Like the builders of the Avro Arrow, the pioneers of hydrofoils are celebrated in this book for their world-class accomplishments.

When Alexander Graham Bell was experimenting with flying machines, he developed hydrofoils as a means of getting airborne from water. In 1919, on the Bras d'Or lakes in Cape Breton, Bell and his collaborator Casey Baldwin broke a world speed record when their prototype HD-4 skimmed across the waves at 61.5 knots.

Fifty years later, the Canadian navy set a record for the fastest speed of any warship with their hydrofoil craft, HMCS Bras d'Or.

In Fastest in the World, John Boileau tells the story of the naval architects and engineers, excited by the prospect of developing high-speed submarine chasers, who built this world-class vessel.

This book examines how, just when Canada was on the brink of taking a unique role in anti-submarine warfare, the government withdrew support for the Bras d'Or. The orphaned vessel is now on view at the Maritime Museum of Quebec at l'Islet near Quebec City.

Retired colonel John Boileau served in the Canadian Army for thirty-seven years, including command of Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians), and went on to be appointed Honorary Colonel of the Halifax Rifles (RCAC) for ten years. He is an author and media commentator who specializes in military history and has written fifteen books and more that 650 magazine and newspaper articles. Two of his books, Fastest in the World and Halifax and the Royal Canadian Navy were shortlisted for the Dartmouth Book Award for Non-Fiction. John was founding chair of the Halifax Military Heritage Preservation Society and chair of the National Council of Honorary Colonels. He is a recipient of the Order of Nova Scotia, the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Medal, the Queen Elizabeth Platinum Jubilee Medal (NS), a Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia Vice-Regal Commendation and a Commander Canadian Army Commendation. He and his wife, Miriam, live in Bedford, Nova Scotia.

John Boileau's profile page