Flying Boats: Air Travel in the Golden Age sets out to do justice to a time of glamorous, unhurried air travel, unrecognisable to most of today's air travellers, but sorely missed by some. During the 1930s, long-distance air travel was the preserve of the flying boat, which transported well-heeled passengers in ocean-liner style and comfort across the oceans. But then the Second World War came, and things changed. Suddenly, landplanes were more efficient, and in abundance: long concrete runways had been constructed during the war that could be used by a new generation of large transport aircraft; and endless developments in aircraft meant they could fly faster and for further distances. Commercial flying boat services resumed, but their days would be numbered.

BEA was formed in 1946 and took over most UK domestic and European routes under the British government's nationalisation policy. It began operations with a fleet of outdated and hopelessly uneconomic passenger aircraft that were derivatives of wartime types such as the DC-3, Avro Viking and Rapide. By the end of 1955 the airline had re-equipped with more modern types such as the jet-prop Viscount and moved into a profit for the first time. From 1960 onwards the airline introduced larger jets such as the Comet, Trident and BAC 1-11. BEA merged with the British Overseas Airways Corporation in 1974 to form British Airways. This book looks at BEA's predecessors, its formation and early operation from Croydon and Northolt and the move to the newly-opened London Heathrow. The evolving structure is explained with chapters covering engineering bases, terminals, European and domestic services, cargo services and helicopter operations. The aircraft flown are all described in detail and the book, illustrated throughout, includes anecdotes from former crew and ground-staff as well as a full fleet list.

British Midland Airways existed under different identities for over 70 years, during which time it grew from a flying training school into a scheduled transatlantic airline operating wide-bodied Airbus aircraft. With the prime routes dominated by British Airways and its predecessors, it had to diversify, and one product of this was its 'instant-airline' concept, which saw its Boeing 707 aircraft flying in the liveries of many African and Middle Eastern companies. Later in its life, British Midland Airways felt confident enough to go 'head to head' with British Airways on the UK domestic trunk routes. The acquisition of a major financial stake by Lufthansa in 2009 led to membership of the prestigious Star Alliance partnership, but even the German national airline could not find a way to stem accumulating losses, and, in 2011, the carrier was absorbed into British Airways. With over 140 images, this book charts the rise and fall of British Midland Airways.

The Gatwick story really began when two young men purchased a plot of land near Gatwick Racecourse to develop as a flying field. From these humble beginnings in the 1930s, it has become Britain's second airport, with 34 million passengers a year passing through the terminals - and this despite it having only a single runway! This lavishly illustrated volume traces its extraordinary early history, including its varied and valuable wartime service under the auspices of the RAF, its subsequent redevelopment in the 1950s and its emergence in the 1960s and beyond - after considerable struggles - as the bustling, modern airport familiar to so many travellers today. It is an unashamedly nostalgic look at this historic airport, its hardworking staff and the iconic planes that have passed through it.

The end of the Second World War not only brought peace to a war-weary population but also delivered a plethora of surplus transport aircraft, crew and engineers, which could be easily and cheaply repurposed to 'lift' the mood of the British population. The dream of sun-drenched beaches in exotic places suddenly became a reality for thousands of pioneering tourists taking advantage of the air-travel revolution of the 1950s. From their humble beginnings flying holidaymakers to campsites in Corsica in war-surplus Dakota aircraft to today's flights across the globe in wide-bodied Airbuses, Flying To The Sun narrates the development of Britain's love-hate relationship with holiday charter airlines. Whilst many readers today will be more familiar with names like Ryanair and Easyjet than Clarksons or Dan-Air, this charming book serves as a fond reminder of those enterprising airlines and companies that ushered a new age of travel.

In 1976 a Jersey-based air taxi operator purchased two elderly Dakota aircraft for cargo charters as Air Atlantique. Thus began the saga of an airline that would eventually operate one of the largest fleets of Dakotas in the world, acquire four-engined vintage propliners, diversify into passenger charters and pleasure flying and oil-spill response work, and take over the lease on its Coventry Airport base. From here a fleet of historic aircraft sallied forth to participate in air shows around the UK. The impending retirement of the airline's founder Mike Collett brought about changes, but the freight charters and pleasure flying continued until new regulations brought passenger flying in the Dakotas to an end. Undaunted, Air Atlantique went on to open an aviation museum and visitor centre at Coventry. This is the story of a unique and much-loved British airline.

For over seventy years the name Swissair stood for all things Swiss on the airways. The 'flying arrow' emblem of Switzerland's national airline represented a company with deep financial reserves, enabling it to invest in the latest jets and the most modern technology. Yet from the 1970s onwards world events brought about a dramatic reversal in its fortunes. A new strategy of growth through investment in many other airlines misfired when these carriers became a loss-making burden, and the decision of the Swiss population to remain outside the European Economic Area restricted the airline's opportunities for increasing passenger uptake. By 2001, in the wake of the collapse in traffic following the 9/11 atrocities, the carrier was reliant on government loans for its continued survival, and in 2002 Swissair ceased all operations, its routes and equipment being resurrected by rival Crossair. The humiliation did not end there. In 2007 Swissair's entire former management board stood trial on charges relating to mismanagement, making false statements, and forgery. Commercial aviation author Charles Woodley has pieced together the story of Swissair's rise to a glittering reputation for quality and reliability, and the factors leading to its downfall.

Scotland's Airlines have always struggled to provide services to a relatively sparse population spread over a large area, and have had to supply links to large cities, isolated highlands, and numerous diminutive islands. This illustrated history tells the story of the independent airlines servicing Scotland, from the pre-war pioneers to BEA and Loganair in the post-war period, and covers the many airlines to operate from Scottish airports with varying degrees of success. Including oil-related charters, the Scottish air ambulance, as well as companies based elsewhere but constituting major carriers in Scotland, this in-depth history offers a tribute to the many companies and individuals involved in the development of air travel throughout Scotland.

The British Overseas Airways Corporation came into being in 1939 as the successor to the pre-war British Airways and the legendary Imperial Airways, and through the dark days of the Second World War it used flying-boats to maintain air links between Britain, Africa, Australia and the USA. Post-war, flying-boats and converted bombers soon gave way to Lockheed Constellations, Bristol Britannia's, de Havilland Comets, Boeing 707s and Vickers VC-10s, which carried BOAC's name to all points of the globe and established the airline as a supported of the latest in aviation technology. This culminated in an order for the Concorde supersonic airliner, but before BOAC could take delivery of this revolutionary design it was amalgamated with its short-haul counterpart BEA to form British Airways However, in the memories of its passengers and staff, BOAC will remain the airline that lived up to its slogan, 'BOAC takes good care of you'.