Storied pilot Homer Stockert, born in Churubusco, Indiana, won air races in Fort Wayne in the 1920s, earning him legendary fame while only in his twenties. In 1933, he established the Stockert Flying Service at Bendix Field, South Bend, Indiana, an airport built by entrepreneur Vincent Bendix. After serving as a test pilot of the P-47 Thunderbolt fighter aircraft in Evansville, Indiana, during World War II, Stockert returned to Bendix Field to expand his flying service with his business-savvy wife, Dora. Stockert led a successful life of leadership in private aviation until his death in 1971.

After World War One, starvation conditions in Germany forced many of its citizens to immigrate to those countries where conditions were normal. In this work of fiction, the Baron Frederick Otto, and his wife, Annie, take passage to the United States with two suitcases and her jewelry. With the money from the sale of the jewelry, he purchases property and begins a successful airplane manufacturing business. He endures prejudice from a few who are jealous of a foreigner succeeding in the United States and the possibility he might be an agent to the growing Nazi Party in Germany. Woven into the novel that leads up to and includes World War Two is a love story between his grandson, Wolfgang, and Michele, a woman with her own ambitions. The novel, rich in dialogue and exciting events, will capture the attention of both youths and adults.

Merriam Press Aviation History. First Edition (2013). June 25, 1925, inauguration of Rodgers Field marked the beginning of Allegheny County Commissioners' investment into commercial aviation. A modest acquisition of 40 acres that has with time evolved to the presence of the 1500 acre Pittsburgh International Airport across town. This book chronicles the dreams, successes, failures, promises, and fatalities in the intervening events from 1923 to the opening of the commercial terminal at the Greater Pittsburgh Airport (GRP) in 1952. Over time, Rodgers Field, the first field, could not be enlarged, expansion of Allegheny County Airport, the second field, proved too expensive, with GRP, the third field, finally large enough to fill the needs of the commercial and military needs. In the 1920s and 1930s the political leadership of Allegheny County struggled to craft the best aviation facility to attract military and commercial interests. Experience with the shortcomings of Rodgers Field provided guidance in the design of the Allegheny County Airport. During World War Two, Pittsburgh lay in the flight path of immense numbers of thirsty military aircraft being flown from one area of the United States to another. The breadth of the Greater Pittsburgh Airport provided the necessary space for runways and parking areas to accommodate the impressive traffic landing for refueling, maintenance and repair. In that time period, the media devoted most of their attention to the battle arenas, in foreign lands and on distant oceans. Conflicts won meant yet another step to victory when the United States service men and women could return home. But the success 'over there' was totally dependent upon the war production system 'over here.' In addition to the military history of Rodgers Field, this work details the worthy participation 'over here' of the two Allegheny County airfields. Contents: Rodgers Field: Pittsburgh's First Municipal/Military Airport (Doomed From The Start); One Of The Best; Only A Presidential Intervention Could Save This Local Airman; ACA: A Push For Prominence In The Air; The 575th Of The Air Transport Command Begins At ACA; An Approaching Storm; Tora Tora ; Conversion Of The Bell Farm Into A CAA National Defense Airport; Further Sources Of Delays In Construction Of The Moon Township Defense Air Field During 1943-1944; The 575th Begin Operations At The Greater Pittsburgh Airport; Luftwaffe Sorties Over Pittsburgh; Personal Recollections About The Army Air Base: Greater Pittsburgh Airport; Donuts; Heroes Past Always Present; Looking Back: It Never Happened; A New Mission In Response To An Iron Curtain: Soviet Threat Always a Dubious Ally; Auxiliary Reserve Training Sites; and six Appendices: Commanders of the 575th Base Unit, 6th Ferrying Station (ACA) and the 444th Base Unit, Reserve Training, Air Defense Command, Grp; Major and Minor Military Aircraft Accidents at Rodgers Field, ACA, GRP, or Nearby; Military Personnel Stationed at ACA and/or GRP at Some Time During the Time Span 1942-1950; Air Traffic Controllers at ACA During World War II; Members of the 324th Observation Squadron, 99th Division, US Army 3rd Air Corps, Rodgers Field, Aspinwall, Pa, and Allegheny County Airport; Aviation Mechanics at Rodgers Field in 1928; and Abbreviations; Index; 162 photos, illustrations, drawings, documents.