A broad survey of the development of aviation, beginning with accounts by associates of the Wright brothers and other pioneers in the United States and abroad. Those interviewed included designers, engineers, pilots and executives, stunt flyers, and barnstormers; their recitations are informal and seasoned with anecdote. Veterans of World War I describe the development of aerial warfare in that conflict. Scores of recollections trace the rapid progress of aviation between the two World Wars: commercial aviation, air mail development, record flights, technological improvements, air races and polar flights, gliders, and lighter-than-air crafts. General William Mitchell's campaign for strengthening military aviation and Charles Lindbergh's solo flight to Paris provide focal points for many accounts of this period.

Eyewitness stories of episodes in World War II deal with exploits of the Royal Air Force, the Luftwaffe, and the United States air forces, and range from the Battle of Britain to Hiroshima. Research and production problems and achievements are detailed from the outset to the jet era and the beginnings of rockets and missiles.

The material includes descriptions of the breaking of the sound barrier, stories of test pilots for supersonic planes, and accounts of aerial warfare in Korea.