Citation
(2008), "Forgotten aviator", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 80 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/aeat.2008.12780bae.003
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2008, Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Forgotten aviator
Article Type: Book reviews From: Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology: An International Journal, Volume 80, Issue 2.
A high-flying gentleman
Latham, was well known as Bleriot's rival, he was educated at Oxford, and a member of early twentieth-century high society.
Mingling with notorious sporting personalities and French avant-garde artists, you could say that this man- about-town was the David Beckham of his day in terms of press coverage and the effect he had on the public.
This exceptionally researched biography tells the story of a man with a cool head for danger, Ballooning across the channel in 1905, leading treks into Sudan, Abyssinia and Indochina in 1906-1908 before competing Bleriot for the channel flight in 1909.
Before his untimely death at just 29 years old, he went on to thrill the world with a host of aviation challenges in the USA, Russia, Egypt and England.
This book brings up many questions: were the reports on his death in the Congo a clever cover-up and not a fatal hunting accident? Was Latham cheated from success when Bleriot snatched the prize at the last minute?
Barbara Walsh, PhD, began researching Latham some time ago and has visited their family archives as well as collections belonging to lifelong friends of Latham. She has written a previous book, Catholic Nuns in England and Wales 1800-1937. She lives in County Kildare, Ireland.
Details available from: NPI Media Group, Tel.: +44 (0) 1453 883300, E-mail: akilmister@npi-mediagroup.com
Barbara Walsh