This book gathers data of endurance record attempts established all around the world during the 1920's and 1930's. Illustrated with hundreds of rare photographs.

INTRODUCTION

No doubt there are many who would look upon the flamboyant exploits of ocean hoppers and record breakers as foolhardy and of little value. That many were fortune hunters in search of overnight fame cannot be denied. Once front page news, their names and deeds quickly vanished into the annals of time. And yet from their competitive spirit came development. Through these colorful aeronauts aviation became more than but a fledgling art and the airplane became more than but a mere toy for the rich and adventurous. From these meager beginnings came a many-faceted industry. Daring in-the- news flyers, ambassadors of the air, showed a skeptical public that aviation and the airplane were coming of age -both as a form of travel and as a mighty weapon.

The 1920s and 1930s brought forth many new developments. Month in and month out flyers proved that the airplane could not only fly faster, but higher and farther. It was all front page news. There came developments in airframes, engines, superchargers, tires, instruments, fuels and oils, and countless other areas. Annual pageants like the Ford Tours and National Air Races became the proving ground for American airpower. The airplane had come a long way from the sand dunes of Kitty Hawk in 1903, and yet it was only a beginning.

One certainly cannot deny that Lindbergh's epic solo crossing of the Atlantic added that extra spark that got things rolling. The monoplane and radial engine took root and the biplane, with its then conventional in-line powerplant, settled into the pages of history. Many quickly saw the possibilities of using the airplane as a form of advertising and fuselages bedecked with company slogans and trademarks were not uncommon.

Yet in writing this account let's not overlook other facets of life in those days gone by. They were hard times-times of depression and crime. The Great War was a thing of the past and America settled into isolation. It was an era of flappers, Charlie Chaplin, the Model T, Babe Ruth, big bands, and a myriad of nostalgia.

Just where does one stop researching and start writing such an account? One finds it hard to draw a line. As Ernest Hemingway once said, "If one were to wait until he knew everything there is to know about a subject, nothing would ever get written." With this premise in mind, I submit the following with the hope that it will remain a lasting pictorial and reference work on aviation's glory gamblers of the Golden Age.

This book is in no way meant to be a complete chronology of all endurance records established throughout the world during the 1920s and 1930s. It is felt, however, that the following is perhaps the most comprehensive gathering of such data to date under any one cover.

More then ten years of loving, and sometimes agonizing, research has gone into this project. The data which follows was painstakingly extruded from back-issue aeronautical magazines, newspaper microfilm, current articles and books by fellow historians, and correspondence with those who actually took part. For accuracy's sake, whenever possible, data has been cross-checked with several different sources.

Included in this account are both the successes and the failures. The attempted flights were in most cases aborted due to mechanical problems, such as fuel leaks or clogged fuel lines, or by inclement weather. Due to lack of funds many other flights never even got off the drawing board. Though these flights added nothing to the advancement of aviation it is interesting to note their relation to other, successful, flights of the same period.

CONTENTS

Introduction 

1. For What It's Worth 

2. At a Glance 

3. Preparations and Promoters 

4. Prizes and Publicity 

5. Public Opinion 

6. Equipment and Techniques 

7. Support Teams 

Chronology of Flights 

8. Living Aloft 

9. The Grind (1929-1930) 

10. Trials and Tribulations

11. Road to Valhalla 

12. The Practical Side 

13. Sidelights and Summaries 

14. Epilogue and Earnings 

Credits 

Appendix 

Index