Barons of the Sky: From Early Flight to Strategic Warfare: The Story of the American Aerospace Industry

388 Pages·1991·64.72 MB·English

by  Wayne Biddle

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FROM EARLY FLIGHT
TO STRATEGIC WARFARE:
THE STORY OF THE AMERICAN
AEROSPACE INDUSTRY
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BOSTON
PUBLIC
LIBRARY

ALSO BY WAYNE BIDDLE
Coming to Terms (1981)
FROM EARLY FLIGHT
TO STRATEGIC WARFARE
THE STORY
OF THE
AMERICAN AEROSPACE
INDUSTRY
BARONS
OF
THE
SKY
WAYNE
BIDDLE
CHARLESTON BRANCH LIBRARY
Henry Holt and Company New York
1
For Sam
Henry Holt and Company, Inc.
Publisherssince 1866
115 West 18th Street
New York, New York 1001
Henry Holt® is a registered trademark
of Henry Holt and Company, Inc.
Copyright © 1991 by Wayne Biddle
All rights reserved.
Published in Canada by Fitzhenry & Whiteside Ltd.,
91 Granton Drive, Richmond Hill, Ontario L4B 2N5.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Biddle, Wayne.
—
Barons of the sky / Wayne Biddle. 1st Owl Book ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
— — —
1. Aerospace industri—es Military aspec—ts United Stat—es History,
2. Aircraft industry —Military aspect—s United States History.
3. Airplanes, Milita—ry United Stat—es History. 4. Aeronautics,
Military United States History. I. Title.
HD9711.5.U6B54 1993
338.4762913334'0973—dc20 92-35232
BN 0-8050-2514-6 (An Owl Book: pbk.)
First published in hardcover by
Simon & Schuster in 1991.
First Owl Book Edition—1993
Designed by Irving Perkins Assoc.
Picture Fditor: Vincent Virga
Primed in the United States of America
All first editions arc [Minted on acid-free paper.oo
1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2
CONTENTS
FOREWORD
11
PROLOGUE: Fantasies 19
INVENTION BEFORE INDUSTRY 25
1.
MONEY-MINDED ECCENTRICS 44
2.
3. SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 68
4. THE GREAT PROPOSITION 81
5. THE RAT RACE 113
6. DEPRESSION 166
7. MERCHANTS OF DEATH 194
8. EXPORTS 232
9. THE IRON CORNUCOPIA 270
0. PERMANENT REARMAMENT 288
EPILOGUE: Fates 320
NOTES 329
SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY 345
INDEX 349