British Aviation Successes and Setbacks - 1945-1975. Following on from his study on British aviation growth between the wars, Peter Reese turns his attention to a story of decline. An important study revealing the bad luck and poor decision-making that plagued the British aviation industry during this turbulent period. By the 1960s the gulf between the ideal and the possible was becoming only too apparent. The author thoughtfully explores how repeated financial crises combined with a lack of rigour and fatal self satisfaction led British aviation to miss vital opportunities across this turbulent period in Britain's skies.