Cessna 172: A Pocket History

Perfect book!

This small book fills for me the need of knowing more about the Cessna 172, one of the legends of light aviation. Explaining the different variants with photos to clarify the differences , and with its small size becomes a handy reference. The only negative remark is the lack of a tabulated list of the production variants with numbers produced and serial number ranges.

This was purchased as a birthday gift for my father in law who has a personal interest in aircraft, but what is unique is the fact that I actually work alongside the author, Ron Smith, who owns his own Cessna and is very knowledgeable on this particular subject.

A great history of one of the most iconic single engine aircraft ever built. Facts and illustrations put any reminiscent pilot right back to taking the controls.

This little book has a lot of information packed into it about the development of the Cessna 172 through the years.

A nice little pocket reference on the Cessna 172. Having read it through, I now enjoy thumbing through it and reminding myself of interesting developments in the series. My one complaint is that many of older models shown in the book have been repainted in more modern paint schemes. My impression is that many of the photos are holiday snaps that the author grabbed in his travels. That is, it seems he photographed examples of various models as he came upon them, rather than seeking the best examples for illustration. This is understandable, as many owners are not interested in originality; and finding original or restored examples, travelling to them, and photographing them would be very expensive. Local to me, N78797 is a nicely restored 1968 K-model, N84823 is a nicely-restored 1970 K-model (both with original paint schemes), and a gleaming Cessna 170 in its original scheme of polished aluminium and blue is a frequent visitor to local fly-ins. Restored or original aircraft are out there, and would have been better choices for an overview of the type.The lack of exemplars of how these aircraft appeared as the left the factory notwithstanding, this pocket history does provide ample photographs of the models from the beginning to the present. The four-star rating, instead of five-star, is due solely to my personal preference to see the aircraft as they were. The text is informative, and pointed out details that I had not noticed before.If you're a fan of the Cessna 172, you must have this book in your library.

If you enjoy flying the 172. This book is a good and quick history on the 172. It does make for good reading

I liked the focus on one simple, familiar aircraft.I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in beginning general aviation.I chose this rating because the book is an effective use of my time and money.