Stack

Neville Stack was once one of Britain’s favourite aviators. He came to fame as the first man to fly a light plane to India. And having been honoured by the King for this achievement, he followed it with more than a decade of derring-do.

Stack circled the Med, crossed Arabia countless times, and even flew down to Banjul. He served in both World Wars and all three branches of the armed Forces, broke record after record, and had his own flying circus. He piloted a Prime Minister, the Shoe King and the odd sultan.

But he also crashed more often that he was willing to admit, wrote bawdy songs – and recorded them, too – and played a controversial role in the Spanish Civil War. He left behind a rich chronicle of his exploits, including newspaper articles, a memoir in song, and flight commentaries that were dictated in mid-air.

Exuberant, colourful and ever so light on its feet, Stack: From Moth to Viceroy provides an intimate and singular account of one of the true heroes of flying’s Golden Age, drawing on British Government files and a host of other forgotten sources.