• Mike Howlett oral history interview

Michael ‘Mike’ Howlett’s career in aviation spans over 70 years, all as a pilot. The most significant points coming out of the interview related to his experience of flying successive generations of aircraft:

• Having learnt to fly on a Tiger Moth bi-plane , he flew first-generation jet fighters (the Meteor and Vampire).
• He then flew the first generation long-haul, land-based piston-engine airliners in the form of the Boeing Stratocruiser.
• He then flew the first of the long-range, swept-wing jets, the Boeing 707.

• And he then flew, the first of the ultra-large passenger aircraft, the Boeing 747 ‘Jumbo’.

   

These aircraft not only ushered in different eras of air travel with a new level of passenger experience, they posed new challenges for their operators and aircrew. Mike provided fascinating insights into these changes.

Mike Howlett was interviewed by Sir George Cox as part of the Royal Aeronautical Society/National Aerospace Library’s oral history project  ‘If I only didn’t do it that way…….” Capturing history from the horse’s mouth to inspire today’s aeronautical professionals. The recording was edited by edited by Eur Ing Mike Stanberry FRAeS.