Harrier cover art

Harrier

How to Be a Fighter Pilot

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Harrier

By: Paul Tremelling
Narrated by: Finlay Robertson
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

Paul Tremelling was just seven years old when he watched the Royal Navy's Sea Harriers leave their home base in Somerset to do battle against the Argentine Air Force in the Falklands War. Two decades later, he would join this exclusive club, one of an elite band of Fleet Air Arm fighter pilots, charged with standing in the way of Her Majesty's enemies.

This is the story of what it takes to make it in the dog-eat-dog arena of fighter combat. In the cockpit or crew room, the pressure is relentless, the humour merciless. It's no place for the faint-hearted.

Whether landing on a pitching aircraft carrier deck in the middle of the night or screaming in to save the lives of heroes under fire in Afghanistan, there was no room for self-doubt, only honesty, confidence and do-or-die hard truth. Big Boys Rules.

In return, Tremelling and his fellow airborne warriors enjoyed levels of exhilaration and job-satisfaction that would almost unimaginable in any other walk of life.

Either Winston Churchill or George Orwell (or maybe neither of them...) is reputed to have said, 'we sleep soundly in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm.'

For nearly 20 years, Tremelling was one of those men. And never happier than when he was in the cockpit of the legendary British jump jet.

Combining visceral action with sharp intelligence, laced with acerbic humour, Harrier pulls no punches in bringing to life the hi-octane, unforgiving world of the fighter pilot, in the air and on the ground.

Strap-in....

©2022 Paul Tremelling (P)2022 Penguin Audio
Air Forces Armed Forces Engineering Military Military & War Aviation Warrior Inspiring Heartfelt Thought-Provoking War US Air Force

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All stars
Most relevant
What a book, this had me hooked from the first moment and it’s written with such detail, sharing both the highs and low of his career. At times I felt that I was in that cockpit with him.

The narrator is spot on with his delivery too 👌🏻

Such a detailed experience

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Great read. Great narration. A must for all aviation enthusiasts. I particularly enjoyed listening about the thought processes and pressures a modern day fighter pilot has to deal with.

Puts you in the cockpit

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This book gives an insight into the highs and lows of becoming a military pilot and the need for focus and hardwork. It isn’t a ‘I was awesome, again !’ It’s an honest telling of things going wrong and the lessons attached and the pure joy of when everything just clicks into place and you realise how privileged you are. Years of training for events which take seconds. Peers who will go the extra mile to support and also mercilessly mock to keep you humble which makes you and other squadron mates safer.

It’s a high stakes game undertaken by people formed into diamond like quality by years of unrelenting pressure.

Enjoy.

A must for anyone interested in Military Aviation

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Really enjoyed listening to this book. Definitely one of the top 5 books I’ve ever listened to on audible
Couldn’t fault the style of writing, the honest and brutal humour contained within it and also thought the narration was a perfect match for the style of writing/story
Highly recommend, 5 stars all day long !

Superb

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… sorry, couldn’t help it. An entertaining, insightful, action packed and often very funny account of an extraordinary life flying fast jets. Very well written and narrated. I’m sad I’ll never have the opportunity to fly in such an incredible machine, but flying lessons in a Cessna and this book will have to do for now.

A runway success…

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