The Dragonflies

Ref: 4977

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{detailed description}4 September 1950. An F-80 Shooting Star fighter-bomber is hit by anti-aircraft fire over North Korea and the pilot bails out. Less than half an hour later the same pilot is on his way to safety - the first shot-down flyer in history to be rescued by a helicopter.
This is just one of the incidents described in this book - a work that traces the development of the rotorcraft back to the Middle Ages and describes its applications in peace and war since the first true helicopter lurched a few feet into the air in 1907. The book charts a path through the years between the wars, describing the record-breaking attempts of the early helicopter pioneers and the 'Autogiro Craze' of the 1930s.
The little-known field of helicopter development in the Soviet Union between the wars is well covered, ranging from the flight of Russia's first successful helicopter to experiments with armed gyroplanes for the Soviet army.
The chapter on the Second World War deals with the first use of helicopters in combat, with details of American helicopter operations in the Mediterranean and Aegean. It was during the war that the helicopter really came into its own, and the years 1939-45 saw many technical developments that ensured the success of postwar military and commercial helicopter designs. The book describes the emergence of the commercial helicopter, and the achievements of the commercial rotorcraft in the years since the war make fascinating reading. There are also chapters on the use of helicopters for a wide variety of tasks in Korea and their massive employment in the Vietnam War - and, of course, a chapter devoted to the rescue helicopters and their missions of mercy.
Finally, there is a glimpse into the future with regard to the prospects of the commercial helicopter. Will the day ever come when cities are linked by a network of passenger helicopter routes-or is this old dream doomed to extinction in the fiercely competitive transport world of tomorrow?
{Author / Publisher / Date}by Robert Jackson
published by Arthur Barker 1971 1st edn. 204pp illustrated, index, appendix 14x23
{condition}bottom edge stamped "supplied for the public service" otherwise good in torn d/j
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