Bøger af Peter Pigott

The riveting history of how aircraft have transformed the fighting of wildfires. When threatened by wildfires throughout history, our only defense was to pray for rain and run -- and until aircraft changed the way we fight fires. Beginning with the Canadian "H-Boats" in 1924, aircraft have become indispensable in detecting and extinguishing wildfires. Fire Eaters tells the incredible stories of the Ontario Provincial Air Service, the first government aerial fire suppression organisation in history, one of its pilots, Carl Crossley, who invented the water scoop up and drop off system, and the Canadair CL-215, the first purpose-built water bomber. Today, helicopters with "Bambi Buckets" and snorkels can dump water while hovering directly over the flames, and Air Tractors and Dash 8-400AT air tankers not only perform a crucial role in saving communities but protect our ecosystem. Satellites, unmanned aircraft able to fly for 16-hours, even overnight when manned aircraft do not, and Artificial Intelligence already play a decisive role in fire management. But it is the men and women of the aerial fire service who have really changed the way we fight fire around the world. Their bravery and dedication mean that response times are fast, fires can be contained sooner, and people have the chance to save rather than lose everything.

Begun as a social experiment in 1937, Air Canada has evolved into one of the world's greatest airlines, an integral part of this country's social fabric. During the course of its 75-year history, the airline was privatized, fought off a hostile takeover, merged with arch-rival Canadian Airlines, and touched countless lives. This is its story.

In his second book about Canadian aviation, Peter Pigott examines the lives of several of these innovators.

Is the Canadian North a state of mind or simply the lands and waters above the 60th parallel? From Far and Wide recounts exclusively the historic activities of the Canadian military in Canada's Arctic.

An ancient Arab proverb states, "When Allah made the Sudan, he laughed." Had he known the country's future, he would have done better to cry. To most of the world, Sudan means Darfur and the tragedy of atrocities and ethnic cleansing that has occurred

As the war escalates in Afghanistan, Canadians are asking why we are there. This book is an introduction to what is happening and what we can expect through 2009.

This richly illustrated book describes how British royalty has travelled since the invention of steam.

Whether you are an aviation enthusiast or, history buff, don't miss the third book on aviation in Canada, covering 100 years of flight by Canadians.

Wingwalkers is a must for anyone interested in aviation, big business, Canadian history or just a fascinating read.

With unique insight and straightforward prose, Wingwalkers tells the saga of Canada's other airline, a scrappy western mongrel that, through eight decades and numerous name changes--Canadian Airways, Queen Charlotte Airlines, CP Air, PWA, Wardair and Canadian Airlines International--transformed itself from a bush flying and mining operation into an international carrier. This revised edition brings the airline's story up to date with a new final chapter chronicling the corporate dogfight in Canada's skies that led to CAI's takeover by Air Canada. Wingwalkers begins in the early 1920s when millions of dollars were made by the brave and resourceful people who took advantage of exciting new technologies in transportation and communication. It shows how the growth of aviation in a rugged and sprawling nation depended on such larger-than-life characters as Punch Dickins, "the greatest bush pilot of them all," first commercial pilot to cross the Arctic Circle and a later company vice president; Wop May, a bush pilot who achieved fame for flying antitoxin in bitter cold to Little Red River, Alberta during a diphtheria outbreak; the charismatic Grant McConachie, an original pilot for Canadian Pacific Airlines who later led the airline through its heyday as company president; and Max Ward, a former pilot and owner of Wardair, a struggling company purchased by CAI under a storm of controversy. Accompanied by over 150 revealing photographs, the book also shows how the western-based independents found themselves in perpetual conflict with Ottawa after the creation of government-owned Trans Canada Airlines, which became Air Canada.From early spellbinding tales of daredevil aviators to the influential decisions made by hard-nosed business men, Wingwalkers is a meticulously researched history of the important role Canada's other airline played in shaping our nation.

Flight remains one of humanity's most spectacular triumphs, and Canada especially has much to be proud of.

The lives of twelve gravity-defying Canadian aviators are presented in this volume, the third in a series by the aviation writer Peter Pigott.

So many planes seem to fall from the sky or disappear completely. But are accidents really so common and why do they happen in the first place? Brace for Impact traces the evolution of accident investigation and explains why flying is the safest form of travel.