A Brief History of the Airplane: How We Learned to Fly cover art

A Brief History of the Airplane: How We Learned to Fly

Listen with a free trial

Pre-order: Try Premium Plus free
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Unlimited access to our all-you-can-listen catalogue of 15K+ audiobooks and podcasts
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

A Brief History of the Airplane: How We Learned to Fly

By: Michael Travers
Narrated by: Virtual Voice
Pre-order: Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Pre-order Now for £10.29

Pre-order Now for £10.29

LIMITED TIME OFFER

£0.99/mo for 3 months - terms apply. Offer ends 31 August 2026.
Background images

This title uses virtual voice narration

Virtual voice is computer-generated narration for audiobooks.

Uncover the gripping aviation history of human ingenuity, transforming impossible myths into soaring engineering reality. Perfect for your morning commute, this inquisitive journey explores the restless inventors, wind-tunnel tinkerers, and bold test pilots who conquered the skies.

Fuel your lifelong learning with an inspiring narrative that moves from the canvas-winged workshops of early pioneers to the pressurized jet cabins that shrank our world. Whether you are settling in for focused listening or dreaming of tomorrow's technology, this hopeful saga reveals the quiet breakthroughs and fierce rivalries that rewired global cultures.

What you'll discover inside:

• The forgotten myths, early sketches, and foundational science that sparked the quest for controlled powered flight.

• How profound questions about bird wings translated into aerodynamic breakthroughs in nineteenth-century workshops.

• The dramatic impact of two world wars on rapid aircraft innovation, radar development, and global navigation systems.

• Untold stories of overlooked contributors, from trailblazing women pilots to the ground mechanics who made air travel safe.

• A forward-looking analysis of modern aviation's environmental costs and the push for electric and autonomous aircraft.

The sky is no longer the limit—it is the starting line for humanity's greatest technological adventures. Press play to embark on this wondrous journey through the clouds and experience the magnificent legacy of human flight today.

©2026 Hidden Voices (P)2026 Hidden Voices
Engineering History History & Culture History & Philosophy Science
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
No reviews yet