Venture into the Stratosphere: Flying the First Jetliners

Aviation in the 1950s was a positive, exciting sequel to the most destructive war in history. It gave birth to the jet age for passengers, fostering remarkable social changes. Venture into the Stratosphere is a memoir about the exhilaration and challenges in flying the first jetliners. It brings to life a story of diverse elements, such as technical matters in layman’s terms, a love story, social interactions, engineering philosophy, the post-war ethos, and the intimate details of the flight deck in routine flying and emergency situations. Readers enjoy the stories that make all their flights fascinating and exciting for years to come!

After discharge from the Irish Air Corps, Dominic Colvert continued his career in aviation by becoming a flight engineer on the first jetliners, de Havilland Comets. The work as flight crew for BOAC (British Overseas Airway Corporation) was challenging as the airline developed new frontiers in aviation and new routes to exotic destinations worldwide. Returning to school, Dominic earned an MS in Engineering from University of California, Berkeley, before working in engineering and management at various Silicon Valley companies, and as adjunct faculty at Embry Riddle University. At the heart of these work and study situations was a common focus on technology and the human factors involved. With the changing work emphasis, he published articles in Industrial Engineer, Fidelity, and Wild West magazines. His most recent publication is a controversial topic, The Letters of Peter H. Burnett: Realism and The Roots of California. Dominic lives and writes in Palo Alto, CA, but was born and married in London, England. His military years were lived in Dublin, Ireland, and he remembers with nostalgia the years in San Francisco while attending UCB and his homestead in San Carlos, California.