Illusions II: The Adventures of a Reluctant Student Illusions II: The Adventures of a Reluctant Student Illusions II: The Adventures of a Reluctant Student is the 2014 novel by writer and pilot Richard Bach. The first "Illusions" book was published in 1977 and was an international best-seller, telling the story of a pilot who encounters a messiah who has absconded from the "job" of being a messiah. ("Illusions" was the author's followup to 1970's "Jonathan Livingston Seagull".) The sequel is in author Richard Bach's voice, as his "imaginary" literary characters help him in his recovery from his real-life plane crash. After decades of flying without incident, author Richard
Curtiss SOC Seagull and observation roles. The SOC was not called the "Seagull" until 1941, when the U.S. Navy began the wholesale adoption of popular names for aircraft in addition to their alpha-numeric designations. The name 'Seagull' had earlier been given to two civil Curtiss aircraft, a Curtiss Model 18 and a Model 25, both converted Curtiss MF flying boats. When operating as a seaplane, returning SOCs would land on the relatively smooth ocean surface created on the sheltered side of the vessel as it made a wide turn, after which the aircraft would be winched back onto the deck. When the SOC