KNIGHTS OF THE AIR

The Epic of Flight

by Ezra Bowen

Knights of the Air is a Time-Life aviation book included in the Epic of Flight series. “War in the air,” trumpeted a poster for Britain’s Royal Flying Corps, “recalls the olden times, when knights rode forth to battle and won honour and glory by their deeds of personal heroism.” The fledgling military air services had no trouble finding volunteers for a life that promised romance, action, adventures and opportunities for glorious achievement. This promise on the posters did not entirely misrepresent the lot of the WWI aviator. Their feats were glorified far beyond those of comrades in the trenches but, like them, they died in huge numbers. What began as an adventure became increasingly lethal and unglamorous, with little mercy for an overmatched or disabled foe. Before the Great War ended, one much-decorated knight of the air declared that, if anything, he felt like a “hired assassin.”

Genres: History, Aviation, Military History, Nonfiction, Reference, World War I, Military Fiction

176 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1980

About the author

Editor on the staff of Time-Life Books. A native of the East, he has spent considerable time in the West - including the wilderness of the Sierra Nevada.

Reviews

[Sarah Seele · Rating 4 out of 5]

You know what makes this ten times more heartbreaking? The PHOTOGRAPHS. Seeing the actual faces of these actual kids, often mere months before they died...man.

[Zachary Powell · Rating 4 out of 5]

My father had this series of books when I was growing up and this was the one that always interested me. I thumbed through its many illustrations of the aircraft when young, and I read sections on the Red Baron in high school. It was good to read it in its entirety.

[Reader]

Not less than ten years since its inception, sustained mechanical flight, (i.e. airplanes, as opposed to dirigibles) became an essential instrument of war. This book is like a miniature museum of WWI flight history. The many pictures, paintings, and exhibits are matched with detailed explanations of the technology, air wing groups, tactics, and character portraits of several Aces. Pilots were romanticized as quickly as their respective governments could the print propaganda required to inspire new enlistment. In then end, everyone died young- very young- and no side actually won the war.

[The Nutmeg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book so much; this is the second time I've read it. It has plenty of pictures, is written in an extremely readable fashion, and gives a heart-wrenching overview of the air war, with a focus on the notable aces. (The Red Baron gets a chapter to himself, but also given plenty of attention are Georges Guynemer, Eddie Rickenbacker, Albert Ball, Mick Mannock, and others...all of whom I'd like to learn more about pronto.)

This book puts me in a really sad mood, but it's worth it.

[Harry · Rating 3 out of 5]

An excellent overview of the World War I air war and the advances in aviation the war inspired. The book boasts a large collection of historical photographs that brings the action, the airplanes and the individual combatants to life.

[John Klinkose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good overview of the Great Air War from the pursuit pilots perspective. Interesting insight into fear and how different individuals handled it. Fear of not only combat, but of doing combat in an unforgiving machine high above the earth.

[Kaj Samuelsson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a follow up on The Friendless Sky which I read before. Here you not only have the story, but also plenty of photographsand the scores of the different aces of the different nations.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great, fun book. It had great photographs, paintings, drawings, anecdotes, and actually quite a lot of information for a relatively short book. I've been reading about WWI aviation since I was a child, yet still I learned quite a bit from this book, particularly about the personalities of some of the aces. The book also does a good job of portraying the deteriorating effects of the war upon its famous aces, how many of them suffered from what we would now call PTSD and either flew recklessly and/or had to take time away from the war to recuperate. The stories of chivalry among some of the pilots (such as letting an enemy with a jammed gun fly away with nothing more than a wave) provide a striking contrast to the brutality of the war on the ground (and, increasingly, in the air).

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not very knowledgeable in the topic of WWI aviation, so I can't speak to the accuracy of the book one way or another, but boy, this was a great read! It tells the stories of many aces on both sides of the conflict, describing aerial battles, areoplane evolution, and is full of pictures, photographs and illustrations. It truly was a different era, when pilots would wave to each other while in the air and send condolences to 'enemy' fallen aces.

A very nice edition, and not too wordy or detailed for a n00b like me. 5 stars.

[Professor · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the better of the Epic of Flight series, it gives you a real feel for the evolution of air warfare that took place of the course of the Great War, with plenty of interesting coverage of the personalities involved, anecdotes, photographs and illustrations. Definitely a subject I should read more about.

[Rhys · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was more fun to read than anything else. Filled with tons of pictures and art from WWI. It gives great insight in a small amount of words. Great for a fast resource as well.