Ron Smith is a British aeronautical engineer, author, photographer and historian. He was Head of Future Projects at Westland Helicopters Ltd and has just retired from BAE Systems. He learned to fly in 1978 and has owned a number of light aircraft.

"We know Ron already from previous books: ‘Cessna 172’ and ‘Classic Light Aircraft’ and now Ron Smith comes with this very beautiful book about the Cessna 300 and 400. That man must have an enormous database of pictures and Cessna knowledge! The book is simply built up with a part about the Cessna 300 and a part about the Cessna 400. It has a huge amount of pictures with short to the point texts about the development of all the types with their characteristics and other interesting details. The great thing about the book is that it has a kind of retro-design and that appeals to me a lot. For me it is a good book just to look in and read a bit of text here and there where the pictures attracts more of my attention. There are also two well formatted timelines in the book." - Rene Verjans, Aviationbookreviews.com. October 2017

August 2017 - Author Ron Smith was interviewed at length for Xtended, Europe's premier aerospace internet radio programme.

‘We can forgive anyone for not understanding the many varieties of light aircraft. With manufacturers changing the designations and specifications every year it can be very confusing, so Ron Smith’s newly published book on the Cessna twins is extremely welcome. The book is liberally illustrated and includes very readable feedback from aircraft owners. Certainly a useful volume for the General Aviation enthusiast.’ - Aviation World Autumn 2017

There is more in the book than simply how the type developed – the summary of features on the 400 Series that aid identification is welcome. As someone previously engaged in aspects of aircraft design, I could not help wondering about the introduction of dihedral to the tailplane, and why it became necessary to raise it halfway up the fin, presumably something to do with improving an aspect of the flight handling quality. Also, I particularly enjoyed reading of the exploits, some very amusing, of an air taxi pilot in the Cessna 404 Titan. This book makes an excellent addition to one’s aeronautical bookshelf, and I thoroughly recommend it. - George Done