Name: Willow Run
Brand: Ralph A. Hotton
SKU: 9781467117296
Price: 24.99 USD
Availability: InStock

Willow Run

9781467117296

$24.99

A pictoral history of Willow Run - a relative unknown location that became the world's most famous bomber factory during World War II.

In May 1940, Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt called for the production of 50,000 military airplanes. He then drafted the president of General Motors, William Knudsen, to mobilize industry in the United States. The automotive companies were called upon to produce a massive fleet of bombers, as well as tanks, trucks, guns, and engines. By the Willow Run, a sleepy little creek near Ypsilanti, Michigan, Ford Motor Company built the world's most famous bomber factory, which was the ultimate manifestation of the automotive industry's role in building armaments during World War II. By the spring of 1944, Willow Run was producing a four-engine B-24 bomber each hour on an assembly line.

Cover image for Willow Run, isbn: 9781467117296

Offutt Air Force Base

9781467112710

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

The year is 1888, and Pres. Grover Cleveland has just signed into law a bill that will lead to the establishment of Fort Crook. In 1948, that Army post gained a new name: Offutt Air Force Base. The history of Offutt Air Force Base is truly unlike that of any other military installation. In the face of adversity, it has overcome challenges during the United States' rise to global prominence, was active during the golden age of flight, and served as a wartime bomber plant. The base remained ever vigilant during the Cold War and continues to do so as a combatant of 21st-century threats. Its remarkable existence of nearly 125 years can serve as a road map of US history. Today, the 55th Wing serves as the host unit for Offutt Air Force Base; its motto, Videmus Omnia (We See All), can also be applied to the saga of the base.

Cover image for Offutt Air Force Base, isbn: 9781467112710

Ellsworth Air Force Base

9781467106948

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

Rapid City Army Air Base was constructed in 1942 and used as a training location for B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bomber aircrews throughout the duration of World War II. After the war, the newly renamed Rapid City Air Force Base (AFB) led the nation’s strategic bombardment force, deploying B-29 Superfortresses to Britain during the Berlin Blockade and later flying the B-36 Peacemaker heavy bomber. In 1953, Pres. Dwight D. Eisenhower renamed the base for Brig. Gen. Richard E. Ellsworth, who was killed during a mission over Burgoyne’s Cove, Newfoundland. From 1960 to 1994, Ellsworth AFB was a Strategic Air Command superbase containing two legs of the American Strategic Nuclear Triad—heavy bomber aircraft (B-52 Stratofortresses and B-1B Lancers) and land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (Titan and Minuteman). Today, the personnel at Ellsworth AFB continue to build upon the storied legacy of the South Dakota base, projecting American airpower around the world.

Cover image for Ellsworth Air Force Base, isbn: 9781467106948

Bunker Hill and Grissom Air Force Base

9781467115087

$24.99

As the US Navy recovered from the devastating attack on Pearl Harbor, the aircraft carrier earned a place alongside the battleship, and the Navy grew its air force. Pilots were needed as fast as American industry could build airplanes, and Indiana became the home of a naval air-training center. After fascism's defeat with the end of World War II, a potentially more deadly Cold War brought the need for a deterrent force capable of surviving a nuclear attack and then completely destroying the enemy. A vital part of that force moved into the old Hoosier Navy Base in 1954. For more than three decades, Bunker Hill and Grissom airmen stood on the forward wall of America's freedom. Images of Aviation: Bunker Hill and Grissom Air Force Base tells their story through an amazing collection of declassified US Air Force photographs.

Cover image for Bunker Hill and Grissom Air Force Base, isbn: 9781467115087

Minot Air Force Base

9781467102926

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

The Strategic Air Command equipped the 4136th Strategic Wing at Minot Air Force Base with B-52Hs in 1961. The first landing of the first B-52H was part of a celebration on the base referred to as Peace Persuader Day. Over 10,000 area citizens came to the base to witness the historic landing. The wing was redesignated as the 450th Bomb Wing on February 1, 1963, and then again on July 25, 1968, as the 5th Bomb Wing—the name that it retains today. The base's location in the geographic center of North America made it perfect for a Minuteman missile wing complex to be built in 1961. This is the story of the Cold War–era construction of Minot Air Force Base and its continued operation as an Air Force Strike Command B-52H bomber and Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile base. With new nuclear threats arising from countries in Asia and the Middle East, Minot once again assumes an important role in the nation's defense.

Cover image for Minot Air Force Base, isbn: 9781467102926

Glenview Naval Air Station

9780738541228

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

In 1923--just 20 years after the Wright brothers' first flight at Kitty Hawk--a Naval Reserve aviation training program was established at Great Lakes Naval Training Center. Originally, sea planes and a few small land-based planes were used for primary flight instruction. With the development of heavier, faster military aircraft, the Great Lakes facility became inadequate. Under Rear Adm. John Downes, commandant of the 9th Naval District, the search for a suitable new location was undertaken. Curtiss-Reynolds-Wright Airfield was deemed ideal for relocation of the aviation training program. From humble beginnings as Naval Reserve Aviation Base Chicago, Naval Air Station Glenview (the official U.S. Navy designation) went on to play a vital and unique role during World War II. Until closure in 1995, the base was home to thousands of Navy and Marine Reserve pilots, aircrews, and support personnel--proudly known as weekend warriors."

Cover image for Glenview Naval Air Station, isbn: 9780738541228

Wright Field

9781467116299

$24.99

Wright Field features scores of photographs that show the airfield from its founding in 1927 through World War II, the Cold War, and beyond.

From its founding in 1927 until the establishment of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in 1948, Wright Field played a vital role keeping the Army Air Force positioned as the world's leader in aircraft design and development. The Second World War catapulted it into the forefront of America's war effort, as virtually every new aircraft produced for the Army Air Force was developed and tested in Dayton. Wright Field's testing program also had the fascinating task of studying captured enemy aircraft, including some powered by jet engines, which engineers at the installation were also developing. Images of Aviation: Wright Field features scores of amazing photographs that tell the story of the airfield from its founding in 1927 through World War II, the Cold War, and beyond. Readers will also see the impact the base has played in the local community by providing thousands of jobs, as well as some of the greatest air shows ever held in the United States. Finally, a collection of crash photographs reveals the often tragic consequences that inevitably come with the testing of advanced experimental aircraft.

Cover image for Wright Field, isbn: 9781467116299

Midway Airport

9780738598505

$24.99

In 1903, Chicago fell in love with flying. Enterprising people opened airfields and designed and built aircraft, and aviators won big money at air meets. After World War I, aviation was a serious matter with explosive commercial potential. A transcontinental airmail service was established and became the impetus for the first airlines. Aspiring to be first in aviation, the City of Chicago considered each of its existing airfields to develop into its new, modern municipal airport. It chose none of them and instead decided on a square mile of property 10 miles southwest of the city as the location for what would soon become the "World's Busiest Airport."

Midway Airport book cover from Images of Aviation showing a vintage TWA jet and travelers on the tarmac.

Selfridge Field

9780738540238

$24.99

Named to honor the memory of Lt. Thomas E. Selfridge, the
first fatality of powered flight, Selfridge Field has recorded
many aviation milestones since its founding in 1917. As home of the famed First Pursuit Group, the airfield saw the feats of such notables as Charles Lindbergh, Jimmy Doolittle, and Curtis LeMay. Scores of young aviators who passed through Selfridge's gates later achieved the rank of general officer, earning the base the nickname "Home of the Generals." Selfridge Field illustrates the history of the base, with many images drawn from the collections of the Selfridge Military Air Museum and Mount Clemens Public Library. The development of American airpower, from crude biplanes to the supersonic F-16 fighter, is depicted in the photographic record of this historic military airfield.

Selfridge Field book cover showing a row of vintage propeller airplanes on a sunlit tarmac.

Dayton Aviation

9780738593890

$24.99

Hallowed skies blanket Dayton, Ohio, a city once known as the Cradle of Aviation—and with good reason. It was in Dayton that two brothers became the unlikely creators of the world's first airplane, but that is just the start of the story. Dayton Aviation: The Wright Brothers to McCook Field examines Dayton's civil and military aviation history from its start with the Wright Brothers to the founding of Wright and Patterson Fields in the 1930s, a period that saw the construction of the world's first airport, the Huffman Flying Prairie. Dayton was home to the first airplane factory and, later, the world's largest aircraft factory. The city introduced the world to crop dusting, landing lights, free-fall parachutes, pressurized cabins, night aerial photography, the first private-cabin plane, and the first strategic bomber. In downtown Dayton, office workers could look out windows and watch history unfold as pilots broke one world record after another in the skies over the city. Dayton was, and still is, the airplane capital of the world. These images, captured by the founding fathers of aviation, show that from 1904 through the 1930s, if it was happening in the air, it was happening in Dayton.

Cover image for Dayton Aviation, isbn: 9780738593890

The Wreck of the Naval Airship USS Shenandoah

9781467126625

$24.99

The USS Shenandoah was the pride of the American Navy in 1925 and America's first rigid dirigible. Her name is a Native American word often said to mean Daughter of the Stars. While performing a publicity tour in the Midwest, the ship was ripped to pieces by a violent storm. Fourteen men died, including Lt. Comdr. Zachary Lansdowne, who remained at his post to the very end. The citizens of Noble County, Ohio, were alarmed and amazed when this high-tech, state-of-the-art marvel came tumbling out of the sky into their rural and isolated community. While lavishing care and support on the wounded, the locals also looted the wreckage and made souvenirs of valuable equipment that remained family treasures for years. Tales of daring heroism and sacrifice by those brave sailors on that stormy night soon became the thing of legend to the residents of the valley. For nearly 100 years, people there have maintained the legacy of Shenandoah with monuments, songs, and commemorations that continue to this day.

Cover coming soon placeholder for The Wreck of the Naval Airship USS Shenandoah.

Stinson Aircraft Company

9780738520209

$24.99

Though a tragic death tinges the memory with sorrow, the name Stinson is still revered in aviation circles.

By the early 1920s, the charismatic daredevil pilot Eddie Stinson had become famous throughout the US for his fearlessness and skill. In 1926, he and his close friend Bill Mara founded a company to design and manufacture airplanes that combined features then only found in luxury automobiles. The Stinson Aircraft Corporation quickly grew, but sadly its namesake wouldn't live to enjoy the success of his company. In 1932, Stinson was killed in a tragic crash while demonstrating a new model, and ultimately served to propel the company into the hands of larger aircraft manufacturers. Although Stinson's life was short, the world of aviation still admires the airplanes built under his name. Featuring many never-before-published photographs and comprehensive biographical information, Stinson Aircraft Companychronicles a remarkable period in airplane development. It details the growth of Stinson's company, which produced more airplanes for a longer period of time than any other Michigan airframe producer, and reveals the story of Eddie Stinson and Bill Mara, who together made aviation history.

Vintage book cover showing a man beside a propeller aircraft and the title Stinson Aircraft Company.

Michigan Aircraft Manufacturers

9780738552187

$24.99

Engineers, inventors, and dreamers in the state of Michigan had been searching for the secret of heavier-than-air flight well before the Wright brothers' successful flights in 1903. In 1911, the first aircraft manufacturer opened for business in Michigan. During the 1920s and 1930s, the Detroit area was known as the "Aviation Capital of America." The All-American Aircraft Show, held annually in Detroit from 1928 to 1933, was the major showcase for introducing new airplanes to the aviation community. Major competitions, such as the Ford Air Tours (1925 to 1931) and the Cirrus Derby (1930), originated and ended at airports in Michigan. Michigan's aircraft manufacturers made major contributions to America's war efforts, building 1,500 Liberty planes during World War I and 8,685 B-24 bombers during World War II. In addition to those major manufacturers, a large number of individual designers and entrepreneurs toiled to build the ultimate airplane. Today the pioneering tradition lives on in the hundreds of individuals who design and build airplanes in their garage or basement.

Cover image for Michigan Aircraft Manufacturers, isbn: 9780738552187

Northwest Airlines

9780738534152

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

Since flying its first mail flight on October 1, 1926, Northwest Airways, now known as Northwest Airlines, has grown to become one of the world's leading airlines. Northwest's legacy of leadership in the aviation industry began with its foundation in the Twin Cities and extended to its pioneering work as part of the U.S. war effort in Alaska, the establishment of the first U.S. commercial air links to Japan and the Orient, and its groundbreaking 1992 alliance and award of anti-trust immunity with KLM/Royal Dutch Airlines. Northwest is now America's oldest air carrier with continuous name identification. In celebration of the airline's 80th anniversary in 2006, this book chronicles the remarkable years during which Northwest became an institutional backbone of both American and worldwide air transport history. This diverse historical tribute relies heavily on the author's own photo archive along with images supplied by the exceptional Northwest History Centre Inc., established in October 2002 to preserve the airline's rich heritage. The rare photographs seen in these pages, accompanied by a detailed and informative narrative, bring together for the first time all of the elements of the Northwest "family," which includes Hughes Air West and Republic airlines and other predecessors.

Northwest Airlines The First Eighty Years book cover with three crewmembers in front of a vintage Northwest Airlines aircraft

Chicago

9780738531700

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

Since the late 1800s, Chicago has been a mecca for aviation. Chicago's Octave Chanute kept the skies filled with revolutionary gliders and his expertise in aeronautics contributed to the Wright Brothers' success. Chicago: City of Flight tells the story of aviation in the city with exciting chapters on early "birdmen," the birth of Chicago as a major airmail center, the spectacular chills and thrills of international airports and airplane manufacturers, and airlines, such as United Airlines, that were born in the city. Later topics include the city's modern aerospace industry and an exclusive look at Chicago's Wright Redux project, members of which designed and manufactured a replica Wright flyer. They plan to fly it over the city on December 17, 2003, in celebration of 100 years of manned, powered flight.

Chicago City of Flight book cover showing a person on an early airplane in sepia tones

Kansas City B-25 Factory

9781467111973

$24.99

An industrial miracle took place at the Fairfax Airport, on the shores of the Missouri River, between 1941 and 1945. A massive factory was quickly built and a large modification center was soon added. At its peak, over 24,000 greater Kansas City–area residents were employed by North American Aviation, Inc. Their goal was to build as many twin-engine B-25 Mitchell medium bombers for wartime service as possible. Their success was the construction of an unprecedented 6,608 aircraft. The B-25 Mitchell served with distinction in every theater of World War II, and significant numbers of them were provided to Allied nations. Many B-25s have been preserved, and some of them remain airworthy today. They can be seen on static display or in flight at air shows all across America.

Cover image for Kansas City B-25 Factory, isbn: 9781467111973

St. Louis Aviation

9780738583846

$7.99

St. Louis boats a rich history.

Cover image for St. Louis Aviation, isbn: 9780738583846

Aviation in Columbus

9780738593715

$24.99

Columbus entered the air age early: the city was the destination for the world's first air-cargo flight in 1910, the home of the world's youngest licensed pilot in 1911, and the home of World War I flying ace Eddie Rickenbacker. The aviation history of Columbus continued with the opening of Norton Field in 1923, Columbus Airport (later Sullivant Avenue Airport) in 1928, Port Columbus in 1929, and Lockbourne Army Air Base (now Rickenbacker International Airport) in 1942. Port Columbus International Airport had the distinction of being built near a railroad track for a coast-to-coast air-rail service. The air-rail service did not last, but Port Columbus has survived and is an important part of central Ohio. Add to this the fact that a major aircraft factory was located in Columbus from 1941 to 1979, and the aviation history of Columbus is rich.

Vintage sepia cover showing historic airliners on a wet tarmac with people for Aviation in Columbus by Richard E. Barrett.

North Dakota Air National Guard

9781467109437

$23.99

The North Dakota Air National Guard's (NDANG) 119th Wing boasts an illustrious 60-year history of flying fighters. The NDANG can trace its roots back to the 392nd Fighter Squadron, which fell under the 367th Fighter Group. Many of its charter members began their careers in the Army Air Corps during World War II and brought their expertise and experience to their home station unit in Fargo, North Dakota. People like Alexander Macdonald had a hand in nearly every success from 1950 through the F-16 years as a pilot, commander, adjutant general, and then as a civilian advocate. Duane "Pappy" Larson is credited with being the namesake for the unit nickname "The Happy Hooligans." The 119th unit's history is a story about the people who achieved unprecedented accomplishments within the Air National Guard and, sometimes, even among the active duty US Air Force.

North Dakota Air National Guard cover with a vintage fighter aircraft in flight and a smoky sky

Akron Aviation

9781467111324

$24.99

Everyone loves a good adventure story. The history of Akron aviation provides all the real-life pathos of any adventure novel. It all began in 1875, when a young farmer named Jack C. Johnston launched himself and his balloon on one of the wildest flights ever recorded. In 1906, John Gammeter, an Akron inventor, built his own airplane and began making regular flights over the city. In Akron, the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company saw the future of air commerce and would go on to write its own chapter in aviation history on a global scale. The story of Akron aviation is one of incredible triumphs and unspeakable tragedies. It is the story of men and women determined to conquer the air. Akron aviation matured along with the city, and the two intertwined to become a major influence in northern Ohio as well as the country.

Cover image for Akron Aviation, isbn: 9781467111324

Liberal Army Airfield

9781467162289

$24.99

The southwest corner of Kansas was once home to Liberal Army Airfield. For 27 months, from April 1943 to September 1945, the desolate plains of Kansas were alive with the deep throaty roar of the B-24 Liberator.

The Liberal Army Airfield trained approximately one-quarter of all B-24 commanders. Residents of the area recall few days and nights in which they did not hear the familiar roar of the big Pratt & Whitney engines flying overhead. What was once a wheat field, a symbol of peace, became thousands of feet of concrete runways used to train pilots for vital World War II missions. To this day, many of the runways and structures of the base still survive. Years have passed since the inception and closure of the base, but its history will always be a part of Liberal, Kansas.

Lidia Hook-Gray was born in Liberal and raised in the adjacent Oklahoma Panhandle. A local history buff, she has always been intrigued by the Liberal Army Airfield, the big B-24s, the people that came to the base, and their stories. Hook-Gray is also the author of Liberal and Seward County. Connie Gray-Bowman was born in Liberal. Her father, Herbert Gray, flew 52 combat missions as a nose gunner on a B-24 with the 454th Bombardment Group, the Tailwind Crew. His last assignment was stationed at the Liberal base, where he met his wife at a USO dance.

Cover image for Liberal Army Airfield, isbn: 9781467162289

McConnell Air Force Base

9780738561837

$24.99

Beginning from its earliest days as an empty parcel of pasture that became a major hub airport for transcontinental air travel to its present use as the busiest refueling operation in the U.S. Air Force, the slice of land known as McConnell Air Force Base is inextricably connected to aviation to nearly the dawn of manned flight. Its military history began in 1941 with the arrival of the Air National Guard, and the base grew to a multifaceted operation that extends air power globally through intelligence and air refueling missions performed by its three partner units: the 22nd Air Refueling Wing, the 184th Intelligence Wing, and the 931st Air Refueling Group. This book offers a glimpse into the military history of McConnell Air Force Base through many rarely seen or previously unpublished images drawn primarily from the repository of the 22nd Air Refueling Wing Office of History and the Kansas Aviation Museum.

Book cover for McConnell Air Force Base featuring a vintage bomber taking off

A History of Chicago's O'Hare Airport

9781609494346

$21.99

The history of one of the most important airports in the US comes to life in over 150 historical photos.

In 1942, a stretch of Illinois prairie that had served as a battleground and a railroad depot became the site of a major manufacturing plant, producing Douglas C-54 Skymasters for World War II. Less than twenty years later, that plot of land boasted the biggest and busiest airport in the world. Many of the millions who have since passed through it have likely only regarded it as a place between cities. But for people like Michael Branigan, who has spent years on its tarmac, they know that O'Hare is a city unto itself, with a fascinating history of gangsters and heroes, mayors, presidents and pilots.

Cover image for A History of Chicago's O'Hare Airport, isbn: 9781609494346

Lost Airports of Chicago

9781609499006

$21.99

To book a ride on the World's Shortest Airline or learn aerial stunts from the redheaded widow of Lawrence Avenue, you've got to go through the airports buried beneath the housing developments and shopping malls of Chicagoland. Many of these airports sprang up after World War I, when training killed more pilots than combat, and the aviation pioneers who developed Chicago's flying fields played a critical role in getting the nation ready to dare the skies in World War II. Author Nick Selig has rolled wheels on his fair share of Chicago's landing strips but faces an entirely new challenge in touching down in places being swallowed by a city and forgotten by history.

Cover of Lost Airports of Chicago featuring a vintage biplane and retro airfield scene

Lunken Airfield

9780738592176

$24.99

Discover the dozens of exciting never-before-published images of the people and events at Lunken Airfield.

Lunken Airfield flew headlong into the golden age of aviation in the 1920s. World War I veterans became gutsy barnstormers who had only roads and railroad tracks as navigational landmarks. They gave way to courageous pilots who flew airmail, as well as record makers who flew for the joie de vivre and fame under conditions fraught with danger. These flyers gave way to aircraft engineers and designers who would craft the next generation of planes. Pilots were seduced by the allure of international recognition and wealth, as well as the feeling of freedom experienced in the air. Along the way, they assumed the status of movie stars. On any given day, anyone from a spectator to a mechanic might hobnob with Charles Lindbergh, Amelia Earhart, Roscoe Turner, or Jimmy Doolittle, who routinely flew in and out of Lunken. Over the decades, Lunken has undergone many changes, but today, as it approaches its centennial, planes still take off and land daily, and crowds still flock to special events.

Vintage sepia cover with four pilots beside a WACO airplane at Lunken Airfield.

Detroit Metro Airport

9780738588513

$24.99

Throughout the years, Detroit Metro Airport has grown and changed with the times. During the golden age of flight, the airport served the local community by providing transportation and employment. In World War II, Romulus Army Air Field served the military by transporting B-24 Liberator bombers to the East Coast. It was also a transfer base for P-39 Airacobras and P-63 Kingcobras to be flown to the Soviet Union via Great Falls, Montana, and Alaska. The war ended, and the airport became a civilian operation again, with the Air National Guard maintaining a presence. During the Cold War, the airport saw the presence of nuclear weapons, but by the end of 1971 the weapons and the Air National Guard were gone. Constant upgrades in technology for safety and security make the passenger experience as pleasant and exciting as possible.

Cover of Detroit Metro Airport from Images of Aviation showing a propeller plane near the terminal

US Naval Air Station Grosse Ile

9780738588520

$24.99

In 1927, the US Navy floated a small tin hanger down the Detroit River, planting it on a grass airfield at the southern tip of Grosse Ile, Michigan. This established one of the nation's largest and most important bases for training young officers in the art of flight. Nestled among farms and lavish estates, Naval Air Station Grosse Ile (NAS GI) was home to thousands of Navy officers earning their wings before leaving to fight in World War II . Here their story is told through photographs taken by the airmen who flew and lived there, from its beginnings in 1927 to its decommissioning more than 40 years later. This is the story of men such as Pres. George H.W. Bush, who flew torpedo bombers from NAS GI. And this is the story of the ZMC-2, the Navy's only all-metal blimp, constructed at NAS GI. Finally, this is also the story of the current NAS GI. Spared the fate of many decommissioned bases, today Cessnas, Pipers, and Mooneys rest in the same hangars where Corsairs and Phantoms once prowled. Private pilots take flight and land via NAS GI's unmistakable triangle of runways, and students still earn their wings from the same concrete runways where young airmen trained before heading off to fight the Battles of Midway, Coral Sea, and Leyte Gulf.

Sepia cover of Images of Aviation US Naval Air Station Grosse Ile with a row of vintage fighters on a runway and photographers in the foreground.

Fort Wayne Aviation

9780738588605

$24.99

Fort Wayne is the hometown of Lt. Paul Baer, who flew with the French forces in World War I and was the first US pilot to achieve ace status. Fort Wayne is also the hometown of Arthur Art Roy Smith, who was one of the pioneer acrobatic fliers in the pre–World War I era. Smith made several trips to Japan and is credited with inspiring the Japanese to develop their own aircraft in the period between the two world wars. Prior to the onset of World War II, the US Army Air Corps purchased over 600 acres southwest of Fort Wayne and built Paul Baer Army Air Field. Today, Fort Wayne International Airport covers about 3,500 acres and has the second-longest runway in Indiana, almost 12,000 feet in length.

Cover image for Fort Wayne Aviation, isbn: 9780738588605

Eastern Iowa's Aviation Heritage

9780738583303

$24.99

Iowans embraced aviation from its very beginning. In the late 1800s, Keokuk's Baldwin brothers headlined Lee County Chautauqua festivals with balloon ascensions. Two decades later, early powered-flight daredevils like Lincoln Beachey, Glenn Messer, and Eugene Ely thrilled huge crowds along the Mississippi River from Decorah to Fort Madison. Dubuque's Clifton Ole Oleson barnstormed from Oelwein to Mount Pleasant and in communities in between. Visionaries like the Livingston brothers from Cedar Falls and Davenport's Ralph Cram, Don Luscombe, and Billy Cook started air taxi and freight lines, flight and mechanic schools, and aircraft manufacturing facilities. Iowa City became an original U.S. Airmail stop and, during World War II, Ottumwa and other communities operated training sites for military aviation, with women playing a major role. The postwar establishment of regional air carriers became commonplace, and today a new generation is leading Eastern Iowa into the 21st century while preserving the memory of those who started it all.

Cover image for Eastern Iowa's Aviation Heritage, isbn: 9780738583303

St. Louis Aviation

9780738584102

$24.99

For a little more than 60 years, from 1904 to 1967, St. Louis was considered the world's air capital for balloon racers, parachutists, airship aeronauts, air-traffic controllers, scheduled airlines, solo-flight adventurers, fighter pilots, and astronauts. At many times, the United States has led the world in aviation development and technology, and St. Louis was one of the biggest contributors with many aviation firsts. A U.S. president first flew in an aircraft here. St. Louis can arguably be credited with the world's first parachute jump, along with the world's first air-traffic controller. The city was the epicenter for international balloon racing, and of course most people know that the city was home to Charles Augustus Lindbergh. The Cold War and subsequent conflicts might have turned out quite differently if a St. Louis aircraft manufacturer had not existed. The world's largest airline may have never gotten off the ground if not for a U.S. mail contract that was awarded to a St. Louis company in the mid-1920s. This book provides a brief view of these firsts in aviation, as well as the development and impact of aviation in the city and beyond.

Cover of St Louis Aviation from Images of Aviation; vintage plane over the city and Gateway Arch.

Hoosier Aviator Paul Baer

9781467138499

$21.99

Indiana native Paul Baer was an American pilot of many firsts. Born into a modest midwestern family in the late 1800s, Baer grew up short and shy in Fort Wayne. Not short on ambition, he volunteered to join a new breed of combatant: the fighter pilot. Dogfighting in the skies over France during World War I, Baer earned a giant reputation as the first-ever American to shoot down an enemy plane and the first to earn the title of combat ace for earning five victories—before being shot down himself. Author Tony Garel-Frantzen celebrates the 100th anniversary of Baer's aerial heroics with rarely seen images, a previously unpublished POW letter from Baer himself and a look at the restless raptor's life of roaming.

Cover image for Hoosier Aviator Paul Baer, isbn: 9781467138499

Cleveland's Legacy of Flight

9780738551777

$24.99

Since the dream of flight was finally realized by two Ohioans, Wilbur and Orville Wright, it is little wonder that Greater Clevelanders were quick to embrace it. From the August day in 1910 when Glenn Curtiss flew from Euclid Beach Park to Cedar Point, aviation has had a strong following in Cleveland. World War I saw the dawn of aircraft production in the city, and the 1920s brought the world-renowned Cleveland National Air Races. Cleveland industry supported aviation in many different ways, and multiple airports, many now long gone, promoted business aviation and flight training for decades. During World War II, Cleveland was a center of war production, and much of this was aviation related. Subsequently, renovations of the Cleveland Municipal Airport created Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. A scene of thriving airline operations to this day, Cleveland's business community was quick to appreciate the advantages of corporate aviation, which remains a daily feature of Cleveland's aviation life.

Cover of Cleveland's Legacy of Flight with three men beside a vintage aircraft.

Wichita's Legacy of Flight

9780738531809

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

Known as the "Air Capital of the World," Wichita, Kansas, has been continuously associated with aviation longer than any city in the world. The city's inventive and entrepreneurial spirit made an early mark on the aviation and aerospace industries. From the first hot air balloons floating over the wheat fields to the major aviation corporations that still call the city home, Wichita has been associated with the wonder of flight, which celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2003. The images in this book document the evolution of flight and its subsequent effect on the cowtown that dared to dream it could become an international center for aviation.

Book cover with a vintage propeller airplane in flight for Wichita's Legacy of Flight

Canton's Pioneers in Flight

9780738525228

$24.99

Canton boasts a rich aviation heritage, reaching back to the earliest pioneers of flight. Local resident Frank S. Lahm founded the Aero Club of Ohio here and his son Frank P. Lahm worked with the Wright brothers on some of their earliest test flights. William Martin's monoplane, the first single-wing airplane in the world, was invented here. Other Canton firsts include Martin's wife Almina, the world's first female airplane pilot; Bernetta Miller, one of the first women to earn a pilot's license; and Louise Timken, the first woman to own and operate a private jet. The Timken Company developed a steel alloy here that allowed planes to fly at higher altitudes.

Canton's Pioneers in Flight book cover showing a man beside an early airplane

Quad City International Airport

9780738583716

$24.99

In 1922, three men were so captivated with flying they leased 30 acres of cow pasture south of Moline to serve as a landing field. Other early aviators and barnstormers began using Franing Field, and it soon became known as Moline Airport. The field hosted the Ford Reliability Tour four times, served as part of the original New York to Dallas airmail route, had passenger service as early as 1927, became one of Illinois's largest Works Progress Administration projects, weathered financial struggles and a battle with neighboring Davenport, Iowa, over which community would possess the area's commercial airport, and has enjoyed constant growth and updates for both airline and general aviation traffic. This collection of historical photographs and images will present the people, planes, events, and development of that former pastureland into today's modern Quad City International Airport, the third largest airport for passenger traffic in the state of Illinois.

Cover of Quad City International Airport featuring a sepia photo of a crowd gathered near a parked airplane on the runway.

Mayday Over Wichita

9781626190528

$21.99

On the cold Saturday morning of January 16, 1965, a U.S. Air Force KC-135 tanker carrying thirty-one thousand gallons of jet fuel crashed into a congested African American neighborhood in Wichita, Kansas. When the fire and destruction finally subsided, forty-seven people--mostly African American children--were dead or injured, homes were completely destroyed and numerous families were splintered. As shocking as it may sound, the event was seemingly omitted from the historical record for nearly fifty years. Now, historian D. W. Carter examines the myths and realities of the crash while providing new insights about the horrific four-minute flight that forever changed the history of Kansas.

Cover image for Mayday Over Wichita, isbn: 9781626190528

Soaring and Gliding

9780738540719

$24.99

To fly as the hawk and eagle has been mankind's dream for centuries.
Modern sailplanes make soaring and gliding flight possible, and with them, humans can fly higher, faster, and farther than the greatest of birds, using only an invisible force of nature to stay aloft. The terms soaring and gliding are used interchangeably, and the sport is appealing to pilot and spectator alike. Sailplane enthusiasts have always been explorers, always looking for a more ideal site that will provide the intellectual challenges of soaring as well as the sheer beauty and relaxation the sport can offer. Michigan-based glider pilots and designers found their soaring paradise in the early 1930s when they ventured north to the Sleeping Bear Dunes area. The explorers began to promote the sport to national and international prominence, and many came to make up a veritable who's who of American aeronautics. Over a century after Octave Chanute discovered motorless flight on the Lake Michigan dunes, sailplanes, hang gliders, and paragliders still fill the skies.

Book cover for Soaring and Gliding showing two men with a vintage aircraft in a field

South Dakota Air National Guard's 114th Fighter Wing

9781467107297

$23.99

The South Dakota Air National Guard's 114th Fighter Wing's history began during World War II with the 356th Fighter Group. It became a post-World War II Air Guard unit, initially flying the North American F-51D Mustang removed from storage as the active duty Air Force began transitioning to turbojet fighters. It was slowly upgraded to turbojet aircraft, first with the T-33 trainer to assist pilots into to the F-94 Starfighter. One of the most dramatic upgrades was with the F-89D Norhtrop Scorpion, which had onboard radar for all-weather interception, and the F-89J, armed with the nuclear warhead Genie rockets to shoot down Russian bombers. Its first supersonic fighter was the Convair F-102A Delta Dagger, a delta-wing fighter. The wing continued to transition through various turbojet fighters to the current General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon from 1992 to the present. The unit is fully integrated into the US Air Force's aerial defense of the United States and the Global War on Terrorism.

South Dakota Air National Guard 114th Fighter Wing cover with a row of fighter jets in sepia tones

Springfield Aviation

9780738561592

$24.99

Citizens of Springfield first witnessed human flight, a balloon ascent, on July 5, 1858. In 1861, the capital city's most famous resident, Abraham Lincoln, then residing in the White House, authorized the creation of the first U.S. "air force," a balloon to observe Confederate troops. Springfield's interface with aviation has been a steady stream of hot-and-cold-running enthusiasm since airplanes began flying from the state fair racetrack infield about 1910. Springfield Aviation chronicles that flow and concludes with photographs from Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport in early 2008. It presents photographs of memorable airplanes, airships, and prominent aviators from the author's extensive collection, augmented by contributions from Springfield Airport Authority, Lincoln Library's Sangamon Valley Collection, and many others.

Cover image for Springfield Aviation, isbn: 9780738561592

South Dakota's First Century of Flight

9780738584256

$24.99

The first aircraft heavier than air took to the skies in South Dakota in 1911. Since that time, pilots, mechanics, and dreamers have used aviation in innovative ways to shrink the large distances between the prairies and the mountains of the state. The start of the U.S. Space Program began at the Stratobowl in the 1930s and evolved into today's modern hot air balloons. People have used aircraft, not only for transportation, but also for controlling varmints, from grasshoppers to coyotes. Firefighters routinely use aircraft to put out forest fires, and many a tourist has seen Mount Rushmore from a helicopter. South Dakota has also served the military since World War II with the major bombers of the U.S. Air Force's arsenal. Perhaps best of all, South Dakotans enjoy flying for pure enjoyment.