The Gloster Aircraft Company had its foundation in 1917 and in 1934 the company was taken over by Hawker Aircraft, though it continued to produce aircraft under its own name. In that same year the company produced the famous Gladiator biplane. Having no modern designs of its own in production, Gloster undertook manufacture for the parent company Hawker. During the Second World War it built more than 6,000 Hurricanes and Typhoons. The Gloster Meteor was the first operational Allied jet fighter aircraft of the Second World War, commencing operations in mid-1944, only some weeks later than the world's first operational jet, the German Messerschmitt Me 262. In 1945 a Meteor gained a World Airspeed Record of 606 mph. Meteors remained in service with several air forces and saw action in the Korean War.

"excellent job of researching Gloster history. He explains the RAF specification that led to each Gloster model and variant, discusses Gloster’s successes and failures in striving to meet the specifications, and flavors the history with some of the more interesting individuals involved in the development and testing of Gloster airplanes. If you’re looking for a detailed history of Gloster and its aircraft, this book should provide all the facts you need"