Every Reason to Fail - by Bryan Douglass (Paperback)

About the Book

"The mission seemed simple enough. Completely restore a 75-year-old historic DC-3 and fly her from Montana to France for the 75th anniversary of the D-Day invasion. Starting with no volunteers and no money. In under a year. With a crew that had only a few hours of experience flying one. Ride along with author and pilot Bryan Douglass, the rest of the flight crew, the volunteers, paratroopers, World War II veterans, and others on this inspirational story of an impossible dream that almost didn't come true. The underdog of the D-Day Squadron faced insurmountable odds, constant delays and a shortage of nearly everything except determination. The idea of crossing the north Atlantic in a 75-year-old, newly restored airplane only a few hours after her first flight would terrify most, but you'll meet the people who believed it could be done. The transatlantic journey of the D-Day Squadron's 'Mighty Fifteen' was an incredible feat, but the story of Miss Montana is the best of them all"--

Book Synopsis

Every Reason to Fail is unlike anything you've ever read.

It's not a history book, but it's full of old history--and new history--from cover to cover, and with historic people and airplanes to boot!

It's not a mystery book, but it's full of genuine suspense and intrigue.

It's not an aviation book, but in it you will get a glimpse into the real world of aviation and aviators that few will ever be fortunate enough to experience.

It's not a geography book, but The Crew will take you to places you've probably never heard of, and few will ever go.

It's not a self-help book, but in it you might find the inspiration to attempt something worthwhile that seems impossible.

It's not an adventure book, but the tale is about an adventure like few in modern history.

It's not a military book, but it's full of military history and it's main characters are old warbirds.

It's not a book on project management, but you will learn many things about how NOT to run a major project...and why those things don't matter if you get the main things right.

It's not a math book, but...it's just not a math book. So there's that.

The mission seemed simple enough. Completely restore a 75-year-old historic DC-3 and fly her from Montana to France for the 75th anniversary of the D-Day invasion. Starting with no volunteers and no money. In under a year. With a crew that had only a few hours of experience flying one. Ride along with author and pilot Bryan Douglass, the rest of the flight crew, the volunteers, paratroopers, World War II veterans, and others on this inspirational story of an impossible dream that almost didn't come true. The underdog of the D-Day Squadron faced insurmountable odds, constant delays and a shortage of nearly everything except determination. The idea of crossing the north Atlantic in a 75-year-old, newly restored airplane only a few hours after her first flight would terrify most, but you'll meet the people who believed it could be done. The transatlantic journey of the D-Day Squadron's "Mighty Fifteen" was an incredible feat, but the story of Miss Montana is the best of them all. Laugh, cry, and be amazed as you get the entire inside story from a pilot who was there.

Review Quotes

I want everyone to read it. You'll laugh, cry, and say wow with every turn of the page. The story of Miss Montana is beyond inspiring, and is an amazing tribute to this phoenix of an aircraft that's captured the hearts and minds of people all over the world.

Mr. Douglass has made the trip come alive! The stories he tells superbly expand on the amazing life Miss Montana has had and help add fantastic background and richness to the to the snippets we saw on social media leading up to and during the journey to and from Europe.

Bryan has written a great story with enough details to amaze you, all in an easy flowing manner that makes you feel like you're watching a movie. It is an incredible tale that involved volunteerism and excitement from the whole community and a lot of just plain work.