A History in the Making: 80 Turbulent Years in the American General Aviation History [Hardcover]

Donald Pattillo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1998

The first-ever authoritative history of the business of general aviation: the triumphs and defeats, mergers and acquisitions. Author Donald Pattillo, an aviation and international business expert, takes you through the tumultuous growth of the industry, covering the origins of personal aviation ... the Lindbergh boom ... market expansion and war production ... the postwar era: 1946 - 1954 ... the modern era: 1967 - 1979 ... the general aviation crisis ... and the path to recovery. (19990106)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...Pattillo has succeeded in producing a valuable resource on the least understood segment of the nation's aerospace industry." (Choice )

From the Back Cover

The history of American general aviation: its glory days, decline, and. rebirth. General aviation is the biggest sector of the aerospace. industry in terms of sheer numbers. But even with more planes,. airfields, pilots, and flying hours than the military and commercial. sectors combined, it's a part of the industry that's also the least. understood. All along, it has been waiting for its own history to be. written. Here is that history: the first ever devoted to the general. aviation business. From the wild and tumultuous beginnings in the. wood-and-canvas biplane days, to today's resurgence and the exciting. emergence of the ultralight market, author Donald Pattilo covers it. all, without fear or favor. Follow the growth of this entrepreneurial,. fiercely competitive business, and gain insight into the decisions. behind the manufacture of some of the most famous aircraft ever built.. All the major developments in design and engineering are also covered,. including: agricultural aircraft; turbine power; business jets;. helicopters; wartime aircraft; light civilian aircraft. A History in. the Making also delves into the product liability crisis that put the. indsustry into a tailspin, and other problems plaguing aviation.. Finally, Pattillo forecasts the future, and reveals the promising new. developments that can lead the business back to the road of. prosperity.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 300 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Professional; 1 edition (July 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0070494487
• ISBN-13: 978-0070494480
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,188,965 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A difficult subject put together in a logical flow, October 4, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A History in the Making: 80 Turbulent Years in the American General Aviation History (Hardcover)

The author has taken a difficult subject(General Aviation) that has a history as long as powered flight itself and put it into a format that allows the reader to follow key historical events that shaped this segment of the aviation industry. He covers all the manufactures and the personalities who established these firms. However, the reader should already have a good grasp of the many General Aviation aircraft products that are refered to in the book chapters because there are few photos for reference. This is not a criticism and a reader who is not already familiar can obtain a reference book for this purpose. However,the main focus of the book is how the General Aviation business was formed and the historical economic business factors that drove and shaped this industry from the begining to today. I have heard many in aviation say this type book could not be written on this subject. This author has, and has done an excellent job.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing., August 15, 2011

By 

Redacted - See all my reviews

This review is from: A History in the Making: 80 Turbulent Years in the American General Aviation History (Hardcover)

Very disappointing.

While I wouldn't challenge many of the cold facts presented in 'A History in the Making: 80 Turbulent Years in the American General Aviation Industry' (the numbers/dates, primarily), the book is so saturated in the personal politics of it's author that it is virtually unreadable.

I do not understand why so many writers today are (apparently) incapable of simply presenting hard information - or writing a fictional novel - without so doing. People slap down their hard-earned money, and this 'new school' of authors abuse their positions by proselytizing for their various causes/beliefs. That's fine if one is up front about one's intentions, but when it is done surreptitiously it is almost an aggressive act.

But, hey... To each their own. This is America. If you're a person that wants to inject your personal politics into your work, that's fine. If it's your desire to immediately alienate half your audience (or so), then that's certainly your right. It works with television... right?

I, for one, will not be wasting my money on any more thinly veiled political dissertations from this author.

I rather suspect that I'm not alone in that regard.

(edited to include the full title of the book)