By Chance or by Choice?Which of your life-changing moments have happened by chance, and which by choice, by destiny or by desire? Like millions of others, I had nothing to do with starting World War Two in 1939 which nevertheless was responsible for completely changing my life; on the other hand, in 1957 I did choose to change direction by emigrating to Australia from England. Sometimes it is a combination of both chance and choice, such as when an unexpected opportunity arises, do you make the most of it? I had never been interested in airplanes, but when the opportunity to become a pilot came out of the blue, I chose to take it - but were the fatalities with the jet fighter which I piloted caused by pure accident, or was the inherent design of the airplane the problem? Again events can happen in reverse, for example when I chose to join a computer dating service in 1971, serendipity gave me my wife of 40 years.This book covers the author's early life, work experiences and retirement. At 18 years of age he was trained as a fighter pilot during National Service in the Royal Air Force. This was followed by 6 years with Nos. 616 and 501 fighter squadrons in the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, then 6 years as an airline pilot with Trans Australia Airlines and Swissair. Particular attention is paid to his experiences flying the Gloster Meteor, the Allies first jet fighter, and the saga of the well-kept secret of the many lives lost flying this airplane. The author's other occupations described here are his job with the Bristol Aero Engines Company as engineer responsible for the flight testing of the Olympus engine in the Avro Vulcan, and Orpheus engine in the Folland Gnat and 3 European Light Fighters, his extensive experience teaching engineering at the South Australian Institute of Technology and University, together with continuing practical experience consulting to industry and the national Defence and Research Organisation, and some post-retirement business activities. The author's private life is also mentioned in some detail, especially his evacuation as a 9 year old from England to Australia in World War II, resulting in 5 1/2 years away from his family. Also included are comments on his first marriage, divorce and second marriage, his studies for various qualifications, a brief medical history, and interests in sport, music, video, and the internet. Finally there is a large section on travelling, with many photos covering more than 60 countries (see below). The book is intended to fill the gaps in the life of the author left by two previous books - "How Meteors Hit the Ground", and "Out of the Frying Pan". The author has always been interested in movie making, starting with Pathe 9.5 mm film in the 1950s, but since retiring in 1991, video and photography have become more serious with the evolution of digital cameras and the power of the internet to display, share and sell photos, together with the time for more holidays! So it seems appropriate that Appendix 9 should be included as acknowledgement of the part that travelling and photography have become in the lives of the author and his wife, Carole-Anne Fooks (see livingtravel.com). Similarly, to give some recognition to the author's love of crosswords and quizzes, (evident in previous publications), some chapters end with questions which could be like standard cryptic crossword clues, but with no crossword! Since retiring in 1992, travel videos have been created (many becoming available on Create Space & Amazon!) and photographs taken in the following countries: Australia, UK, Italy, USA, Antarctica, Southern Ocean Islands, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, Mauritius, Russia, Iceland, Malaysia, Thailand, Bhutan, Brazil, Canada, Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, Turkey, Greece, Croatia, Singapore, Mongolia, South Korea, Cambodia, South Atlantic Islands, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Netherlands, Denmark, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Norway, India.
About the Author: 1.1931-1940 Doncaster, South Yorkshire, UK 1940-1945 Evacuated to Melbourne, Australia with foster family (due to imminent invasion of England by Nazi forces 1942 Evacuated to Cockatoo, Dandenongs for 10 months (after Darwin/Sydney raids) 2.1946-1949 Back with my mother, father, brother in Doncaster, UK, after WWII 3.1949-1951 National Service, trained as fighter pilot on Gloster Meteors in the RAF 4.1951-1957 Fighter Pilot with 616 Squadron at RAF Finningley, UK, on Meteors, then 501 Squadron at RAF Filton, UK, on Vampires and Meteors 5.1951-1954 University of Leeds - degree in Mechanical Engineering 6.1954-1958 Flight Test Engineer with Bristol Aero Engines at Filton, responsible for the flight testing of the Olympus jet engine in the flying test bed Canberra and in the Avro Vulcan (this engine developed for the Concorde), and for the flight testing of the Orpheus jet engine in the Gnat and in 3 European fighter aircraft (this engine developed for the Harrier jump-jet) 7.1958-1964 Airline Pilot with Trans Australia Airlines based in Adelaide (DC3 on east coast routes, local SA routes and outback survey flying), and then Swissair based in Zurich (DC6B on Far East routes and Caravelle on European routes) 8.1964-1991 Engineering Lecturer/Head of the School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering at the University of South Australia, Adelaide and Whyalla a.1970 Masters Degree in Structural Engineering at Adelaide University b.1971 Developed world first solution for the analysis of rocket exhausts (velocities, temperatures etc) for the Defence Department c.1974 Masters Degree in computer-aided design of Large Thermal Systems at the University of Illinois, USA d.Consultant to many local South Australian engineering companies 9.1985-1999 Top Flinders Street Music Course, credit Australian Music Board Exams; several Christian music workshops; composed several instrumental pieces and many Christian songs and choral works (Carole-Anne writing the words) 10.1992-2001 Various business activities in Energy Management, Internet and other 11.2002-2011 For current activities please put the name "Geoffrey Higges" in Google (don't forget the 'e' in Higges!)