Gatty – Prince of Navigators | Bruce Brown | 1997 [SC] – Harold Gatty, Campbell Town's Famous Aviator

A biography of Harold Gatty, born in Campbell Town,Tasmania in 1903 and one of the most significant navigators of the 20th century. 

Gatty was born in Campbell Town on 5 January 1903, though his family moved to Zeehan when he was an infant and he had no memory of the town himself. Despite this, Campbell Town has always claimed him with pride — there is a Gatty Memorial Park on the highway and a Gatty Room at the town museum, both commemorating the navigator born here. Gatty grew up in Zeehan, where his father was headmaster of the state school, before winning a scholarship to St Virgil's College in Hobart in 1916.

IIn 1931 he co-piloted the Winnie Mae, a Lockheed Vega aircraft, around the world with American pilot Wiley Post in just eight days — a record-breaking flight that made headlines worldwide and earned Gatty the title "Prince of Navigators," reportedly bestowed by the New York Times. For a flavour of it view the Original 1931 Pathé newsreel footage of Post and Gatty's departure, New York ticker-tape parade and a short interview with Gatty himself describing the flight (external link, not included with this book)

Gatty's contribution went well beyond that single flight. He developed practical navigation methods used by pilots without modern instruments, and during the Second World War he trained United States military aircrew in air navigation techniques — work that saved countless lives in the Pacific theatre.

Brown's biography covers Gatty's full life from his Tasmanian childhood through his aviation career and his later life and business interests in the Pacific.

The Book Cellar is located in Campbell Town, Gatty's home town — we always try to keep his books in stock, though copies of his own navigational writing are genuinely scarce. Contact the bookshop directly if you are specifically looking for any of his other titles.

BOOK DETAILS

• Softcover.
• 275 pages, indexed.
• Black and white photographs.
• Published 1997.

DELIVERY & IN-STORE PICKUP

**Combined Shipping:** Sourcing multiple titles for your Tasmanian history or aviation library? The Book Cellar offers combined flat-rate parcel delivery across Australia. Secure your books using our online checkout, or phone the bookshop directly on 03 6381 1545 to coordinate multi-volume shipping.

**Free Instore Pickup:** Located in Tasmania or travelling the Midland Highway? Select "Instore Pickup" at checkout to pay no postage and collect your items directly from the counter at The Book Cellar, underneath Foxhunters Return in Campbell Town.