"The War in the Air" by H. G. Wells. London: George Bell & Sons, 1908. First Edition
“The War in the Air” is a classic tale of a future war written by Wells in 1907 and serialized in The Pall Mall Magazine the following year. It is notable for its prophetic ideas —in this case, the use of aircraft in warfare and the coming of World War I.
“The basic assumption behind the plot is that immediately after the Wright Brothers's first successful flight in 1903, all of the world's major powers became aware of the decisive strategic importance of air power, and embarked on a secret arms race to develop this power (there is a reference to the Wright Brothers themselves disappearing from public view, having been recruited for a secret military project of the US Government – as were other aviation pioneers in their own respective countries). The general public is virtually unaware of this arms race, until it finally bursts out in a vastly destructive war which destroys civilization.” [Source: Wikipedia]
The novel's hero is Bert Smallways, a "forward-thinking young man" and a "kind of bicycle engineer.” By accident he is carried off in a balloon and shot down over Germany where he stumbles upon a German air fleet just as it is about to launch a surprise attack on the United States. Bert is taken along on the campaign and becomes a witness as the Germans obliterate an American naval fleet in the Atlantic and engage in the aerial bombardment and destruction of New York City. The Germans then build an airbase at Niagara Falls. China and Japan now join forces and attack the western coast of the USA with their own secretly-built flying machines. The Asians then attack the Germans and, soon, the entire world is caught up in this madness. So begins the collapse of civilization.
"The War in the Air" by H. G. Wells. London: George Bell & Sons, 1908. First Edition
“The War in the Air” is a classic tale of a future war written by Wells in 1907 and serialized in The Pall Mall Magazine the following year. It is notable for its prophetic ideas —in this case, the use of aircraft in warfare and the coming of World War I.
“The basic assumption behind the plot is that immediately after the Wright Brothers's first successful flight in 1903, all of the world's major powers became aware of the decisive strategic importance of air power, and embarked on a secret arms race to develop this power (there is a reference to the Wright Brothers themselves disappearing from public view, having been recruited for a secret military project of the US Government – as were other aviation pioneers in their own respective countries). The general public is virtually unaware of this arms race, until it finally bursts out in a vastly destructive war which destroys civilization.” [Source: Wikipedia]
The novel's hero is Bert Smallways, a "forward-thinking young man" and a "kind of bicycle engineer.” By accident he is carried off in a balloon and shot down over Germany where he stumbles upon a German air fleet just as it is about to launch a surprise attack on the United States. Bert is taken along on the campaign and becomes a witness as the Germans obliterate an American naval fleet in the Atlantic and engage in the aerial bombardment and destruction of New York City. The Germans then build an airbase at Niagara Falls. China and Japan now join forces and attack the western coast of the USA with their own secretly-built flying machines. The Asians then attack the Germans and, soon, the entire world is caught up in this madness. So begins the collapse of civilization.