Richard D. Spalding

Richard D. Spalding was born in the Northeast United States. His parents were the unlikely pairing of a Kentucky coal miner's daughter - who never went to school a day in her life, and whose ancestors included Jesse James, as well as a very smart high school graduate New Jersey truck driver, turned Air Line Pilot, with family heritage going back to Francis Scott Key. His first book, "Centaur Flights", told Richard's personal story as a Vietnam War attack helicopter pilot and sold out its production run. He has incorporated lessons learned from that writing in his newest book, "Car Flights", which tells the story of one family's thrills, chills, and frustrations in owning, operating, and repairing the American Dream - automobiles. In between writing books, Richard had a very successful career as a software and systems engineer and manager in both Fortune 500 and small companies.