When the Airlines Went to War by Robert J. Serling (Lume Books) (222 Reviews)    Price verified one minute ago

The Dramatic, untold Story of America's Civilian Air Warriors In the East, Japan had invaded China. In the West, Europe was being overrun by Hitler's war machine. And in the U.S., America's commercial airlines were stepping into a vital role that would make the difference between victory and defeat... From Robert J. Serling, one of America's most honored aviation authors, comes a dramatic chronicle of the glory days of the propellor plane, when the young, ambitious domestic airlines -- led by shrewd, independent-minded businessmen -- met up with military olive drab. It is the story of airline pioneers and pilots, mechanics and engineers, who overnight learned the art of night and transoceanic flying, moving cargo that included troops, ammunition and medicine, and were kept running by ingenious mechanics who borrowed from visiting planes. A must-read book for aviation fans and World War II history buffs, When the Airlines Went to War takes you inside the hulls of the transport planes, through harrowing, secret missions from Newfoundland to India and Guadalcanal, and into the top-level meetings between the airline owners and Roosevelt's White House that led to the development of the ATC (Air Transport Command) and the NATS (Naval Air Transport Service). A story of courageous pilots and remarkable flying feats, this is also a history of how a fledgling industry developed into a crucial military operation, and how it came out of the war not only victorious, but ready to change the shape and pace of air travel forever. Robert J. Serling has written about flying in fiction (The President's Plane Is Missing, Air Force One Is Haunted) and nonfiction; this is his seventh book on aviation. He and his wife live in Tucson, Arizona.

Genre: Engineering & Transportation

Electric cars: Short intro to how electric cars work by Zach Abraham (5 Reviews)    Price verified 3 hours ago

This ebook presents a comprehensive overview of the electric car technology and market. We discuss: • Electric Motors, Batteries and fuel cells • Charging stations • Range Anxiety • Industry trends regarding Adoption and commercialization ( Tesla and others) • Self driving cars . Whether you are a potential buyer, an enthusiast, or just a curious reader, this ebook will provide you with valuable insights and information. - Electric Motors: Electric car motors work by using electricity from a battery to create a rotating magnetic field in a cylinder called the stator. The magnetic field causes another cylinder called the rotor to turn, which provides mechanical energy to the car's gears and wheels. The electricity from the battery is direct current (DC), but the motor needs alternating current (AC), which changes polarity many times per second³. An inverter is responsible for converting DC into AC before it reaches the motor. Electric cars have an electric powertrain that includes the motor, the inverter, the transmission, and the drivetrain. Electric cars can also use regenerative braking to transform motion back into electricity and recharge the battery - Batteries and fuel cells: Batteries and fuel cells are devices that store and deliver energy for electric cars. Batteries are composed of cells that contain chemicals that react to produce electricity. Fuel cells are composed of cells that use hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity and water. Both batteries and fuel cells have advantages and disadvantages for electric cars. Batteries are more common and cheaper, but they have limited capacity and range, and they degrade over time. Fuel cells are more efficient and have longer range, but they are more expensive and require hydrogen infrastructure. - Charging stations: Charging stations are places where electric cars can plug into a charge point and take electricity from the grid to store in the battery. Charging stations can be classified ...

Genre: Engineering & Transportation

Airship by Richard Smith (21 Reviews)    Price verified 7 hours ago

Amelia Earhart had been missing for almost 75 years when retired shuttle commander, Burt Johnson, boarded the 850 foot long airship, Monterey. Finding the long missing pilot never crossed Burt's mind as he watched the crew prepare the giant dirigible for its maiden voyage to Hawaii. Now, standing in the warm sand, Burt thought back to the crash of the Monterey and the plight of the 114 survivors who were depending on him for rescue. As he stared at the business end of a rusty WWII carbine and the scattered wreckage of Ms. Earhart's Lockheed Electra, he wondered if the old sailor would really pull the trigger.

Genre: Engineering & Transportation