The Air Pirate
1919
The year is 1919. Humanity has only just conquered the sky, and already thieves have followed. In this gripping early aviation thriller, Guy Thorne introduces us to Sir John Custance, Chief Commissioner of Air Police for Great Britain, whose job is to police an element that barely exists as a mode of transport. When a ruthless air pirate begins hijacking civilian airliners over the Atlantic, the world watches in terror. The stakes could not be higher: the new miracle of flight, meant to unite nations, threatens to become a lawless frontier. The pirate's next target is the transatlantic liner Atlantis, and aboard it is Constance Shepherd, the famous actress whose entanglement with Sir John adds personal stakes to an already explosive situation. When the Atlantis is taken and Constance goes missing, Sir John must chase the pirate across dangerous skies, balancing his duty to protect the nascent aviation industry with his desperate need to save the woman he loves. Part adventure, part romance, and wholly of its moment, The Air Pirate captures the dizzying hope and fear of humanity's first years in the air. It remains a remarkable period piece for anyone who wonders what it felt like to look up at the sky and see both the future and danger hanging there.
