Above the Summit: An Antique Airplane Conquers the 4000ers of the Alps

Above the Summit: An Antique Airplane Conquers the 4000ers of the Alps

Some years ago, the author naively stood at a remote mountain airport, staring at the highest peak in Colorado, USA, where he concocted a scheme to fly his ragtag airplane built in the 1940s to the highest peaks in the state. What resulted was an odyssey that years later culminated in a pursuit of the highest mountains in the Alps, a list as recognized by the UIAA mountaineering organization. Located in Switzerland, Italy, and France, the author used the same antique airplane, dragged from America, to fly to all 82 peaks over 4,000 meters (13,123 feet), photographing them as he went. With 100 horsepower at sea level, no heat, and consuming over a third of a fuel tank just to get to altitude, the little airplane used in the adventure required riding favorable wind currents to soar above the largest peaks and glaciers in Europe, a feat of airmanship. Containing 188 beautiful aerial photographs, the book is a testament to lovers of aviation, mountains, and the Alps in general, offering a perspective of these breathtaking summits unique even to intrepid climbers.