Colin Higgs – författare

The world got a little smaller in July 1949 when the first jet-powered airliner took to the skies barely four years after the end of the Second World War. Not only was the de Havilland Comet 1 was a lot faster than previous airliners, it could fly higher and further. It was packed with new technology but, perhaps most importantly for those early passengers, it was a quiet, luxurious and even pleasant experience, something that could never be said for the noisy piston-engine aircraft that came before. The Comet s leadership in jet travel for the future was assured until aircraft began crashing. The first ones were put down to pilot error but two disastrous events in 1954 grounded the fleet and Britain s advantage over the rest of the world was lost. Boeing caught up with its ubiquitous 707 and the Comet was destined to become but a memory. However, rising from the ashes came a new Comet one that was bigger and more powerful than before and designed for completely different roles.Where the first Comets had provided an expensive and plush way to travel for the rich few, the new Comet 4s carried more passengers to a multitude of destinations inevitably becoming key carriers for the early package holidaymakers. At the same time they became vital strategic transports for the RAF as the British Empire receded. This book tells the full story of the world s first jet-powered airliner, from its remarkable beginnings, through its early flight trials programme to its entry into service. The type s military career is also covered, as is its construction; also included in this volume are details of the numerous variants produced and those still surviving as exhibits today. There are also twenty-four superb artworks by world-renowned aviation illustrator Juanita Franzi.

It was to be created for one man and one airline but became one of the best and most elegant aircraft ever to grace the skies.Howard Hughes was one of the wealthiest people in the world. He bought control in TWA, the huge American airline, and wanted to make it special. He wanted an aircraft that would give TWA the edge and begin the country's first ever coast-to-coast service carrying twenty passengers and freight. In fact he wanted a lot of them.Hughes discussed it with Lockheed, one of the smaller aviation companies in the USA, but they had grander plans. What they built was the Constellation, one of the greatest airliners of all time.Lockheed Constellation tells the story of the aircraft that was used by more than 100 airlines and air forces in thirty-eight countries; an airliner that came to epitomise the grand and romantic age of flight in the post-war years before the jet engine ruled. It tells of the wartime development which made the USAAF buy the first few aircraft off the production line; the post-war development which would see nine variants built; of the great airlines around the globe that would make the Constellation their first choice flagships; of the amazing technological advances made during development; and of the enduring legacy of this unique aircraft.

Possibly the most famous fighting formations of the Burma campaign during the Second World War were the Long Range Penetration Groups, more commonly known as the Chindits. Colonel Orde Wingate was given permission to attempt long-range operations deep within Japanese-held territory with the aim of sowing alarm and confusion amongst the enemy and disrupting Japanese plans for the invasion of India. For this, Wingate was given the Indian 77th Infantry Brigade. In February 1943 this force crossed into Burma on its first Chindit operation, codenamed Loincloth.The Chindits took the Japanese by surprise, putting one of the main railway lines out of order, but the Japanese responded quickly, interdicting supply drops to the Chindits who soon began to suffer severely from exhaustion and shortages of water and food. With three brigades chasing them, the Chindits headed back to India, being forced to break up into small groups to avoid capture. By the time the 77th Brigade crossed the border, it had lost a third of its strength.Despite the heavy losses, Wingate had shown that British troops could operate successfully against the Japanese in inhospitable terrain. Promoted to acting major general Wingate was granted permission to undertake another Chindit operation, but this time on a far greater scale. In Operation Thursday Wingate aimed to fly a force of 10,000 men, 1,000 mules, equipment and supplies into clearings in the heart of Burma behind enemy lines. The operation proved a considerable success, the Chindits causing mayhem amongst the Japanese forces. Wingate, though, did not live to see the end of Operation Thursday, as he was killed when the aircraft in which he was being transported to one of the Chindit bases crashed into the jungle.In this wonderful collection of photographs, drawn in large part from one man's photograph albums, we see the harsh conditions in which the Chindits had to operate, and the terrible physical state of many of the men who survived the jungles, the dry plains, and the ferocious Japanese enemy.

It was Tuesday, 15 July 1919 and for the residents of Clifden on Ireland's west coast this was not to be a normal day. Just before 08.40 hours, descending out of the gloom, came a large, twin-engine aeroplane lining up for final approach. One or two on-lookers recognised the danger straight away for this was an area of soft bog, but their attempts to alert the pilot were in vain.The aircraft began to sink and, with a squelch, came to a sudden stop, the tail rearing up in the air. Dazed and with fuel filling the cockpit the two-man crew scrambled out, grabbing what they could. After a flight lasting 16 hours and 28 minutes, Captain John Alcock and Lieutenant Arthur Whitten-Brown had won the race to be the first to fly non-stop across the Atlantic.It was a rough ending for a race that began in April 1913 when Lord Rothermere, aviation philanthropist and owner of the Daily Mail, offered a prize of 10,000, roughly equivalent to $1,000,000 in today's money, to the aviator who shall first cross the Atlantic in an aeroplane in flight from any point in the United States of America, Canada or Newfoundland to any point in Great Britain or Ireland in 72 continuous hours'.Illustrated by many unique photographs this book tells the story of the race, delayed for almost six years by the First World War. Many aircraft would be entered but few would even get off the ground. The teams faced great difficulties in preparing for the challenge of crossing one of the most hostile stretches of ocean on Earth.The authors not only reveal tales of failures and technical difficulties, but of the intense frustration of waiting for the perfect weather-window. And even when finally airborne, Alcock and Brown's flight almost ended in disaster on several occasions as weather conditions almost conspired to cast them down into the grey, cold waters of the Atlantic and almost certain death.

It was the early 1930s, fifteen years since the end of the First World War. Aviation was becoming more popular, but was still a rich man's hobby. In the midst of this came Geoffrey de Havilland and his aircraft company. He, and his design and engineering teams, created a line of simple, reliable and relatively cheap airliners which revolutionised air travel and were ordered in their hundreds.The DH.89 Dragon Rapide flew for the first time in 1934\. From its appearance on the drawing board the aircraft flew within a few months, announcing its arrival by competing in air races and entering commercial service. The prototype was the first of more than 700 aircraft, a huge number for a biplane commercial airliner design.The DH.89 was operated in many parts of the world. In 1939 Rapides were requisitioned by the military who were so pleased with this reliable aircraft that they ordered 500 new ones to be built as trainers, and named the Dominie, for both the RAF and Royal Navy.When peace returned there were huge numbers of surplus aircraft available but at this point, instead of being scrapped, they were bought up by airlines to be used again as short haul airliners for local services. Many of these services continued into the 1960s before finally being replaced. Even today, in the 21st Century, there are still many airworthy Rapides used for pleasure flying all round the world.It is the story of this remarkable aircraft that is revealed in this unrivalled collection of archive images, the majority of which, having been drawn from private collections, have not been published before.