Book: “Ground Logbook – Mechanics, the Unsung Heroes”

The linchpins of aviation, mechanics are not the first to come to mind when we think of flying prowess. An autobiographical book that shines a little more light on them…

"When I grow up, I want to be a mechanic, so nothing ever stays broken in my life. It's important to know how to fix things when they stop working." This quote taken from the book "Small Country" (Gaël Faye, winner of the prix Goncourt des lycéens literary award in 2016) perfectly illustrates the career path chosen by Bertrand Roux.

After training at the École de l'Air in Salon-de-Provence in the 1980s, he integrated the officer mechanic branch. In "Ground Logbook - Mechanics, the Unsung Heroes", the man who was once in charge of squadron maintenance and who finished his professional journey at the rank of colonel (technical director of the strategic air forces), retraces his own career and sheds light on a crucial part of aviation, military aviation in this particular case.

Maintenance, repairs, and more… Whether at French military airports or as part of external operations, in the Gulf region, in former Yugoslavia, or even in Africa, get all the behind-the-scenes details from disassembly and repair operations, deep in the hangars or out on the aprons, in step with the pace set by the "mechs" - the mechanics present on the tarmac.

By recounting his experience in the French Air Force, colonel Bertrand Roux pays tribute to the men and women without whom nothing would be possible up high. And acknowledges their professional and human qualities: "Technical competence, initiative, adaptability, professional conscience. So many qualities that numerous foreign armies would be envious of." In short, 319 pages that are a credit to these unsung heroes whose precision makes it possible for the Mirage and Rafale aircraft to fly to the maximum of their capabilities

Book: "Carnet de sol - Les Mécanos, ces héros de l'ombre". Author, Bertrand Roux. Éditions JPO Altipresse. ISBN: 2373011476