Flight: 100 Years of Aviation

by R.G. Grant

This work presents a journey through a century of flight, capturing the spirit and excitement of aviation past and present, from the Wright brothers' first airborne attempts to the story behind the space race. Bone-jarring moments of flight with pioneers such as Orville Wright, Harriet Quimby and Roland Garros are presented, along with absorbing profiles of the key personalities and the planes they flew. Readers can follow the swift advances in aviation technology that took place with the onset of war, as supremacy in the skies became a crucial factor. Eyewitness accounts and images bring air reconnaissance, aerial bombing and spectacular "dogfights" to life. Adventurous fliers like Lindbergh and Earhart pushed the boundaries even further during the "golden age" of flight in the 1920s and 1930s. R.G. Grant describes how these trailblazers conquered transatlantic routes and paved the way for new luxury passenger jets. The book concludes with a glimpse into the future of flight: from anti-terrorist strategies to light aircraft, pilotless planes and space vacations.

Genres: Aviation, History, Nonfiction, Reference, Science, Aviation History, Transport

452 pages, Hardcover

First published October 3, 2002

About the author

R.G. Grant is a historian who has written extensively on many aspects and periods of history. Among his more than fifty published books are: Battle, Soldier, and Battle at Sea (2005, 2007, 2008). He was also a major contributor to the ITV Visual History of the Twentieth Century (1999) and consultant for Chronology of World History (1995). He is also a contributor to 1001 Battles That Changed the Course of History, where earlier versions of his contributions to Britannica first appeared.

Reviews

[David Kerrigan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spoiler Alert: The plane can fly.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this years ago and loved it! DK books are just the best! Great info combined with stunning visuals!

[Evenumbers · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very good reference for the history of flight. There is a lot of interesting information throughout the book, which makes it very fun to read. The organization, with sidebars and many illustrating photographs, helps to give variety in an interesting way.

Unlike some books that only focus on different types of airplanes, Flight is good in that it elaborates on the specific usage of human flying machines at various points in the last century, tying them into political and economical developments along the way.

I especially appreciate the section in which it discusses the early history of human flight in the beginning of the 1900s. Besides the Wright brothers, there are many others who are often less recognized.

My biggest complaint is that the sidebar placement makes it difficult to read them along with the text if reading through smoothly, forcing the reader to stop in the middle of a page, read a sidebar, and then continue.

Furthermore, it would be nice if the book's title was more clear that the book discusses human flight.

Anybody who thinks they might enjoy a specific look at this history or likes to read about transportation should consider this book as a read.

[Dana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I own this book and it is full of airplanes from the past and present. I have read mostly all of it and i still go back to read. This book is one of my absolute favorites.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

An awesome book. Informative, great pictures and just brilliant for anyone interested in aviation -- sits lovely next to "Human" and "Animal"

[Thanh Phuong · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative book with nice illustrating photos and pictures. I could learn a lot of helpful knowledge and information. This especially makes sense with what I read from The Wright Brothers. Really interesting!

[Debra J. Fultz · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Book is the best thing

[Joost · Rating 5 out of 5]

You might just finish reading this book and immediately start looking up how expensive it is to restore and fly an old Douglas DC3. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

[Patricrk patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

don't read this as a e-book adobe edition on a netbook. It has three columns and my set-up only allows me to see about half a column at a size that is readable. Which means I was scrolling up and down each page about five times to read it. Good book with lots of information. Takes the air out of "USA stuff is always best" balloon.

[Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book following and succinctly explaining the most important and history-making aircraft and events in the development of aviation over the past 100 years. The book flows both through time period and category of aircraft, making the information easy to comprehend even for those who don't have a background in aviation. A great reference book.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

A huge book with great info and images. The layout and design of the book really suited the amount of information. Lots of little details not in normal general aviation book, but like any book there where areas I would of liked a bit more info on specific aircraft or decades.

[Shawn Strope]

This is a good book if you are looking to write a research paper or do a project over the airplane. this book mainly covers the wide variety of different airplanes and how they have been getting better and more advance over the years.

[FranklinTV · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of those "looks good shelf sitting books with lots of nice picture but I will never get arund to actually reading it" type books.

[Samuel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent up until the 1980s section. Crippled by a shamefully nihilistic final section.