Aviation Nonfiction

The incredible story of the first African American military pilot, who went on to become a Paris nightclub impresario, a spy in the French Resistance and an American civil rights pioneer Eugene Bullard lived one of the most fascinating lives of the twentieth century. The son of a former slave...

When a pilots sends a "mayday" message, it means there is serious trouble. Discover the fascinating true tales of people who lived to tell about their own terrifying airplane disasters, and what they did to survive.

Every flight you take is only the visible part of a much larger story. You have flown across oceans inside a pressurized aircraft traveling hundreds of miles per hour, trusted your life to people you will never meet, and arrived safely enough that the biggest problem was often the Wi-Fi, the food, or a delayed bag. But have you ever wondered what actually makes modern flight possible? Cleared for Takeoff: The Hidden World Behind Every Flight takes you behind the boarding gate and into the extraordinary global system that keeps aviation moving. Written by aviation professional Saeed Nahdi, ...

In the Spring of 1915, a Parisian playboy took to the lethal skies of World War I, becoming the world’s first fighter pilot. Never before had a lone pilot hunted down other aviators. Roland Garros’ aerial exploits unleashed unlimited air combat and changed warfare forever. Before leaving French café society for the Western Front, the young pilot set aviation records, won air races, and introduced manned flight to thrilled crowds in the USA, Europe, and Latin America. Garros scouted for the US Army, strolled as a Boulevardier, sold sports cars, played classical piano, was a lawyer, a ...

“A lost world, man-eating tribesmen, lush andimpenetrable jungles, stranded American fliers (one of them a dame withgreat gams, for heaven's sake), a startling rescue mission. . . . This is atrue story made in heaven for a writer as talented as Mitchell Zuckoff. Whew—what an utterly...

The second in the critically acclaimed “vivid, heart-stopping, and unforgettable” (Craig Whitlock, #1 New York Times bestselling author) Targeted nonfiction series examining the devastating terrorist attacks that changed the course of history from #1 New York Times bestselling author Jack...

Audiobook-exclusive bonus content includes a Q&A between Tammie Jo Shults and narrator Tavia Gilbert and a recorded speech detailing the events of Flight 1380. Nerves of Steel is the captivating true story of Tammie Jo Shults’s remarkable life—from growing up the daughter of a humble rancher...

Bloomsbury presents Spitfires by Becky Aikman, read by Laurel Lefkow. "A bold and soaring work of history . . . whip-smart, deeply researched, and beautifully written.” —Jonathan Eig, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of King: A Life “A soaring narrative.”—Keith O'Brien, New York Times...

"Fans of military biographies and memoirs will enjoy this inside look at the experiences of a determined woman in the cockpit." —Booklist A fresh, unique insider’s view of what it’s like to be a woman aviator in today’s US Navy—from pedicures to parachutes. Caroline Johnson was an...

This book is the product of The Earhart Project, a thirty-four-year investigation of the Earhart tragedy by The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery. TIGHAR investigators had no agenda. They were not out to advocate, excuse, honor, or impugn. They saw the Earhart disappearance as an aviation accident and reasoned the answer to its cause and outcome should be discoverable if they could find, assemble, and analyze the relevant data. 

Military drones have been part of wars for more than 100 years. Today’s military unmanned aerial vehicles are packed with sensors, high-quality cameras, and even weapons. With each UAV flight, military members are kept safe away from war zones. Young listeners will learn how both aerial and underwater military drones operate and get inside details about some of the missions they’ve completed.

The US Air Force is a powerful military force. But there is more to this high-flying military branch than you might imagine. These surprising facts about the US Air Force will amaze you.

When 1919 began, the city of Chicago seemed on the verge of transformation. Modernizers had an audacious, expensive plan to turn the city from a brawling, unglamorous place into “the Metropolis of the World.” But just as the dream seemed within reach, pandemonium broke loose and the city’s...

Militaries need fast and powerful machines in the air. Fighter jets, cargo planes, and other amazing aircraft zoom over land and water to get the job done!

Listen to the story of how Wilbur and Orville Wright developed, tested, and successfully flew the first powered airplane.

In February 1942, a reconnaissance party of US Army Air Force officers arrived in England. Firmly wedded to the doctrine of daylight precision bombing, they believed they could help turn the tide of the war in Europe. In the months that followed, they formed the Eighth Air Force—an organization that grew at an astonishing rate. To accommodate it, almost seventy airfields were built across the eastern counties of England. At the heart of the Eighth Air Force was its bombardment groups, each equipped with scores of heavily armed, four-engine bombers. This is the story of just one "Bomb Group".

Float through the sky under a giant, colorful balloon! Listen for the facts on hot air balloons.

September 11, 2001, did not represent the first aerial assault against the American mainland. The first came on July 17,1996, with the downing of TWA Flight 800. This book looks in detail at what people saw and heard on this fateful night. First Strike explains how a determined corps of ordinary...

Air travel is one of the safest methods of transportation, but when a disaster happens, it captures the public's imagination. Learn about how airplanes are built, how researchers investigate a crash, how engineers are making planes safer, and more.

In this enthralling history, internationally bestselling author Max Hastings recounts the odds-defying Operation Biting, a 1942 parachute commando raid on Northern France to steal vital components of German intelligence—one of the most thrilling British commando raids of World War II, and one...