Wings Across the Water

Contains over 600 mesmerising aviation photos, most never before published. Beginning with a procession of 'hot-air professors' performing the Island's first manned balloon ascents in the 1800s, the book documents everything from the coming of the first spindly flying machines and early barn-storming high jinx to the frantic preparations for two wars, bush-flying follies and the arrival of the jet age. Wings Across the Water is one of those rare books that results when an exceptional authority joins forces with an able writer. Victoria-born and raised Elwood White, 87, himself a pioneer aviator who earned his pilot's licence in 1938, is recognised as the pre-eminent authority on Island aviation. Over the decades, few planes landed in the Victoria area without coming to Elwood's attention, and an astonishing number were recorded by his own camera. Written with an emphasis on accuracy and precision, Wings Across the Water is a must-have for aviation buffs everywhere.