Published: 1 December 2008
Air & Space Power Journal - Winter 2008

Corky Meyer’s Flight Journal: Dodging Disasters—Just in Time by Corwin H. Meyer. Specialty Press (http://www.specialtypress.com), 39966 Grand Avenue, North Branch, Minnesota 55056, 2006, 252 pages, $27.95 (softcover).

Want excitement? Try this scenario: you are flying at 25,000 feet with another aircraft near you. You see that the other pilot has a glassy-eyed daze and that he is wearing a defective oxygen mask. In 10 minutes, his aircraft will run out of fuel and ditch in the ocean, but you can’t communicate with him. What do you do?

Or do you like quick decisions at high speeds? You are a pilot who is testing aircraft dive speed. When you try to pull up, you have no control. As you pull the stick with both hands to increase altitude, the dive angle only increases. At 500 mph, you know you have under 10 seconds to live. What do you do?

If you are looking for exciting pilot stories, read Corky Meyer’s Flight Journal. The cases above are just two of the many emergencies Meyer faced in his 36-year career with Grumman Aircraft.

This book is autobiographical, but it focuses on technical flight evaluations of aircraft and the history of Grumman Aircraft rather than on Meyer’s personal life. Pilots should read this book because the author’s stories of surviving many difficult flights could serve as a flight-safety textbook.

When Meyer tells how he survived in-flight emergencies, he has a unique credibility. His long career and the many kinds of aircraft he has flown, from propellers to jets, give him a great store of knowledge and experience.

People who like Meyer’s articles in Flight Journal and other magazines will enjoy this book, and so will historians and aviation lovers. He includes notes about and comparisons of the best-known World War II aircraft. Some readers may skim over the technical details but will appreciate Meyer’s readable tales, flying skill, and the divine intervention he credits with helping him survive test-flight emergencies.

Maj Herman Reinhold, USAF, Retired
Athens, New York

Disclaimer

The conclusions and opinions expressed in this document are those of the author cultivated in the freedom of expression, academic environment of Air University. They do not reflect the official position of the U.S. Government, Department of Defense, the United States Air Force or the Air University.

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