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Kansas City’s Rich Aviation Story Told in New Book

Author Ken Weyand brings the rich history of aviation in Kansas City to life in Early-Day Flying in Kansas City (2015 Kyakker Books/Caroline Street Press).

Early-Day-Flying2This ebook is based on a trade paperback published in 1970. The original book, Aviation History in Greater Kansas City, was compiled by Historic Aviation magazine, edited and published by Ken Weyand, a private pilot at the time, with a keen interest in aviation history.

Ken had met and interviewed several Kansas City aviation pioneers, and was personally acquainted with many pilots and aviation business people who played key roles in local aviation.

Ken put the book together with the help of several others who shared his interest in old-time flying.

The book begins with the area’s first balloon ascensions and dirigible events, continues with exhibition biplane flights in 1910, and follows the development of aviation with the works of tinkerers and homebuilders, early barnstormers, racers, and manufacturers. It includes the beginning of airmail service, the formation of small independent airlines, and ends with the birth of Kansas City’s transcontinental carrier, Trans World Airlines.

Illustrated with many drawings and photos, Early-Day Flying in Kansas City is a must-read for everyone who appreciates flying and enjoys reliving the amazing progress of aviation in Kansas City.

The ebook is available in the Amazon Kindle Store, Smashwords and soon at every other ebook retailer.

***Review copies available to editors, bloggers and reporters. Click here to email  for more information.***

About the Author

After receiving a degree in Journalism at the University of Missouri, Kenneth Charles Weyand worked ten years for the Kansas City Star, becoming Advertising Copy Chief. Later he published several publications, including Discover North, a monthly history and travel newspaper. After expanding the distribution from a single county to more than nine states, Weyand sold the publication in 2001, but continued to write for the paper, renamed Discover Vintage America. For the past ten years, he has written an award-winning monthly history and travel column, “Traveling with Ken.”

Fiddling with Friends in the 1920s: A Chautauqua Trouper’s Story is Ken’s first book, capturing the life of his mother who, as a young woman, left her small town behind for a great adventure and a chance to get a first-hand look at a changing America in the early 20th Century. A much larger book, An Unlikely Love Story, tells the unique story of two people from vastly different backgrounds who overcame great odds to begin a new life in the country during the depths of the Depression.

The author’s own remembrances of a country life are recounted in Dirt Road Diary: Recalling a Country Childhood. It picks up where An Unlikely Love Story leaves off, and includes a lot of country-style memories. Both books will be published in the near future.

Another book, Early-Day Flying in Kansas City, based on a similar history published in 1970 and including material not in the original book, was released in October 2015.

Weyand’s passion is kayaking, particularly in Florida. He is currently working on two eBooks on kayaking, both non-fiction, and plans to release them in the near future.

Lost in the Everglades and Other Florida Paddling Adventures (coming soon) recalls a harrowing experience, but is balanced with other experiences that were equally adventurous but more successful. If you’re a paddler or would like to be, you’ll enjoy reading this one.

A Florida Paddling Bucket List is currently being compiled for paddlers (and would-be paddlers) looking to make the most of their free time on Florida rivers, creeks and estuaries, with helpful tips on where to launch and take out, and what to expect at each location. Factoids of local history are included.

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