This is a new release of the original 1928 edition.

This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.

When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return.' —Leonardo DaVinci Everyone's been on an airplane. Sure. But the fact is, most people have never been flying. Author Ken Ibold has flown dozens of types of general aviation airplanes and has more than twenty-five years of experience in the field of general aviation. Defying Gravity: A look at life from a higher plane is a collection of essays written by a pilot, for pilots, but also for anyone who has dared cast an eye skyward at the drone of an overhead propeller. This is a journey into the pilot's mind. It decodes some of the secret handshakes, examines how pilots think as they seemingly defy gravity, and helps define the place in the world where private aviation lives.

On December 22, 1964, at a small, closely guarded airstrip in the desert town of Palmdale, California, Lockheed test pilot Bob Gilliland stepped into a strange-looking aircraft and roared into aviation history. Developed at the super-secret Skunk Works, the SR-71 Blackbird was a technological marvel. In fact, more than a half century later, the Mach 3-plus titanium wonder, designed by Clarence L. "Kelly" Johnson, remains the world's fastest jet. It took a test pilot with the right combination of intelligence, skill, and nerve to make the first flight of the SR-71, and the thirty-eight-year-old Gilliland had spent much of his life pushing the edge. In Speed one of America's greatest test pilots collaborates with acclaimed journalist Keith Dunnavant to tell his remarkable story: How he was pushed to excel by his demanding father. How a lucky envelope at the U.S. Naval Academy altered the trajectory of his life. How he talked his way into U.S. Air Force fighters at the dawn of the jet age, despite being told he was too tall. How he made the conscious decision to trade the security of the business world for the dangerous life of an experimental test pilot, including time at the clandestine base Area 51, working on the Central Intelligence Agency's Oxcart program. The narrative focuses most intently on Gilliland's years as the chief test pilot of the SR-71, as he played a leading role in the development of the entire fleet of spy planes while surviving several emergencies that very nearly ended in disaster. Waging the Cold War at 85,000 feet, the SR-71 became an unrivaled intelligence-gathering asset for the U.S. Air Force, invulnerable to enemy defenses for a quarter century. Gilliland's work with the SR-71 defined him, especially after the Cold War, when many of the secrets began to be revealed and the plane emerged from the shadows--not just as a tangible museum artifact but as an icon that burrowed deep into the national consciousness. Like the Blackbird itself, Speed is a story animated by the power of ambition and risk-taking during the heady days of the American Century.

A fresh, unique insider’s view of what it’s like to be a woman aviator in today’s US Navy—from pedicures to parachutes, friendship to firefights. Caroline Johnson was an unlikely aviation candidate. A tall blonde debutante from Colorado, she could have just as easily gone into fashion or filmmaking, and yet she went on to become an F/A-18 Super Hornet Weapons System Officer. She was one of the first women to fly a combat mission over Iraq since 2011, and one of the first women to drop bombs on ISIS. Jet Girl tells the remarkable story of the women fighting at the forefront in a military system that allows them to reach the highest peaks, and yet is in many respects still a fraternity. Johnson offers an insider’s view on the fascinating, thrilling, dangerous and, at times, glamorous world of being a naval aviator. This is a coming-of age story about a young college-aged woman who draws strength from a tight knit group of friends, called the Jet Girls, and struggles with all the ordinary problems of life: love, work, catty housewives, father figures, make-up, wardrobe, not to mention being put into harm’s way daily with terrorist groups such as ISIS and world powers such as Russia and Iran. Some of the most memorable parts of the book are about real life in training, in the air and in combat—how do you deal with having to pee in a cockpit the size of a bumper car going 600 miles an hour? Not just a memoir, this book also aims to change the conversation and to inspire and attract the next generation of men and women who are tempted to explore a life of adventure and service.

This book is designed to provide basic philosophy and information regarding the vast number of subject matters covered. This was assembled in the understanding that the publisher and the author are not engaged in rendering legal, consultative, or other professional services. If such expert assistance is required, the services of competent and appropriate professionals should be sought. The author and the publisher shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage that may be indirectly or directly caused, or alleged to be caused, by the content of this book. It is also not the purpose of this book to reprint information that is otherwise available to the author, publisher, or reader. Rather, it seeks to complement, amplify, and/or supplement other texts available. The reader is urged to review all relevant material and learn as much as possible about life, tailoring that information to their individual situation. Further, efforts have been made to make this book as accurate as possible. However, there are undoubtedly editorial, typographical, and contextual errors contained herein. Therefore, the text should be viewed and utilized as a general guide, not as an ultimate source of information related to the various topics. This book also contains information that may no longer be relevant or accurate despite our desire to think our words and thoughts about life are timeless and perfect. Finally, the primary objective of this volume has something to do with the four Es—to enlighten, edify, educate, and entertain, perhaps even in that order. Personal philosophy and worldview are something we develop and maintain as individuals who evolve throughout life. It is the ambition of the writer to amplify these Es, hoping that in doing so, it will allow the reader to experience a more meaningful, balanced, complete, and productive encounter with life.