Final Approach [Paperback]

John J. Nance (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1996

SABOTAGE....ACCIDENT....OR MURDER BY OMISSION?
The airline told passengers flying to Kansas City the skies were safe. They lied. On a rain-slashed night, Flight 255 crashes at Kansas City Airport -- triggering one of the most horrifying aviation disasters of the decade. Put simply, it never should have happened. Safety Board investigator Joe Wallingford races to find out why it did.

--This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

An airliner attempting a bad-weather landing in a Midwest city plows into another awaiting takeoff. With more than 100 people dead, the National Transportation Safety Board assigns Joe Wallingford to investigate. Was the disaster caused by human error or by technical malfunction? Did outside electronic interference, perhaps from a top-secret SDI radar, disrupt flight controls? Nance, a leading airline safety analyst and author of nonfiction works on aviation, debuts as a novelist with a first-rate technical detective story. While keeping readers in suspense, he explores the dynamics of factions within the safety bureaucracy and limns the problems raised for airline management by deregulation. With realistic dialogue and convincing characters, particularly Wallingford and Senator Kell Martinson, this nonmilitary techno-thriller is a sure winner.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From School Library Journal

YA-- Joe Wallingford, National Transportation Safety Board investigator, perseveres through many obstacles to determine why two planes collided, killing most of the crew and passengers. Although there are twists and turns in the plot, it is not as complicated as many other books of this type. Nance's knowledge of Washington comes through clearly both in the physical description of places and in the political frustrations: cover-ups, relationship of private industry to independent agencies, Defense Department silence, individuals' quests for power, and the need for influential friends. Government students will see the detailed operation of one government agency as they come to know one stubborn, qualified civil servant who cares about his job. The only disappointment is the ending, which, while optimistic, is not realistic. --Claudia Moore, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VA
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Fawcett Books (November 1996)
• ISBN-10: 0449456315
• ISBN-13: 978-0449456316
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,440,689 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John J. Nance, aviation analyst for ABC News and a familiar face on Good Morning America, is the author of several bestselling novels including Fire Flight, Skyhook, Turbulence, and Orbit. Two of his novels, Pandora's Clock and Medusa's Child, have been made into highly successful television miniseries. A lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force Reserve, Nance is a decorated pilot veteran of Vietnam and Operations Desert Storm/Desert Shield. He lives in Washington State.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I've always been impressed with Nance, December 17, 1999

By 

R. Connon (Maine) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Final Approach (Mass Market Paperback)

John Nance continues to impress me, and "Final Approach" only solidifies that. The book kept me picking it up and reading it when I should have been doing other things. His insight into the avaiation industry is amazing, and his ability to bring that insight out in a fictional novel is superb. People interested in the "behind the scenes" of airlines, the NTSB, FAA, and Washington will enjoy the plot.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars It's a good book but I find others better., July 23, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Final Approach (Mass Market Paperback)

Final Appoach is a good book. I was intrested in the book but not that intrested. I had read Pandoras Clock and Medusa's Child also by John J. Nance beore Final Approach I was not as intriqued as I was before by the other two. However I found this book very satisfying. It had lots of governments coverups. I think Nance does great research. His book was great. Every aspect of the plane is descriped. You just can't find better books Nance it the greatest author ever!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Final Approach- by John J. Nance, January 27, 2001

By 

Jeff Pudelski (Brooklyn, Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Final Approach (Mass Market Paperback)

After reading Nance's thrillers, such as Pandora's Clock and Medusa's Child, this book was a major dissapointment when I finally forced myself to read it. It started out excellent, with a very good crash scene. However, by the middle, continuing through the end, no action occured at all. It is a book that can educate you on the inside of the FAA, NTSB, and airline industries, but if you want action, this book will leave you feeling deflated.