A history of aviation in Ireland. It describes how Ireland witnessed, and was involved in, many of the great milestones of flight over a 200-year period, and covers: the founding of the first Irish Aero Club for amateur aviators in 1910; the arrival of the Royal Flying Corps in Ireland in 1913; the daring aerial escape of Michael Collins, who was in London negotiating a peace deal with the British authorities in 1922; the attempts to cross the Atlantic which started from Ireland; and the beginning of Aer Lingus. The book also tells the story of Aer Rianta and Ireland's modern airports, and the challenges that face them in the future, with international competition and cheaper fares.