Edward H. Phillips is an American writer/historian, aviation industry reporter, and aviator who has specialized in the

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations except for commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services for other ...

industry of the central United States—with particular emphasis on the aviation history of

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the List of cities in Kansas, most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397, ...

and its aircraft manufacturers."Aviation Programs by Author Historian Edward H. Phillips – Saturday, October 25th & Sunday, October 26th"
October 2014,

Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum The Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to preserving and presenting the local history of Wichita and Sedgwick County, Kansas, United States. It is located at 204 South Main (southeast of ...

, Wichita, KSChance, Carl (Editor, ''Air Capital Report,''
Profile: "Edward H. Phillips"
/ref>"Edward Phillips IV,"
presenter bio, AirVenture /

Experimental Aircraft Association The Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) is an international organization of aviation enthusiasts based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Since its inception, it has grown internationally with over 300,000 members and nearly 1,000 chapters worldwide. ...

, Oshkosh, WI, retrieved September 5, 2016"Edward Phillips"
(postscript t
"Airmaster! (Part One)"
, 12 December 2019, ''King Air'' Magazine, retrieved 17 January 2020.

Background and credentials

Phillips earned a degree in journalism, with a minor in aviation, from the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (UND) is a Public university, public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States. It was established by the Dakota Territory, Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishm ...

. A

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government agency within the United States Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Transportation that regulates civil aviation in t ...

-certified flight instructor and advanced ground instructor, he earned a commercial pilot license, with instrument and multi-engine ratings for single-and multi-engine land airplanes; and an Airframe and Powerplant aircraft mechanic license.

Career

Phillips is most noted as an aviation writer and historian, with numerous publications, including nine books and over 1,000 articles on aviation and aerospace topics. He is particularly noted as the principal author of books and articles on the early aircraft manufacturers of

—the "Air Capital City." Phillips worked for Wichita's Beech Aircraft Corporation (1978–1986) and for

Piedmont Airlines Piedmont Airlines, Inc. ( ) is an American regional airline headquartered at the Salisbury Regional Airport in Wicomico County, Maryland, near the Salisbury, Maryland, city of Salisbury. The airline is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the American ...

. He served for 21 years as Business Flying writer for ''

Aviation Week and Space Technology ''Aviation Week & Space Technology'', often abbreviated ''Aviation Week'' or ''AW&ST'', is the flagship magazine of the Aviation Week Network, a division of Informa. The weekly magazine is available in print and online, reporting on the aero ...

'' magazine, before retiring in 2007 as its Southwest-U.S. Bureau Chief, based in Dallas, Texas.Edward H. Phillips
articles list, ''

'' magazine, retrieved 5 September 2016Barnes, Sparky: "A Beechcraft Historian," i
"Beech Party: Starship, Staggerwings and STOL,"
November 7, 2021, ''General Aviation News.'' retrieved December 30, 2022 He also wrote for ''Air Transport'' in 1995.Tarnay, Thomas N
"Aircraft Designs Subjected to FAA Special Certification Review - Mitsubishi MU-2 and Beechcraft Bonanza: The Role of the SCR in Aircraft Design Certification and Implications on Federal Preemption"
(Phillips article cited in footnote 10), ''Journal of Air Law and Commerce,'' Volume 62, Issue 2, retrieved December 31, 2022 He has written numerous books and articles on

history, including articles for the ''

American Aviation Historical Society The American Aviation Historical Society (AAHS) is a non-profit organization "dedicated to the preservation and dissemination of he history ofAmerican aviation.""AAHS Mission," Winter 2019, ''AAHS Journal'', vol.64, no.4, page 242, retrieved May 1 ...

Journal,''"Travel Air Mystery Ship"
Fall 2011 ''

Journal,'' Volume 56, No. 3, retrieved December 31, 2022 ''Aviation History'' magazine (and its affiliate website, HistoryNet.com),Search: "Edward H. Phillips,"
(articles list) at HistoryNet.com (including ''Aviation History'' magazine) and ''King Air'' magazine."Edward Phillips, author
''King Air'' magazine (article list with teasers, linking to full texts of Phillips' articles, most also online)

Works

Phillips' writing and historical research has appeared in numerous books,"Books by Edward H Phillips"
Goodreads.com, retrieved 5 September 2016"Edward H Phillips: Books, Biography, Blog, Audioblog..."
Amazon.com, retrieved 5 September 2016 magazines and journals, online, in documentary films, and in public presentations.''Wichita & the Air Capital of the World,''
2014, filmed presentation at the

, YouTube, retrieved December 31, 2022

Books

* ''Travel Air: Wings Over the Prairie''. Flying Books (1982), * ''Cessna: A Master's Expression''. Eagan, MN: Flying Books (1985), * ''Cessna: Model 120 to Citation III''. Eagan, MN: Flying Books (1986), * ''Beechcraft: Pursuit of Perfection''. Eagan, MN: Flying Books (1987), * ''Beechcraft: Staggerwing to Starship, an Illustrated History'' Eagan, MN: Flying Books (1987), * ''Piper Airplanes: A Legend Aloft''. Eagan, MN: Flying Books International (1993), * ''Wings of Cessna: Model 120 to Citation X''. Eagan, MN: Flying Books International (1994), * ''The Staggerwing Story - A History of the Beechcraft Model 17'' (1996) * ''Mystery Ship: A History of the Travel Air Type R Monoplanes'' So. St. Paul, MN: Flying Books International (1999). * ''Laird Aircraft: A Legacy of Speed'' (2002) * ''Stearman Aircraft: A Detailed History'' North Branch, MN: Specialty Press (2006),

Magazine articles

(partial listing of article lists)
"Edward H. Phillips," articles list
''

'' magazine
Search: "Edward H. Phillips,"
(articles list) at HistoryNet.com (including ''Aviation History'' magazine).
"Edward Phillips, author
''King Air'' magazine (article list with teasers, linking to full texts of Phillips' articles, most also online)

Journal articles

(peer-reviewed) *''

Journal'' ** Volume 25 - 1980, p. 268: "Navigation in the 1926 Ford Reliability Tour" ** Volume 27 - 1982, p. 286: "Mystery Ship" ** Volume 29 - 1984, p. 294: "Staggerwing" ** Volume 30 - 1985, p. 24: "Woolaroc!" ** Volume 56, No. 3 - Fall 2011
"Travel Air Mystery Ship"

Online articles

(partial listings)
"Edward H_ Phillips, 'Barnstorming Wichita’s Aviation Past,'"
the collected sequence of articles (starting with "C-34 Airmaster") written by Edward H. Phillips, for the ''Wings Over Kansas'' aviation news and history website
Search: "Edward H. Phillips,"
(articles list) in HistoryNet.com (including ''Aviation History'' magazine)
"Edward H. Phillips," articles list
''

'' magazine
"Edward Phillips, author
''King Air'' magazine (article list with teasers, linking to full texts of Phillips' articles)

Film and video

''Cessna: A Master's Expression''
2007,

Cessna Aircraft Company Cessna () is an American brand of general aviation aircraft owned by Textron Aviation since 2014, headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. Originally, it was a brand of the Cessna Aircraft Company, an American general aviation aircraft manufacturing ...

and TZ Productions
debuted 12 September 2008
on

KPTS-TV KPTS (channel 8) is a PBS member television station licensed to Hutchinson, Kansas, United States, serving the Wichita area. It is owned by Kansas Public Telecommunications Service, Inc., a non-profit educational organization. KPTS' studios a ...

(subsequen
distributor
, derived largely from Phillips' book of the same title, with Phillips' as the principal narrator and historian.
''Wichita: The Air Capital''
by

and

Chris Franks Christopher Paul Franks (born 2 August 1951) is a Plaid Cymru Politician. He was a member of the National Assembly for Wales between 2007 and 2011 for the South Wales Central constituency, and Vale of Glamorgan councillor for Dinas Powys from 20 ...

, 2020. Phillips is the principal historian interviewed and aired in the program.
''Wichita & the Air Capital of the World,''
2014, filmed presentation at the

, YouTube

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Phillips, Edward H American aviation historians American aviation writers American aviators Living people Year of birth missing (living people) University of North Dakota alumni American commercial aviators