Disasters in the Air: Mysterious Air Disasters Explained

by Jan Bartelski

Within 12 chapters, the author, a renowned aircraft accident investigator, looks at some of the more interesting puzzles that have confronted investigation teams during the last 60 years. His... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1840372044
• ISBN13: 9781840372045
• Release Date: January 2001
• Publisher: Crowood Press (UK)
• Length: 295 Pages
• Weight: 2.46 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 7.7" x 9.8"

Customer Reviews

AIR DISASTER FROM THE PILOT'S PERSPECTIVE

Many books have been written on plane crashes, so what makes this one special? The answer lies with the author, who for a time was president of the International Air Line Pilots Assn. After serving in the RAF during WWII, he went on to a long career in aviation, primarily with KLM. So he is often directly connected to the disasters he writes about. For instance, he warned the Egyptian airport authorities about unsafe conditions at Cairo that contributed to a series of accidents in the 60's. In another instance he was in flight when a nearby plane was hijacked. In the next to last chapter he questions the findings on history's worst accident in the Canary Islands, where the report relied heavily on assessments of the KLM pilots' personalities. Barteslki knew the pilot, so his doubts carry a lot of weight. Again and again the reader will see air disasters from the vantage of an insider. The author knows his stuff. As one might expect, the book strongly defends the pilot, first line of defense against a crash. In several cases, we are even told of cases where pilots were held criminally responsible for accidents, or threatend by angry locals looking to avenge a loved one. Bartelski worked for many years to protect his colleages from such treatment, and helped reform aviation law. 'Disasters in the air' got less attention than others on the subject, hence I am the first reviewer here. The reason may be partly that Bartelski spends too much time on cases of interest to him only. More major disasters should have been included in the book. But air disaster readers should be sure to include this one in their collection.