The Baghdad Air Mail

The Baghdad Air Mail is the personal narrative of Wing Commander Roderic Hill's time flying the Air Route from Cairo to Baghdad. The Air Mail Route was conceived by the British in Cairo in 1921 to overcome the difficulties of land communication between Palestine, Iraq, and Egypt. Run by the RAF until 1926 using a number of different planes, the pilots carried both mail and passengers over inhospitable landscapes, often in perilous conditions. Hill's own experiences detailed in the later chapters of the book reflect the hazards of air travel for the pilots of this route. He also gives a fascinating insight into life in the early 20th century for a British airman and provides compelling descriptions of the landscapes and people he encountered during his time on the job.