Here is a record of the 4 books I finished reading recently, all purchased from the used bookstore Bookoff.

Concorde Project (Concorde: The Inside Story)

This book covers the development history of the supersonic passenger jet Concorde. Published in 2001, it is the Japanese edition of “Concorde: The Inside Story”. The author, Brian Trubshaw, was the Chief Test Pilot for British Aerospace’s Concorde.

Brian participated in the Concorde project from the design phase. The book starts with design concepts and details the joint development by the UK and France, through to airworthiness certification, flight testing, and commercial operation phases. Additionally, the book provides many photographs and design diagrams. As expected from an insider, this first-hand material is very precious! Here are a few details that left a deep impression.

One is about the Anglo-French cooperation; both sides participated in a completely 50/50 split, and the governments were deeply involved in the development project. Even the experimental aircraft were built one by one on each side, competing with each other, for example, to see who would break Mach 2 first.

Another is the difficulty of sales. Due to the era’s opposition to the noise of supersonic passenger jets, only 16 units were produced in total, which is truly a great pity. This project generated a large amount of epoch-making technology, which was used in later projects like Airbus, and it still looks incredibly modern today.

Finally, there is the British government’s lack of regard for the aviation industry. After the project ended, to save budget, there were massive layoffs, causing the British aviation industry to stagnate. In contrast, France went all in based on the Concorde project, developing a series of successful products like the A320 based at Toulouse Airport, which made Brian very envious.

The front windshield design of the Concorde is quite special. To maintain the pilot’s line of sight during Takeoff and Landing, the nose section is movable. The very first design actually used a metal windshield; in Level Flight, the pilot could basically see nothing in front. That was truly a bizarre design. It was later changed to the current glass windshield, which was a significant improvement. You can watch the cockpit video below to see what the windshield looks like.

Aircraft Accidents: What Happens Next?

An analysis of accidents by Kan’ichi Kato, mainly classifying accidents into several categories based on his personal viewpoint, and then analyzing typical cases.

Crash (Vol. 1): Shocking Truth

Kan’ichi Kato wrote a ten-part series on aviation accidents, and this is the first volume. It includes a detailed analysis of the JAL 123 crash from the perspective of aerodynamics. It is written brilliantly.

The Moment of Crash!

This book is the Japanese edition of the English book “The Black Box: All-New Cockpit Voice Recorder Accounts Of In-flight Accidents”. It records cockpit voice recordings from 28 aviation accidents, including the Space Shuttle Challenger, providing a strong sense of being there.

I read a few books on aviation accidents in a row, and they were truly spine-chilling. Especially in many accidents, the pilots could not grasp the cause of the failure—such as losing all hydraulics, or having the static port blocked making flight data impossible to obtain—but they still strove futilely, which is deeply tragic.

In the incident where a Korean Air passenger jet was shot down by a Soviet fighter, after the plane was hit, based on our experience watching Hollywood movies, the plane would explode and disintegrate in mid-air. But after reading the analysis of the Cockpit Voice Recorder, I learned that the crew actually communicated with Japanese Air Traffic Control and even attempted to control the flight.

Of course, there were lucky ones too. For example, a JAL cargo plane encountered Turbulence immediately after Takeoff in Alaska. Due to metal fatigue, the No. 2 engine fell off, and the Flaps and Slats were damaged. Coincidentally, ATSC contacted nearby F-15 fighters to fly close to the cargo plane for a close-range observation and relay the damage information to the crew, resulting in a safe return to landing. Interestingly, the cockpit voice recorder also contained pre-takeoff recordings. The mechanic had served in the military flying C-141s and took photos of C-141s and C-5s in the cockpit; these conversations had a great sense of real life.

There is also one that can be called a miracle: the pilot of a small propeller plane suddenly lost consciousness. His wife, a passenger, had absolutely no flight experience, but through dialogue with ATC, they taught her how to use the autopilot on the spot, and she was actually able to fly back to the airport. At the same time, the pilot’s friend, upon learning of the situation, immediately flew a small plane to approach the distressed aircraft and guided it, helping the plane land successfully.

Reading these records of live recordings, honestly, I’ve become a bit scared of flying. Although I know these are low-probability events, my awareness of aviation safety has deepened considerably.