UNTO THESE SKIES WE CAME

Pilots recall the ups and downs of their careers in aviation in this engaging collection of conversations.

In these 27 interviews, poet, educator, and nonfiction author Broughton talks to pilots about their experiences in the cockpits of civilian and military planes as well as more unusual craft, such as balloons and gliders. Some interviewees, such as Gladys Buroker, a barnstormer in the 1930s, recall the early days of American flight, and veterans of World War II and the Korean and Vietnam wars discuss their experiences in flight training and battle. Retired U.S. Navy pilot George Gay recounts watching the Battle of Midway from the water after the downing of his torpedo bomber, crediting surrounding explosions for keeping sharks at bay; Dennis Hague, another retired pilot, recounts rescuing personnel from a Special Forces camp in the A Shau Valley in Vietnam in his A-1 Skyraider. There are several interviews with pioneering female pilots, including Amelia Reid, a flight instructor who practiced aerobatics in the 1970s; asked if she considers herself brave, Reid replies, “I just consider myself doing what I want to do.” Such humility is a common theme of these recollections, as are candid admissions by military veterans of the fears they felt in combat. Broughton uses general questions to prompt interviewees for stories ranging from the humorous to the terrifying, occasionally probing deeper, as when he asks a balloonist about questions of ego. Although Broughton provides short biographical sketches for most of his subjects, he offers no context regarding specific aircraft or battles mentioned, nor does he provide the dates when the interviews were conducted. The text would also have benefited from a stronger edit, as some chapters, for example, are marred by repetitious questions.

These memories of remarkable people are well worth reading despite occasional flaws in presentation.