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Daniel Ford
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Glen Edwards: The Diary of a Bomber Pilot, From the Invasion of North Africa to His Death in the Flying Wing Paperback – August 30, 2013

by Daniel Ford (Author), Glen Edwards (Author)
4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 16 ratings
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In 1941, Glen Edwards learned to fly in a fabric-covered biplane. Seven years later, he died in the crash of the Northrop YB-49 Flying Wing, the Air Force’s most advanced jet-propelled aircraft and forerunner of the B-2 Stealth bomber of today. As a combat pilot in North Africa and Italy during World War II, and as a test pilot during a period of astonishing innovation, Edwards was among the best of a new generation of military aviators. The isolated desert base at Muroc, California, where Edwards crashed would be named in his honor.All through his military career, Glen Edwards kept a daily record of what he did and what he thought. Military historian Daniel Ford situates that diary in the context of World War II, the development of flight testing as a science, and the birth of an independent U.S. Air Force. He shows how military pilots in the 1940s augmented their seat-of-the-pants bravado and precision flying skills with rigorous academic training. Conveying both the exhaustion of combat and the exhilaration of flying some of the world’s fastest, most sophisticated planes, the book traces the tragic course of Glen Edwards’s career: the near-daily bombing missions over Africa and Italy, a record-breaking cross-country flight in the XB-42 Mixmaster, and trial flights in the YB-49 Flying Wing—the first plane Edwards ever actively disliked. The innovative Northrop bomber, Daniel Ford concludes, just wasn’t ready for prime time. About 70,000 words; with photographs from the Air Force and the Edwards family."A fascinating tale and a tribute to an unassuming man who simply loved to fly." -- Air&Space/Smithsonian
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  1. Print length
    218 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    August 30, 2013
  4. Dimensions
    6 x 0.5 x 9 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    1490952993
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1490952994
  7. See all details
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The Amazon Book Review
The Amazon Book Review
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Editorial Reviews

Review

The fascinating diary of the WWII bomber and postwar test pilot (after whom Edwards Air Force Base was named) placed into context by Ford, a contributing editor at Air & Space/Smithsonian magazine. Although many WWII memoirs have appeared in recent years, Edwards's rises above the rest with his honest and captivating accounts of daily life for a combat pilot in Africa. Also excellent is Fords commentary -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

"Ford [has] a splendid writing style and understands the modern Air Force. Reading his book is a real treat." -- Military Review

"Highly recommended" -- Today's Library

"A fascinating tale and a tribute to an unassuming man who simply loved to fly." -- Air & Space Smithsonian

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 2nd edition (August 30, 2013)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 218 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1490952993
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1490952994
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 10.5 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.5 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 16 ratings

About the author

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Daniel Ford

Daniel Ford

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Daniel Ford has spent a lifetime studying and writing about the wars of the past hundred years, from Ireland's war of liberation to America's invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan. A U.S. Army veteran and a reporter in Vietnam, he wrote the novel that was filmed as 'Go Tell the Spartans', starring Burt Lancaster. As a historian, he is best known for his prize-winning study of the American Volunteer Group--the gallant 'Flying Tigers' of the Second World War. Most recently, he has written a memoir of his life so far: "Looking Back From Ninety: The Depression, the War, and the Good Life that Followed." Visit www.DanFordBooks.com and sign up for a monthly newsletter about war, flying, and less important subjects.

Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
4 out of 5
16 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Happy Reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Biography of a bomber and test pilot.
Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2012
Verified Purchase
Glen Edwards was an incredible person. Very handsome and well educated with a master's degree in aeronautical engineering from Princeton. He was a bomber pilot during World War II and served in the African campaign during which he flew numerous bombing runs over Germany and Italy. Upon returning to the US after the war, he became a test pilot and died while testing a Northrup plane that had numerous design flaws. The plane was later taken out of production. The book has numerous pictures and is mainly made up of excerpts from the journals that he had kept for years. As a result, we hear his voice and share his emotions. It is a tragedy that he did not marry and have children. His genes should have been passed on to enrich our gene pool. There are pictures of some of his girl friends and he proposed to one of them but was refused. Edwards Air Force Base named after him is located in the California high desert where he was a test pilot. Many years later Edwards AFB would be the site of the X-15 tests that were performed by Neil Armstrong and by Forrest Peterson. Neil Armstrong became an astronaut and first man on the moon. Peterson later became an admiral and commanding officer of a nueclear powered aircraft carrier. It is entirely possible that had Glen Edwards lived, he would have become the first man on the moon. He loved flying and being a test pilot and died doing what he wanted to do.
4 people found this helpful
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Gilbert E Parker
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read.
Reviewed in the United States on April 27, 2013
Verified Purchase
This is a great book about an interesting time in the Air Force. The period right after WWII was one of great advancement in military aitcraft. It is fascinating to read about the pilots who experienced it. Imagine flying a B-29 and an F-80 in the same day, or being able to fly several different aircraft types during a single assignment. Unfortunately, when it got to the part about him flying the Northrup Flying Wing (B-49), I remembered how Edwards AFB got its name and I anticipated the ending. In the early 1970's there was a large aerial photo of the prop version of that plane in the flight simulator building at Wright Patterson AFB. I can still visualize it.
2 people found this helpful
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Gera
1.0 out of 5 stars One Star
Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2018
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Very boring, a dairy with many nonsence.
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Jarvis Hearn
3.0 out of 5 stars Glen Edwards
Reviewed in the United States on December 31, 2012
Verified Purchase
It would seem that if you have an interest in flying, as I do, you would be drawn to the book. However, it just went from one flight to the next without some of the excitement of flying.
One person found this helpful
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Arlene Alfonso
5.0 out of 5 stars i feel honored
Reviewed in the United States on August 7, 2010
im an eigth grader at a school named after glen edwards and after reading this book i feel truly honored to go to a school that honors him. he was a true hero and i cant wait to go back to school and show off all my information. hopefully i wont get beat up for being a total nerd.
4 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Kindle Customer
1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing cobbling
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 24, 2017
Verified Purchase
It would appear that the editor of the diary didn't know much about the subject. Entries are cobbled together but not much tells of the man himself, too many gaps left, too many questions left unanswered, even more after reading than before. Photos with no reference in the text. I read all the way to the last page and beyond searching for more information on the man of the title with great disappointment. A poor book, the subject deserves better.
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Blanche Ingham
5.0 out of 5 stars Read it.
Reviewed in Canada on March 10, 2016
Verified Purchase
This book was very good, His uncle lived in the same town as I live, so it made it more interesting.
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gibson
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 22, 2016
Verified Purchase
A MOST INTERESTING READ.
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