An Engineer of Sorts.

UK,slim 8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.FINE/FINE.No owner inscrptn,and no price-clip to dw/dj.Bright,crisp,clean b/w photographic illustrated dw/dj; with negligible shelf-wear and creasing to edges and corners - no nicks or tears present.An accidental,vertical crease to front inner flap of dw/dj. Top edge lightly,sporadically foxed,fore-edge brighter and cleaner; contents bright,tight and near pristine - no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corners - possibly an unread copy? Publisher's bright,crisp, clean,sharp-cornered,original maroon cloth boards with bright,crisp,blocked printer's device to upper board's bottom,right-hand corner and bright,crisp,blocked gilt letters to spine/backstrip and immaculate generally bright and clean,plain white endpapers,with merest hint of very light foxing to same.UK,slim 8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,13- 184pp [paginated] includes 15 chapters,66 assorted contemporary b/w photographs,drawings/diagrams throughout the text and the book,appendices (5),a conclusion,an index; plus [unpaginated] half-title+title pages,b/w photographic frntis,a dedication,separate contents+illustrations lists/tables,and a foreword by Douglas Phillips-Birt. Born in Northumberland,1901,and in his early years spent much time in the coal mines and quarries owned by neighbouring cousins.He was educated at the Royal Naval Colleges,Osborne, Dartmouth,Keyham,and Greenwich, serving at sea as a midshipman in the Royal Navy.He left the Navy in 1928 and learnt to fly with the Auxiliary Air Force; in 1929 he became associated with Vosper and Company of Portsmouth,and in 1931 was appointed Managing Director,retaining the post for 32 years until in 1963 he became Deputy Chairman and Research Director. In 1940 he rejoined the Royal Navy for a year,serving in the Fleet Air Arm as a pilot and technical officer.He was then recalled to Vosper, which had been given a major task in building fast warships,and in July 1941 he paid the first of several wartime visits to the USA, where American yards were building Vosper fighting craft under licence.He specialised in design and construction of high speed craft,including 'Bluebird II' which held the world water speed record from 1939 to 1950,and John Cobb's 'Crusader',which in 1952 became the first boat to exceed 200 m.p.h. He is also associated with the Vosper type MTBs which formed the greater part of the Royal Navy's wartime Coastal Forces; with the gas-turbined 'Brave' and 'Ferocity' classes which provided Fast Patrol Boats for many post- war navies,including that of Germany; also with 'Tramontana',winner of the second Daily Express International Offshore Powerboat race.He is the author of 'High Speed Small Craft',and many technical papers, especially concerned with ship behaviour at sea.
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