The Miles Magister

Ref: 4750

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{detailed description}Author's preface:
This book is essentially a factual account of an aeroplane, the importance of which tends to be overlooked. Though at first regarded with mixed feelings, the Magister was nevertheless a notable advancement in ab initio training and certainly deserves a place among the famous and historical types.
With the introduction of the new generation fighter and bomber monoplanes in the late thirties, one would have thought it sound policy to train the future pilots of these aircraft on a type of similar configuration, yet compared to the Tiger Moth, its participation in this role was comparatively small. This was due to several reasons, in the first place the Tiger Moth was already well established with the R.A.F. and was being produced in large numbers, not only in this country but also in Canada and Australia for use under the Empire Air Training Scheme. Another reason was the priority given to Master production at the Phillips and Powis works, which was considered by Air Ministry to be of greater importance. Despite these circumstances, nearly thirteen hundred Magisters were produced to fulfil an important task.
Much of the material for this book has been drawn from Official sources but the deplorable fact that no production records exist has made it necessary to rely upon memories and contemporary reports to some extent, the former being naturally a little hazy now and the latter often conflicting to say the least. However an attempt has been made to produce a comprehensive record of a worthy aeroplane. The emphasis has been placed on the R.A.F. Magister but attention is also given to its civilian counterpart The Hawk Trainer. To put its derivation into perspective, brief reference is made to the forerunners of the Magister with particular attention to its immediate predecessor the M.2 series Hawk Trainer I.
On the premise that one illustration is worth a chapter of words, line drawings have been included where appropriate and unnecessary duplication between text and illustration has been avoided as much as possible. It is hoped the reader will find the illustrations a useful contribution, using them in conjunction with the text. It is further hoped that not only the historian and modeller but also the pilot, engineer and general aviation enthusiast will welcome this chronicle to his bookshelf.
{Author / Publisher / Date}by G. H. R. Johnson
published by Newark, Nottingham and Lincolnshire Air Museum no date, C.late 1960's 64pp illustrated with black and white photographs and drawings, including a fold-out sectioned drawing of the standard RAF version. 15x20 stapled paper covers
{condition}very good
{delivery info}