Early Birds by H. C. Miller

Early Birds

by H. C. Miller

Rigby Limited, 1968, b/w plates, hardcover, dustjacket, 

Very Good Condition, sunned spine and corner bumps to dustjacket

'Horrie Miller is a man who fell in love with flying in the days when aircraft were little more than box-kites with engines.  He gives a colorful picture of his early experiences in Australia, then of Britain before the first World War when he went there to learn how to build and fly aircraft.  There's a 'Magnificent Men' flavour about his adventures in this period, becoming more sombre when he joined the Royal Flying Corps and saw service in France.  Then he returns to Australia, to give an enthralling picture of the abounding optimism with which fliers tried to start Australian civil air services.  His own, Mac Robertson Miller Air Services, was amongst the most successful, but there  were many difficulties to be conquered first.  His story, telling of the unreliable, sometimes bizarre aircraft, the daring flights and occasionally flamboyant fliers, is a vivid piece of modern Australian history and a constantly enthralling narrative.'