Wings /
Robert J. Serling.
- Ealling, London : A Corgi Books, c1980.
- 478 p.
The main character, Barney Burton, is the sole focus for the actions in this book, which portrays his development of an airline from the beginning of commercial aviation in the 30's through the 60's. Barney Burton fell in love with flying early, having grown up on the "Lone Eagle" legend and the exploits of the Great War aces. For him planes and flying were everything, despite the less than noble realities of flight in the early thirties.Barnwell Burton was awestruck by the prospect flying. For his twelfth birthday in 1920, his father paid Bud Lindeman, a local “ace” from WWI, to take Barney on a 30-minute flight. The boy was captivated and decided to become a pilot. By the time he is prepared to begin flight training, his father dies and he must support his mother by working in the family grocery business. Lindeman’s two-plane airline is about to fail when Barney’s mother dies and Barney’s inheritance is sufficient to temporarily save Tri-Cities Airline. Sadly, Barney is so uncoordinated that he nearly crashes during instruction and his dream of flying never materializes. Opportunely, his organizational skills result in the airline’s continued expansion until – his autocratic style catches up with him.
Fiction in English. Fiction in English, 1900- Texts.