Sundowner Of The Skies. The Forgotten Aviator

Cover Type: Softcover
Book Condition: Fine
Jacket Condition: None Issued
Publisher: New Holland
Publisher Place: Australia
Publisher Year: 2021
Edition: First Edition

Description: 269 pages. Book appears to have hardly been read and is in Fine condition throughout.

Publishers Description: In the early morning of 16 October 1930, Oscar Garden taxied his tiny Gipsy Moth he had named Kia Ora, across Londons Croydon aerodrome. His plan was to fly to Australia, which was sheer madness as he only had a mere 39 flying hours under his belt. When he landed at Wyndham 18 days later no one was expecting him. However, his flight—the third fastest after veteran aviators Bert Hinkler and Charles Kingsford—captured the worlds imagination. The press dubbed him ‘Sundowner of the Skies. Unlike most of his contemporaries who died in crashes, Oscar survived and went on to a career in commercial aviation. In April 1940, he delivered the flying boat, Awarua, to Auckland for Tasman Empire Airways Limited (TEAL), the forerunner of Air New Zealand. In 1943 he became TEALs Chief Pilot and Operations Manager; as the ‘Boss of this fledgling company, he steered it through its formative years, but left suddenly in 1947. He never flew a plane again.

ISBN: 9781760793838