# Race to Hawaii: The 1927 Dole Air Derby and the Thrilling First Flights That Opened the Pacific - Hardcover

by **Jason Ryan** (Author)

Today, a trip to Hawaii is a simple six-hour flight from the West Coast, but almost a century ago, it was a nerve-wracking and twenty-six-hour journey across 2,400 miles of the open Pacific. _Race to Hawaii_ chronicles the thrilling first flights during the Golden Age of Aviation, a time when new airplanes traveled farther and faster but were also unreliable, fragile, and hampered by primitive air navigation equipment. The US Navy tried first, sending flying boats winging toward the islands. Next came Army Air Corps aviators and a civilian pilot, who informally raced each other to Hawaii in the weeks after Charles Lindbergh crossed the Atlantic to land the _Spirit of St. Louis_ in Paris.  
Finally came the Dole Derby, an unprecedented 1927 air race in which eight planes set off at once across the Pacific, all eager to claim a cash prize offered by Pineapple King, James Dole. Military men, barnstormers, a schoolteacher, a Wall Street bond salesman, a Hollywood stunt flyer, and veteran World War aces all encountered every type of hazard during their perilous flights, from fuel shortages to failed engines, forced sea landings and severe fatigue to navigational errors. With so many pilots taking aim at the far-flung islands in so many different types of planes, everyone wondered who would reach Hawaii first, or at all.

### Author Biography

**Jason Ryan** is the author of _Jackpot: High Times_, _High Seas, and the Sting That Launched the War on Drugs_ and _Hell-Bent: One Man's Crusade to Crush the Hawaiian Mob_.

**Number of Pages:** 320

**Dimensions:** 1.1 x 9.4 x 6.3 IN

**Illustrated:** Yes

**Publication Date:** August 01, 2018

## Details

- **Price:** 26.99 USD
- **Vendor:** Books by splitShops
- **Type:** Books
- **Tags:** Books by splitShops, Shopify Collective

## Variants

| Variant | Price | Available |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Default Title | 26.99 USD | In stock |

## Images

- Race to Hawaii: The 1927 Dole Air Derby and the Thrilling First Flights That Opened the Pacific - Hardcover

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