilot with the AVG Flying Tigers, James "Earthquake Magoon" McGovern.

Excellent book.

Don McVicar's books
 

Jhieminga,

Don McVicar wrote a total of five books, all published by Airlife: "Ferry Command" (1981); "North Atlantic Cat" (1983); "A Change of Wings" (1984); "Mosquito Racer" (1985); and "More than a Pilot" (1985). They are very readable (indeed, breezy) narratives of his personal experiences in WW2 and the four years immediately thereafter.

"A Change of Wings" and "More than a Pilot" are fairly easy to find on the secondhand market, at least here in Canada. "Mosquito Racer" is a bit more difficult to track down.
"Ferry Command" and "North Atlantic Cat" are quite rare (possibly because they deal with the war years, and are considered more desireable(?)).

I have an extra copy of "North Atlantic Cat" that you are welcome to have for the cost that I paid for it (US$25 plus shipping). It's in fine condition, with unclipped dustjacket. Please let me know if you'd like to have it. :)

P.S. You can obtain a copy of "Ferry Command" from Ann Stanislawski at [email protected]

Thanx Canadian Luscombe! See your PM's :)

Frederick Forsyth: The Shepherd.
 

atb1943?

Come in, your time is nigh.

I happen to have a copy. Care to discuss mailing options?:)

p.s.

ATB1943,

BTW.. it's not a signed copy, unfortunately.

Just reading "A Real Good War" by Sam Halpert. He was 77 when he wrote it and relates his experiences as a navigator with the 91st BG at Bassingbourn (I used to live near Bassingbourn). His description of his first three raids made me fell I was sitting next to him. It is well written in a typically American style ands is written in the manner of a 24 year old and is occasionally baudy.

Hi RiskyRossco

Many thanks for the offer. I'm still hopeful of mine's turning up but yeah, want to send me an email? Should be in my profile. Did you by chance ever own a piece (large chunk) of Russian Antarctic LI-2 that now resides somewhere on the UK south coast....?

To stay on the books path, how about 'Operation Overlord', the absolutely fascinating story of and by Francis Gary Powers, his U-2 operations, shooting down, incarceration, interrogation and release in exchange for Rudolph Abel. Also the involvement of Lee Harvey Oswald......
The book was written in 1970, shortly after his return, and subsequent grilling by his friends. 33 years later, TR-1s are still to be seen - satellites are obviously not enough!

And a gem of a book is 'The Last Enemy' by Richard Hillary, the WWII pilot, his pre-war time at Oxford (he rowed for the darkblues and for England in the 1936 Olympics, where they won gold), his successes in the air, his lost friends, and in 1940 his terrible disfigurement in a shootdown and treatment by the renowned Dr McIndoe. My copy was published in 1943 in German (but in Switzerland), and an actual photo has been stuck onto the flysheet, whether by the publishers, or the original owner I don't know. There are some interesting comments written in pencil (and German) supporting Richard's description of the German rowing elite.

Just returned from my first real Christmas in England in over 30 years, thanks in part to Ryanair, who 'gave' me the flight for an astounding six Euros!

HNY all!

Perhaps the most thrilling book I have read in years is "My Secret War" by Richard S. Drury and is a rivetting story of his flying Skyraiders on clandestine missions in Laos during the Vietnam war.

Ernest Gann, author of Fate is the Hunter (which is one of the great classics) comments on Drury's book thus: "An Airman's Great and True Flying Adventure".

Richard Drury is a wonderfully evocative writer who still has a column in the US magazine "Airways". His description of returning from a night mission with his instrument panel shot away then going slap bang into a thunderstorm on limited panel gave a new meaning to the simulator sequence of unusual attitude recoveries.

You can buy the book (which has 287 pages) for the remarkably cheap price of $5.00US (confirming that is five dollars US!) from:
Drury Lane Books,
PO Box 445, Friday Harbor, WA 98250, USA

Frank Kingston Smith
 

I just learned that Frank Kingston Smith died on September 3, 2003, at the age of 84.

He was one of America's best aviation writers, active in the 50's, 60's and 70's. If you can find one of his books secondhand, buy it; he had a breezy, irreverent style that is fun to read without being overdone.

For those who haven't read it, Neville Duke's book "Test Pilot" has been re-released to coincide with the 50th anniversary of his record breaking run in a Hunter in the 50s.

True North
 

I just wanted to set the record straight re George Erickson's book, which I finally got around to reading. Contrary to a couple of comments on Amazon, it is not burdened with endless anti-religious rants, and I have nothing but good things to say about it. Anyone interested in private flying and/or the Canadian north would find this book to be well worth tracking down.

Damn good post !

Of course PIECE OF CAKE, is a fantastic read. As is anything by American Author WALTER BOYNE.

CANNIBAL QUEEN, very good read, have you got hold of it yet ?

I was in a small airfield in the US late last year when it landed and taxied up for gas, was hoping SC was flying it...., but he has since sold it, but wonderrfull to have a look anyway !

Have always found any second hand book shop can have some good stuff, you never know quite what magic you will find !

I read The Cannibal Queen a few years ago, and thought it was pretty good. I still think so. But when I picked up the books-on-tape version ("as read by the author") to play in the car, was it every awful! Coonts' stream-of-consciousness style really grated (not to mention his accent). Stick to the printed version!

Other (and arguably better) I-fly-a-Stearman books are:

(1) Alan Lopez, Biplane Odessey: Flying the Stearman to Every U.S. State and Canadian Province in North America;
(2) Jim Doyle, Flying Through Time: A Journey into History in a World War II Biplane; and
(3) Gus McLeod, Solo to the Top of the World.

Atlantic Air Conquest by F.H. & E.Ellis is an interesting account of all the attempts, successful and otherwise, to fly the atlantic between 1919 and the end of the 1930's.

It is bound to be out of print now but is worth looking for in second hand shops, which is where I got my copy.

Double Asymmetric:

I know you are a non-fiction buff, but try "Round the Bend", Nevil Shute , 1951, ISBN 0-330-02018-8

It's as good a fiction aviation read as you might find, might as well be non-fiction.

Round the Bend is a 'must read' for all aviation maintenance people (and enjoyable for pilots, too).

I'm re-reading "Night Fighter" by 'Jimmy' Rawnsley and Robert Wright. Rawnsley was John Cunningham's radar operator in 604 and 85 Squadrons; Wright was personal assistant to Sir Hugh Dowding and Sholto Douglas before re-mustering as a radar operator. It's a fascinating (and very readable) account of the development of the radar-equipped night/all-weather fighter.