Arrows to the Moon: Avro's Engineers and the Space Race: Apogee Books Space Series 19 [Paperback]

Chris Gainor (Author)

Book Description

Series: Apogee Books Space Series | Publication Date: October 1, 2001

Tells the story of the Canadian and British engineers who played key roles in putting Americans on the Moon and in building the United States' space program.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A fitting tribute to some of the unsung heroes of manned space exploration..." -- The Observatory Magazine, October 2002. "Space history at its best... a good read and well worth its price..." -- Spaceflight, October 2002. Review in the Swedish astronomical journal 'Telescopium', Winter 2002.

About the Author

Chris Gainor is a communications consultant and journalist with a keen interest in space travel. He is a fellow fo the British Interplanetary Society and the author of Arrows to the Moon.

Product Details

• Paperback: 296 pages
• Publisher: Collector's Guide Publishing Inc (October 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1896522831
• ISBN-13: 978-1896522838
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 6.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #883,708 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Canadian Engineers Assist America in Reaching The Moon, November 22, 2001

By 

Ken R. Harman (Burnaby, BC Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Arrows to the Moon: Avro's Engineers and the Space Race: Apogee Books Space Series 19 (Paperback)

Most people know that German rocket engineers led by Wernher von Braun helped build the rocket that put Apollo astronauts on the Moon. But few have heard about the Canadian and British engineers who also made a big contribution to the success of Apollo. Now their story is told for the first time in "Arrows to the Moon." This excellent book starts off with the story of how Canada scrapped the Avro Arrow, the most advanced jet interceptor of its time, and how NASA scooped up 32 of Avro's top engineers. This book follows their work in the U.S. space program from the early Mercury flights right through to the International Space Station. It includes stories about Jim Chamberlin and his design work on the Gemini spacecraft, John Hodge's efforts as the flight director when America faced its first emergency in space on Gemini 8, and Owen Maynard's contributions to Apollo. And there's much more. Top NASA officials were unanimous: the group from Canada was a "godsend" to NASA. Now, for the first time, their story is told in Arrows to the Moon.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars There's more to the American space program than you thought., November 30, 2001

By 

Robert N. Mccullough "New Horizons Bob" (Big Rapids, MI United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Arrows to the Moon: Avro's Engineers and the Space Race: Apogee Books Space Series 19 (Paperback)

I grew up with the space program and have read every book I could get my hands on concerning the early space programs. This well-written and extensively-researched book covers a topic I hadn't considered: the contributions to the American space program made by the Canadian and British engineers and scientists who lost their jobs when the Canadian Avro Arrow was abruptly cancelled just as the space race was heating up. Many of these highly-trained workers made their way south, signed on with NASA, and made significant contributions to every manned space program from Mercury to the ISS. This is the definitive story of these people. Highly recommended.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A sleeping giant of a book., September 1, 2004

By 

Nan Taylor "Nantay" (Sandia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Arrows to the Moon: Avro's Engineers and the Space Race: Apogee Books Space Series 19 (Paperback)

This hidden gem of a book is one of the best there is on the space program. Its main purpose is to explore a little-known but important corner of space history - the Canadian contribution to the space program. But it is so masterfully written, it manages to summarize the entire feeling of the Apollo program incredibly well - a feeling I remember from my many years working on the project. If you read one book on space history, this should be it.