[Varese2002]

Originally Posted by bristol

Hi Kees,

Yes---we both have different 'takes' on the value of the Book as a serious historical work-----and for those that are'nt aware this was picked over a bit in June in a thread entitled---"LIST OF CORRECTIONS FOR LEAMANS D.R.1 BOOK"

My initial post then was simply to agree with a previous poster who had raised doubts over the book. I then checked my Cross&Cockades as I had the Quote from it in mind, and quoted the review in part---then I quoted other, sometimes scathing critiques by well respected historians-----always reminding readers that I HAD the book as well.

Further posts by other forum members tended to agree with me----or more correctly we all tended to agree with those experts that had gone before us-----even John McKenzie----Who does'nt rate me at all---was fulsome in his agreement on this matter---and John knows a thing or two about designing aeroplanes!

On the matter of Weyl's book I stand foursquare with experts---and legends of our particular discipline---men like, but not only,
PETER M. GROSZ
ALEX IMRIE
HARRY WOODMAN
J.M.BRUCE---who you quote above--and who himself bemoaned the "lack of sources"---the very thing that seperates a History book from a work of supposition!
It is a flawed, discredited work of very limited (but--yet again--I never ever claimed no)!!! worth as a work of historical importance.

Dave.

As the council of the defence I am not very impressed by the arguments presented by Bristol, mostly based on opinions of big names. It is unknown how far A.R.Weyl had proceded with his book (Fokker, the creative years), but surely the eminent historian J.M.Bruce saw fit to publish the work. As he accepted that editing work, it is easy to realize that he was in line with the essence of the book. Bruce took his time to edit this book as he worked on it (intermittedly ?) from 1959 till 1965. I cannot read in the editor's note of this book that Bruce 'bemoaned the lack of sources' as interpreted by Bristol. His point was more that it (literal quote ....

One is this unable adequately to acknowledge the author's indebtedness to those who contributed information and material: this is something that he himself would have done with the scrupulous care that was characteristic of him.

.
It is also clear that the book would have looked different when Weyl had lived to do it all by himself. No one knows by how much though. It is probably the finishing of the Unfinished sysmphony by Schubert . Sure, J.M. Bruce saw the need and the worth to edit and publish a book, otherwise we would not have seen it.

The archive accumulated by A.R.Weyl in his time, containing rare archive pieces from the IdFlieg etc. was later bought in its entirity by Peter M. Grosz. The archive has now finally come round again and rests in the vaults of the Deutsches Technik Museum, Berlin.

It is a great pity that Weyl has for years after his death been followed by antagonists, with a result that his stature in aviation history is starkly diminished. See the example given by Bristol in post #16 where he comes in the thread on 'invisible' aeroplanes

As i said up front (and on a different thread some time ago) I consider the book flawed and offer these 'snippets' only for what they are worth

Notwithstanding a smiley this is quite humiliating to a writer of a book.

To quote something on A.R.Weyl, what better than from his obituary in Flight

Alfred Richard Oscar Weyl, A.F.RAe.S., A.F.I.A.S., F.B.I.S., died on February 23 [1959]. Born in Berlin 61 years ago, he came to this country in 1935 and acquired British nationality. In Germany he had held a number of responsible technical posts following active service in the Royal Prussian Air Corps in the First World War. He was a senior staff officer in the D.V.L. (Research Institute for Aeronautics) and was subsequently principal assistant to the professor of the aeronautical engineering department at Berlin university. At other periods he was in charge of special projects and did a considerable amount of test flying of prototypes. After the war he turned to design work and was responsible for a light sporting monoplane built by Udet-Flugzeugbau at Munich (later the Messerschmitt works). Soon after coming to England he founded the firm of Zander & Weyl in partnership with E. P. Zander. Later, as Dart Aircraft Ltd., the company produced the ultra-light Dart Kitten, two examples of which are still flying.
Alfred Weyl was also an authority on armament (on which subject he contributed some important articles to Flight) and self-sealing fuel tanks, and his researches included tailless aircraft development, guided-missile design and aircraft plastics technology.
A man of original and inventive turn of mind, he was extremely forthright in his opinions and his impatience with official policies on occasions brought repercussions which would have subdued a less fiery spirit.

Quite a career professionally, personnally difficult with a fleeing from a Hitler suppressed Germany. The last sentence is perhaps the reason why The creative years bookhas had such a reception. As in old Greek dramas the bringer of the (bad) news is also under attack, although not as bad as in the Greek times when that bringer was decapitated. It is now 'only' done mentally.

I rest my case. Mr. A.R. Weyl had a great career in aviation and wrote a good book of the period of Fokker covering the years 1910 - 1918. Writers of books can consider this book in their list of secundary literature, just as the autobiography of Fokker / Gould can be used. It is the writer's duty to balance his primary and secundary sources.

I leave it to the judge (unfortunately there is no one in aviation history ) and hope to spend my given time here on the Forum Aerodrome on other subjects than the book of A.R.Weyl. FOKKER; the creative years.

Cheers

Kees