Welcome to Reg Adkins' "I Flew For MMA"

Captain Reg Adkins' unique, "MUST READ" book tells you all about his experiences with Western Australia's MacRobertson Miller Airlines which was, in the Seventies and Eighties, Australia's third largest airline. From the 1950s, when the Douglas DC-3 pilots made up to 13 landings a day, flying all over WA and the Northern Territory - later in the '60s doing the same with the Fokker F.27 Friendship, through to the Jet Era of the '70s & '80s with the F.28 Fellowship, flying the same routes in a sixth of the time and on out to Christmas Island, Cocos, Bali and on down through the Territory to Alice Springs and Yulara (Ayers Rock).

In his easy-to-read style, Reg describes in fascinating detail what it was like to be part of aviation history: the development of an airline from the piston era of post-World War Two, through the turboprop phase and into the modern-day jet age. He recounts all the trials and tribulations, as well as the thrills, of flying the line in an airline evolving continuously as the aircraft got faster and more sophisticated: the study, the medicals, the family, the flying, the weather, the union stouches and more.

I FLEW FOR MMA is acclaimed by:

• The Royal Western Australian Historical Society - as "an absorbing account of the author's service with MMA...a book graphically written and attractively presented".
• The Aviation Historical Society of Australia - "An extremely interesting and detailed book on a subject not often covered".
• John Willis, one of Australia's leading Chief Flying Instructors - "A MUST READ for budding airline pilots and those interested in the exacting life of the professionals in aviation".

WHAT WAS MMA?

The airline started up in WA in 1934 after Horrie Miller - the pilot - gained the financial backing of Sir MacPherson Robertson - of MacRobertson's Chocolates - to form MacRobertson Miller Aviation Co. Ltd. (MMA), and beat Norman Brearley's West Australian Airways bid for the renewal of the North-West contract.

In the ensuing years MMA operated DH84 Dragons from Perth to Daly Waters (a six day round trip), to connect the western leg of the Empire Airmail scheme to England, Lockheed 10a Electras through the years of WW2, and Avro Ansons, DH Doves and DC-3s post war, followed by F.27s and F.28s.

MMA's route length from Perth to its outermost port of Gove and Groote Eylandt in the Northern Territory was over 1500 nm (2,780km), or greater than the distance from London to the other side of Moscow.

The author gives an in depth account of flying the routes - the people on the ground and in the air - the ports of call - the passengers and the aircraft. During his 32 years of service he logged 21,000 hours on the DC-3, F.27 and the fabulous F.28 and tells his story "from the cockpit".

The book comprises 372 pages of text and some 130 mainly colour photos to provide a comprehensive insight into the daily experiences of an airline pilot's life.

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