World Encyclopedia of Civil Aircraft

"Civil Aircraft" is a comprehensive survey of all civil, sporting, and commercial flying machines from the sketchbooks of Leonardo da Vinci to the SST. Beginning with the designs of aircraft that never flew – the fanciful constructions of a pre-technological age – this volume covers,
decade by decade, every model and type of non-military aircraft from the Wright Flyer to the Columbia space shuttle. It contains a wealth of technical and historical information about the development of balloons, airships, landplanes, seaplanes. helicopters, cargo and passenger carriers, racing planes, aerobatic aircraft, gliders, STOL ( Short Take-Off and Landing) and VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) aeroplanes, and experimental high-altitude research aircraft, including spacecraft.
With over 3,000 illustrations, more than 1,200 in full colour, this is truly the definitive guide to civil aviation. Thousands of individual models are featured, with complete performance specifications. There are three-view line drawings showing relative dimensions; cutaway diagrams showing internal structures; illustrations of engine designs covering piston, turboprop, jet and rocket power plants; and eight double-page fold-out panels. A series of maps and charts shows the rapid expansion of commercial air routes and the dates of record flights for speed, distance, endurance, and altitude.A carefully researched text complements the illustrations and provides a complete history of the growth of civil aviation, covering the first experiments of the Wrights and others, the inauguration of the first civil airlines for passenger transportation, and the stories of the pilots and inventors who proved that the aeroplane was a safe, reliable means of travel. Particular attention is given to the competitive events that did so much to promote the glamour of flying – the Gordon Bennet, Beaumont, Schneider, Pulitzer, and Bendix Trophy races. The book also deals with the tremendous achievements in developing new materials and new technology during and after the two world wars, including the transition to jets and the growth of the light-plane industry and private flying.
Less than eighty years old, the aeroplane is one of man's most daring inventions. It has evolved rapidly, touching the lives of almost everyone. "Civil Aircraft" documents this phenomenal evolution in great detail. It is an authoritative and attractive reference work that will prove invaluable to historians and aviation enthusiasts.


by Enzo Angelucci
Published by Guild (BCA) 1987 English language edition (supervised by John Stroud) 414pp profusely illustrated with colour and b&w photos, drawings, line drawing, and 3view drawings, cutaways etc. 27x32 spine slightly bumped otherwise very good, including d/j.





Note:
"Long" descriptions, where shown, may have been taken from the book's dust jacket notes, and as such are relevant to the date of publication (e.g. any references to "new edition" "previously unpublished photographs" etc.) and not the present.