Announced in 1912, the Schneider Trophy was a series of glamorous air contests, popularly known as races, that captivated both sides of the Atlantic. While there were many other aviation competitions, the Schneider proved to be, after a rocky start, by far the most memorable attracting a hugely popular and glamorous following whether Trophy races were held in Monaco, the Venice Lido, the Solent or Chesapeake Bay.
The Schneider Trophy was a focus not just of remarkable aircraft, derring-do pilots and swooning public attention, but also of fierce rivalries between the competitors: Britain, France, Italy and the United States. It gripped the imaginations of pioneering manufacturers and two of the world's finest aircraft designers - Reginald Mitchell and Mario Castoldi - who worked feverishly hard to outdo one another. Perhaps inevitably, the dynamism of rival engineering and politics led to the most potent military fighters of World War Two with Reginald Mitchell's record-breaking Supermarine seaplanes morphing, one way or another, into the Spitfire.
Wings Over Water not only tells the story of the Schneider Trophy afresh but also examines the backdrop and legacy of these legendary air races, which became a driver and celebration of speed and engineering prowess for both sea and ground-based aircraft. It is an exhilarating tale of raw adventure, public excitement, engineering genius and the fortunes of flying boats and seaplanes.
By:
Jonathan Glancey
Imprint: Atlantic Books
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Edition: Main
Dimensions:
Height: 198mm,
Width: 129mm,
Spine: 25mm
Weight: 345g
ISBN: 9781786494214
ISBN 10: 1786494213
Pages: 352
Publication Date: 28 September 2021
Audience:
College/higher education
,
Professional and scholarly
,
General/trade
,
Primary
,
Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
0: The Wright Stuf 1: The French Connection: 1913-22 2: The Yanks are Coming: 1923-26 3: Interim 4: Winged Lions: Venice, 1927 5: Chivalrous Sportsmanship: Calshot, 1929 6: A Very Good Flight: Calshot, 1931 7: The Sea Shall Not Have Them 8: All That Mighty Heart 9: A Tale of Two Designers 10: Aftermath 11: Sky Galleons 12: Seaspray 13: Each a Glimpse
Jonathan Glancey is well known as the former architecture and design correspondent of the Guardian and Independent newspapers. A frequent broadcaster, his books include The Journey Matters, Concorde, Harrier, Giants of Steam, Spitfire: The Biography, Nagaland: A Journey to India's Forgotten Frontier, Tornado: 21st Century Steam, The Story of Architecture and London: Bread and Circuses.
Reviews for Wings Over Water: The Story of the World's Greatest Air Race and the Birth of the Spitfire
Jonathan Glancey recounts the glamorous years of the Schneider Trophy and how its advances paved the way for the Supermarine Spitfire. * 'Aerospace book choices for Christmas 2020', Royal Aeronautical Society * This wonderful book is written with an enthusiasm for the subject that bursts from every page. * All About History * Glancey's formidable new book, Wings Over Water, takes travellers back to an era when, for many aviators, water was the natural starting point for an air journey. -- Simon Calder * Independent *
