HomeMy Public PortalAboutTOL PR 2010-02-11 TBL lecture postponed
Town of Leesburg
News Release
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Alexandra Gressitt
Library Director
703-737-7196
Military Aircraft Lecture at Thomas Balch Library
Postponed
Event Rescheduled for March 14, 2010
Leesburg, VA (February 11, 2010) – The lecture by author Jon Guttman on the
“Emergence of Air-to-Air Combat in World War I: The Origin of the Fighter Aircraft”, at
the Thomas Balch Library, scheduled for Sunday, February 14, 2010, has been
postponed until March 14, 2010 at 2:00 p.m.
When World War I began in August 1914, the airplane had already proven its worth as
an intelligence gathering “eye-in-the-sky.” These scouting aircraft became indispensable
to armies on both sides, and attempts to drive enemy planes away began in earnest.
Local air superiority was incorporated into battlefield strategy, and use of aircraft to
conduct offensive operations changed warfare as dramatically as the first firearms 300
years before. In The Origin of the Fighter Aircraft, historian Jon Guttman tells the
engrossing story of how one of the most amazing inventions became an integral
component of warfare. Balancing technical description, personalities, and battle
accounts, the author demonstrates that by the end of World War I most of the
fundamentals for modern aerial combat had been established.
Jon Guttman, who received his Master’s Degree in European History from the State
University of New York at Albany, is a leading expert in the history of aviation, has
authored numerous publications, including SPA124 Lafayette Escadrille, Spad VII Aces
of World War I, and Groupe de Combat 12, “Les Cigognes.” Since July 1988, he has
lived and worked in Leesburg, as senior editor, research director, and contributing writer
for Primedia Special Interest Publications. Books will be available for purchase.
Please check the Thomas Balch Library website (www.leesburgva.gov/library) for more
information about this lecture and other events at the library.
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