Ghosts of the Air

by Martin Caidin

s/t: true stories of aerial hauntings, bizarre accounts of the supernatural from the pilots who lived to tell the tales!

Genres: Nonfiction, Aviation, Paranormal, Ghosts, History, Supernatural

266 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Martin Caidin was a prolific and controversial writer. Most of his work centered around the adventures of pilots and astronauts. A number of his books were notable for their reasonable, realistic predictions of then-futuristic technology.

Caidin's body of work was prolific and varied, ranging from additional speculative/SF novels such as Marooned, which was made into an acclaimed film and considered a harbinger of the Apollo 13 accident, to a novel based upon the character Indiana Jones. He also wrote many non-fiction books about science, aviation and warfare.

Caidin began writing fiction in 1957. In his career he authored more than 50 fiction and nonfiction books as well as more than 1,000 magazine articles. His best-known novel is Cyborg, which was the basis for "The Six Million Dollar Man" franchise. He also wrote numerous works of military history, especially concerning aviation.

In addition to his writing Caidin was a pilot and active in the restoration and flying of older planes.

Reviews

[Bear · Rating 5 out of 5]

OK, I believe in ghosts. If I didn't, it would be hard to accept the Holy spirit. I've run into many examples in my life that prove to me there is an afterlife, and there are spirits, good and bad, around us all the time. My brush with death at Ramstein AB, GE back in August 1988, when a woman's voice clearly told me to move 20 minutes before the Italian demonstration team, "The Frecci Tricoleri", had a midair. The solo aircraft crashed into the crowd; and there was nobody standing next to me when I heard the voice. I was spooked enough to move. I had been standing where the aircraft ploughed through the crowd, incinerating many. I would have been one of them. I'm sure many have hesitated at a stoplight, and suddenly a car busts through where you would have been if you had not hesitated. The overeducated and ignorant among us would say 'you saw the car in your peripheral vision", but I contend we truly have spiritual beings watching over us.
On to the book; an easy read to capture one's attention. Filled with anecdotes. Martin Caidin is an excellent author, and was known in his lifetime to be straightforward in his assessments. His examples range from just sightings to true hauntings; and some are his personal experiences. Many are just creepy; but the fact he has researched his data (and that is something too many discredit) make the book all that more compelling. Take the time to read this one...

[P.S. Winn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great collection, mostly because the stories are based on real events. I have read other books by this author and love the stories he has to tell.

[Nicola Atkin]

No stars. The author is egotistical, boastful and overly full of himself. Ruins what could have been a good book. Other than that he is so vague on information at times it could be a story from anywhere, other times his information is just wrong or the story yet again manages to be turned and focuses on him and how awesome he is. He appears to know everyone who has a story personally and everytime he says 'here is the story/letter as told to me' he has clearly changed the the wording to his own because of the egocentric theme that ruins through it. The author spoils this book and his research was lazy.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books. Regardless of what your view is regarding ghosts, angels, and perhaps even time-warps, this is a fascinating look at both first-hand accounts (including some personal accounts by the author) along with well-researched documented records from around the world. Many are taken directly from military archives such as combat After Action Reports, daily logs, and other such "official" records.

I couldn't put it down the first time through and have multiple stories dog-eared as favorites. Caidin's style is engaging and comfortable while drawing you into the energy of actually being there as he describes the events.

If you're interested in the paranormal or a pilot, this is a must-read.

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of pilots' (and a few passengers or ground crew) accounts of inexplicable events surrounding airplanes. Caiden introduces each story and works hard to establish the credibility of both himself and his sources -including a couple entirely non-supernatural stories to emphasize his research and personal stance on the subject.
He provides some thought provoking personal points, as well as an abundance of interesting tales from the wild blue yonder.

[Noah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this a bunch as a teen, but it didn’t quite hold up when I came back to it this week. The stories are interesting—especially those of a long-gone era of seat-of-the-pants flying—but Caidin’s justifications are both repetitive and wearisome. There are a few parts that have little to do with the main thrust of the book and/or more than a little off the rails.

[Shahrun · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was not what I expected at all! My poor brain is boggling now. I found it facinating and the author is really on my wavelength. I would love to be able to meet and chat with him, but sadly I think he is dead.

[Kendra · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was poorly organized and poorly written, it was like listening to someone’s unorganized thinking and rambling. The premise was interesting but it was so unorganized it was frustrating to read. I do not recommend this book-

[D.H. Dhaenens · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read, just skip chapter 18. Anti scientific nonsense based on outdated hypotheses because the author seems upset at a sceptical magazine? Pass.

[Mary Perry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty far fetched. If this stuff is true, it seems like there would be more sightings than with only a select few

[Flynt · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best non-fiction collection of ghost stories I've ever read.

[D. E. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A MC. Real Time Collection of Unbelievable Stories (GOTA) (TSOAH)

MC. has collected numerous real time unexplainable events of aviation I Vicente that seem to be false, but to those who witnessed the events seemed as real as anything they had seen before. The stories have been verified and written as unexplainable incidents. Do you believe that you can witness an event, make a report and then be told what you saw was not what you had seen. In 1942 the flight program at NAS Pensacola was in full swing. The student pilot's would follow a preset course to avoid the pilots becoming confused and flying the pattern the wrong way. Sometime after the Korean war war over my father was ordered back to NAS Pensacola. In early 1956 we moved to West Myrtle Grove and were near the new flight pattern for student pilots. They would depart West towards Barin Field, then to Corey Field, Saufley Field, Whiting Field at Milton, the South bound to a practice field just before The east end of Pensacola Beach into NAS Pensacola. This was the standard pattern. In late summer of 1958, if I remember correctly, I was in the backyard with a neighbor and we were watching the pilot trainers land at Saufley Field then depart for Corey Field and finally Barin Field. The pattern was counter clockwise. We watched a student aircraft climb out of NAS Pensacola and enter the flying pattern clockwise. We watched the aircraft climb and the two of us came to the same conclusion. Two airplanes were about to hit head on. They did. We saw only one chute. We called my Dad and reported the incident. Two witnesses. When he came home that evening he called my friends parents and had them come over. Another military family. My Dad advised both families that there was no such incident. He added that the records were checked and the only similar incident of that type occurred in the early summer of 1943. What did we see. I haven't the foggiest idea. It has been sixty-one years since I observed the incident that really didn't happen at all, except for the 1943 incident. We took my Dad's advice and remained silent. Who believes in Ghosts. There are many who do and many who don't. These short stories are excellent reads of events that happened, but at the time seemed surreal.....DEHS

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This had some really interesting and compelling stories, but it had 2 major flaws. For one thing, the author didn't come across as being very likable. He seemed argumentative, almost daring people to disbelieve what he was saying, then berating the reader for having any doubts. He also seemed very arrogant to me. You know, focus on his achievements, acting as though he's the expert on everything that has to do with flying, I understand he's had a lot of experience, but he act as if there's absolutely nothing he doesn't know. I just didn't like him. It was just an impression I got.

The other thing is that he doesn't seem to realize that most of his readers aren't pilots. There was a lot of information I didn't understand, that wasn't explained. For example, he uses all kinds of terms about airplanes that I've never heard of. He doesn't explain anything that's hard to understand, so I just had to try to figure it out as best I could. These are 2 serious flaws and I'm really wavering whether to give this 2 or 3 stars. I'm feeling generous, so give it 3 – because there were some really interesting stories in it.

[Nora Ureche · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved this collection of fascinating stories, and I really appreciated the credibility of the author and the people who shared their stories here! It was hard to read for long periods of time, so I had to chip away at the stories, but still an enjoyable read (just a tad dry at times)!

[Dennis Hough · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very interesting, spooky read made all the more scary by the author's in depth research. A professional pilot who flew most of the airframes he writes about, he was able to track down stories from other professionals who are usually very reluctant to discuss anything supernatural. It is a credit to his reputation that they trusted him enough to open up. And it's a treat to the reader. It's a great book to pass the time on your next airline flight!

[Avis Black · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an absolutely fantastic collection. Highly recommended whether you believe in the supernatural or not, as it's thoroughly enjoyable either way.

Available at Open Library:
https://openlibrary.org/works/OL34909...

[Jana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the stories, but not the writing. The author seemed to repeat himself a lot and take a long time to get to the actual story. But, the stories were intriguing and made for interesting conversation.

[Matthew Hillman]

Ghosts of the Air is a very odd ghost story. Most people think its impossible for planes to haunt us, but apparently they can. The book is a short read and is not a single narrative, but a bunch of stories. I recommend this book for people in between books.

[samodH · Rating 4 out of 5]

A realistic,close-to-day-to-day-life portrayal of the supernatural and based on first-hand experience.

[Kristen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some of the stories in here are really good. Some parts are kind of boring too. I tried to skip them mostly.

[Elisabete]

«Espíritos no céu» - colecção Vida e aventura

[Ian Unsbee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Didn't have a chance to finish the book. However it was a good "read by the fire" type of book.

[Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is what ghost stories should be - a narrative that captures your imagination.