The broad sweep from birds to 747s and kites in this book is certainly unique. One is impressed by the author's breadth of knowledge. The light touch, occasional asides, and clever remarks transform what is, for most of us, a formidable topic to a 'good read.'
Raymond A. Paynter, Jr., Curator of Birds and Senior Lecturer on Biology, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University
A very readable book, witha lot of interesting thoughts, for the non-science reader interested in flight. It stands alone in the choice of the material, and in the excellent way that the author explains important ideas to the non-science reader. In addition, every aeronautical engineer ought to have great fun in reading this book—I certainly did.
John Anderson, Professor of Aerospace Engineering, University of Maryland at College Park
Tennekes has succeeded in presenting a simple, but insightful analysis of flight, increasing our understanding of aircraft design by relating the world of animal flight to the world of manned flight. While the calculations of his analysis are simple, some of the insights drawn from his analysis of aircraft design and performance are profound. I wish I had the benefit of some of his insights twenty years ago when I was a young aeronautical engineer working on an aircraft design team.
Steve B. Borah, Visitng Professor, MIT
