The Story of Flight is a comprehensive introduction to the world of aviation. It gives an account of the full history of heavier than air flight, both military and civil, from the early experimental gliders to the first powered flights. It explains how the Wright brothers were able to succeed where others had failed and details the huge advances that have been made since, including the development of the jet engine, supersonic flight and vertical take-off and landing. But the story of flight is not just about aeroplane design and development, it is the story of people, at first the dreamers and visionaries, who just knew that someday man would fly, the amateur scientist and inventors who constructed elaborate machines of wood and fabric and braveley tested them, or conducted experiments with kites, gliders and primitive wind tunnels to gain valuable data. People like George Cayley, who may have been the first to understand the underlying principles and forces of flight, Otto Lilienthal "The Birdman" who eventually gave his life in the pursuit of manned flight, John Stringfellow, who built the first steam powered model aircraft to fly and many more. Then, when the goal had been achieved and the Wright brothers took to the air for the first time in a powered aircraft, the pioneers who strove to fly hgher, faster and for longer, capturing the imagination of the public and thrilling them with aeronautical displays and crossing both national borders and physical boundaries. Men like Louis Bleriot who was first to cross the English Channel and later Alcock and Brown crossing the Atlantic. Full of easy to understand explanations and illustrations as well as some beautiful pictures by one of the countries' leading aviation photographers, "The Story of Flight" is a must have book for aviation enthusiasts and a worthwhile addition to any library.