Like Jerry Andrus, Melvin Westwood was a young man caught up in the history-making events of WWII. Mel's book is over 300 pages, with 83 photographs (taken mostly by the author) and includes B-24 Liberator technical schematic diagrams and copies of Consolidated Aircraft company internal documents.
This book is an in-depth personal account of the beginnings of Consolidated Aircraft, the civilian contractor for the Air Transport Command, that provided aircraft transport and servicing to the Army Air Corps in the South Pacific theater of war during WW II.
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Excerpt from the Preface:
This book is part documentary and part aviation history. It is as true as related documents and memory are accurate.... Except for the technical details about the aircraft and the legal contracts of the operation, the book is biographical. The stories come first hand from the mechanics, engineers and station managers who were there and in aggregate relates an epoch of aviation history from their point of view. The ground crews often working in mud and tropical heat helped set records unequaled in the annals of aviaition history. The vital contributions of Consaiways flight crews is fully recognized so this will elucidate the part played by their unsung and sometime unnoticed partners in this unique wartime effort. ~ Melvin N. Westwood
Sample pages:
Table of Contents
Page 64 (diagram) - Brake hydraulic system, B24-D
Pages 66 and 67 (text) - Marathon Engine Change
Page 88 (photographs) - Amberley Field
Sample photos:
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