The Avenger #5

When science reporter Roy Farmer is lured into a trap by communist agents and accused of espionage, the Avenger must move fast to prove his innocence—because the enemy's real goal is to destroy a loyal man's reputation and undermine public trust. Battling through deadly traps and infiltrating a spy ring's secret headquarters, the Avenger races to gather the evidence that will clear Farmer's name and expose the Reds' sinister operation before it's too late.

When a mysterious purple beam melts metal across the American countryside and brings down the Avenger's plane, the crime-fighter discovers an elaborate hidden laboratory concealed beneath a farmhouse—and a dangerous enemy agent willing to destroy everything to keep his weapons secret. Caught between a saboteur's self-destruct trap and the deadly Bidelta beam-gun, the Avenger must outwit international gangsters and a foreign scientist determined to cripple American industry before their ultimate weapon falls into enemy hands.

In "The Birth of the Avenger," Colonel Ralph Wright and his wife are taken by Russian agents desperate to exploit his brother Roger’s groundbreaking airplane invention. With time running out, the colonel must find a way to protect his family and stop the Soviets from stealing the technology—before it’s too late.

This 1955 explainer breaks down how the jet engine works—from the simple principle of air intake and compression to the controlled burn that propels a plane or rocket forward. Despite rapid advances in engineering, the jet engine remains elegantly efficient, relying on just a turbine wheel and compressor to do the heavy lifting. A great introduction to one of the era's most transformative inventions.