The Power to Fly: An Engineer's Life

As a wide-eyed English boy, Brian H. Rowe watched the Battle of Britain unfold in the skies above his native country. The experience sealed his fascination with flying machines and hinted at the importance of aircraft to the future of civilization. In this gripping memoir, the author tells the story of his rise from an unassuming post-World War II engineering apprentice to become president of General Electric Aircraft Engines, the American company whose jet engines helped win the Cold War and make commercial flight affordable for average citizens.

This is a personal account replete with engineering anecdotes and hitherto unpublished details about the thinking behind major GE products, including the F404 engines that power the U.S. Navy’s F/A-18 jets, the F101 engines that were selected for the Air Force’s B-1 bombers, and the CFM56 engines that power today’s Boeing 737s and Airbus A320s, for instance. There is plenty here to feed the interest of those who have followed the historical competition between GE and its competitors, Pratt & Whitney and Rolls Royce.

Later in his career, managerial and strategic challenges became Rowe’s main focus, and the author gives insight into how he dealt with those as well.

Overall, though, this memoir demonstrates the importance of human relationships and ingenuity as the true engine of history.