Of all the fanatics in America, none are more dedicated to their pursuits, more romantic in their aspirations, more expert in their craft, more daring in their exploits, or more joyous in their fellowship than the part-time pilots who search out, recondition, and fly "the Warbirds," those World War II military aircraft from Mustangs to Flying Fortresses, from Messerschmitt 108s to Yaks. Here are the machines that are more than machines, that have about them the kind of personal aura that seems to have vanished in the age of jets. In this rousing account of the hair-raising airshows presented by these pilots, as well as the incredible adventures and misadventures that inevitably occur when a near maniac takes to the air in a rusty or otherwise neglected antique, Martin Caidin allows you to share the cockput with himself and his fellow flying addicts, and also to share the joy of seeing a neglected old Warbird rise phoenix-like from the runway and roar in the really wild blue yonder. A must for all pilots, private or professional, and for anyone else who has dreams of being one.
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.
