'Eject! Eject!'
When the call is made to abandon an aircraft, it's only the beginning of the story...
From the Sunday Times bestselling writer John Nichol, author of Spitfire, Lancaster and Tornado, comes a brilliant new book that reveals the astonishing story of an invention that has saved many thousands of lives around the world, including his own: the ejection seat.
Nichol tells the remarkable tale of how the ejection seat was first conceived during the Second World War as countless lives were lost in accidents and in battle. In the wake of the war, that technological race to save aircrew lives using explosive seats continued at an incredible pace. Nichol tells the story of the brave men who risked their lives testing those early devices, and interviewed the first British pilot to eject back in 1949, when ejection, from pulling the handle to being under the parachute, took thirty seconds. Today, that figure is down to around one second.
Packed with interviews with aircrew who know exactly how it feels to 'Bang Out' from an aircraft at high speed, both in peace and in war, the book gives the reader a vivid sense of what that life-saving experience feels like, but also features the moving accounts of what happens next, from the viewpoint of both the crews and their families, who often have little or no information about whether or not their loved ones have survived.
Because ejecting is just the start of a journey…..
Packed with dramatic action, incredible science and moving recollections, Eject! Eject! is an essential read. John Nichol served in the Royal Air Force for fifteen years. On active duty during the first Gulf War in 1991, his Tornado bomber was shot down during a mission over Iraq. Captured, tortured and held as a prisoner of war, John was paraded on television, provoking worldwide condemnation and leaving one of the most enduring images of the conflict.
John is the bestselling co-author of Tornado Down and author of many highly acclaimed epics, including Spitfire, Lancaster and Tornado, all of which were Sunday Times bestsellers. He has made a number of TV documentaries with Second World War veterans, written for national newspapers and magazines, and is a widely quoted commentator on military affairs. A fascinating history. Given his extraordinary personal experience, skills & knowledge, Eject! Eject! is clearly a book that Nichol and Nichol alone was destined to write. Five stars 'An absolutely brilliant, brilliant read. Fascinating history and enthralling stories. An absolute corker' 'Catapults you into the heart of the most epic experiences of ejection, escape and survival'
'The story of the ejection seat's birth and development revealed by John Nichol, is one of genius, bravery and baffling eccentricity, containing thrilling, gripping and dramatic stories of survival' 'Some of the stories are incredible, making for an action packed book'
