The Speed of Air

<p>When a severe thunderstorm pounces on 26-year-old auto mechanic Willard Custer corners him in a barn and then pops the barn's roof in a shocking display of atmospheric power Willard's life is permanently altered. The banjo-picking son of a West Virginia blacksmith with an unfinished high school education Willard conceives of a device that will employ the speed of air to shorten an aircraft's takeoff and landing (STOL) and he believes revolutionize the aircraft industry.</p><p>This book tells the story of how Custer charging into a world for which he has no preparation secures the necessary patents and funding to build four unique aircraft. Then he publicly demonstrates their astonishing STOL and slow-flight capabilities gaining converts among engineers pilots and business leaders. Over four decades he guides two companies and spawns four others. He engages scientists manufacturers and pilots in seven American states and Canada. He fights the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the Securities and Exchange Commission in court. And he relentlessly solicits the Federal Aviation Administration and Department of Defense while overcoming corporate double-crossing in Detroit and New York.</p><p>Described as one of aviation's great what-if stories and a contribution to American folklore the story of the father of powered lift and his Channel Wing Aircraft will inspire readers to trust themselves to act on their dreams and to define success in their own terms.</p><p>Also in this special edition aeronautical scientist Robert Englar in his Foreword names Willard Custer the father of powered lift by virtue of the precedence and simplicity of his design. Then in his Afterword Englar describes modern NASA research that enhances the Channel Wing with current technologies and points the way to its ultimate integration into the aviation industry.</p>