The Map of My Dead Pilots; The Dangerous Game of Flying in Alaska

by Colleen Mondor

• ISBN13: 9780762773619
• ISBN10: 0762773618
• Format: Trade Book
• Copyright: 2011-11-22
• Publisher: Lyons Press

Summary

Northern Exposuremeets Air Americain this expose of the daily life and death insanity of commercial flying in Alaska The Map of My Dead Pilotsis about flying, pilots, and Alaska--and, more specifically, about those pilots who take death-defying risks in the Last Frontier and all too often lose. Colleen Mondor spent four years running dispatch operations for a Fairbanks-based commuter and charter airline--and she knows all too well the gap between the romance and reality of small plane piloting in the wildest territory of the United States. From overloaded aircraft to wings covered in ice, from flying sled dogs and dead bodies, piloting in Alaska is about living hard and working harder. What Mondor witnessed day to day would make anyone's hair stand on end. Ultimately, it is the pilots themselves--laced with ice and whiskey, death and camaraderie, silence and engine roar--who capture her imagination. In fine detail, Mondor reveals the technical side of flying, the history of Alaskan aviation, and a world that demands a close communion with extreme physical danger and emotional toughness. The Map of My Dead Pilotsis an engrossing narrative whose gritty, no-holds-barred style is reminiscent of the works of like Ken Kesey and Tim O'Brien.

Author Biography

Colleen Mondor is a longtime columnist and reviewer for Bookslut and book reviewer for Booklist whose essays have appeared in several journals and aviation magazines. She currently owns an aviation business. She lives in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. Her blog can be found at chasingray.com.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. ix
The Truth about Flying	p. 1
The Question of Why	p. 21
On the Ramp	p. 35
Onto the Ice	p. 45
Flying Cold	p. 62
The Dead Body Contract	p. 70
Finding the Walls of a Box Canyon	p. 82
On the Other Side of the Mountains	p. 91
Mercy Flight	p. 103
Dropping through a Hole in the Sky	p. 114
With Saint-Ex in South America	p. 122
The Good Pilot	p. 131
The Worst Cargo in the World	p. 145
The Map of My Dead Pilots	p. 151
Getting Lost	p. 161
What Happened to Bryce Donovan	p. 169
Looking for Ben Eielson	p. 189
One Hundred Crash Stories	p. 198
Our Missing Aviator	p. 207
Sams Story	p. 223
Reckoning	p. 228
Acknowledgments	p. 241
About the Author	p. 243
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