Description
Book Synopsis During World War II, an eccentric band of barnstormers, stunt flyers and commercial pilots joined military recruits to form the Pan American Air Ferries. These civilian pilots helped develop a strategically crucial and highly efficient system for shuttling aircraft to Allied forces around the world that contributed significantly to key campaigns throughout the war. W. Gordon Schmitt''s engaging, often amusing memoir recounts the close calls and indelible characters he encountered as navigator in the PAAF, from Brazil to Africa to the Middle East and beyond.
Table of Contents
- Table of Contents
- Editor's Introduction by Peter Schmitt
- One. The War Approaches
- Two. A Troubling Diagnosis
- Three. Taking Off
- Four. Training in Miami
- Five. On Our Way: Port o' Spain, Belém, Natal
- Six. Crossing the Atlantic: Destination, Africa
- Seven. Kano to Khartoum, Cairo to Tehran
- Eight. Back in the States
- Nine. Ascension
- Ten. The Dark Continent: Incident at Kano
- Eleven. "You're in the Army Now!"
- Twelve. The Northern Route: Through Iceland to Scotland
- Thirteen. Close Calls in Nashville
- Fourteen. Adventures with the "Fireball Express"
- Fifteen. Characters Unforgettable
- Sixteen. May 1945: Going Home!
- Postscript: An Essay Contest
- "What I Consider Requisites for a Private Pilot"
- Index
