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Eject! Eject!

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Eject! Eject!

By: John Nichol
Narrated by: Thomas Judd
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About this listen

 'Eject! Eject!'

When the call is made to abandon an aircraft, it's only the beginning of the story...

From the Sunday Times bestselling writer John Nichol, author of Spitfire, Lancaster and Tornado, comes a brilliant new book that reveals the astonishing story of an invention that has saved many thousands of lives around the world, including his own: the ejection seat.

Nichol tells the remarkable tale of how the ejection seat was first conceived during the Second World War as countless lives were lost in accidents and in battle. In the wake of the war, that technological race to save aircrew lives using explosive seats continued at an incredible pace. Nichol tells the story of the brave men who risked their lives testing those early devices, and interviewed the first British pilot to eject back in 1949, when ejection, from pulling the handle to being under the parachute, took thirty seconds. Today, that figure is down to around one second.

Packed with interviews with aircrew who know exactly how it feels to ‘Bang Out’ from an aircraft at high speed, both in peace and in war, the book gives the reader a vivid sense of what that life-saving experience feels like, but also features the moving accounts of what happens next, from the viewpoint of both the crews and their families, who often have little or no information about whether or not their loved ones have survived.

Because ejecting is just the start of a journey…..

Packed with dramatic action, incredible science and moving recollections, Eject! Eject! is an essential read. Aeronautics & Astronautics Air Forces Armed Forces Astronomy & Space Science Military Science Technology Thought-Provoking War Aviation

Critic reviews

A fascinating history. Given his extraordinary personal experience, skills & knowledge, Eject! Eject! is clearly a book that Nichol and Nichol alone was destined to write. Five stars
'An absolutely brilliant, brilliant read. Fascinating history and enthralling stories. An absolute corker' (Jeremy Vine)
‘Catapults you into the heart of the most epic experiences of ejection, escape and survival’

(Andy McNab)
'The story of the ejection seat’s birth and development revealed by John Nichol, is one of genius, bravery and baffling eccentricity, containing thrilling, gripping and dramatic stories of survival'
'Some of the stories are incredible, making for an action packed book'
All stars
Most relevant
The ejection seat is quite possibly the best ever invention in avation.

This book covers it's early design and history bringing you "bang" up to date.

Wonderfully written and at times you really need to stop, take a breath and carry on.

A great listen.

Bravery Beyond Words.

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Firstly, I enjoyed the stories and the narration. The ejection development back history was interesting... how does someone choose to be the first person test the theory of being blown into the air by explosives? Strange but brave men. The stories of ejections and their aftermath brings home how ejection is only the first step for many of those saved by the incredible technology.

not what I expected

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Loved this book, the stories, the research, the background work are all amazing. My one grumble with the audio version is the narrator’s voice which personally I found to be like listening to a museum tour guide. Somebody like Alexander Armstrong might have been good.

Fascinating but narration from a museum

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A brilliant history of the ejection seat and the men and women who had to use them. Some descriptions of injury are very graphic but the overall story had me in tears at the end. Excellent book.

Amazing story of bravery

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The author mixes the stories behind the developments with both uplifting and sad stories intertwined to provide a narrative of the development that is so much better than the two sides of the story separated.

Well done!

my only negative would be that it's 'leftenant' not 'lootenant' when talking about RAF officers... 8)

Well thought through - great losten

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