The Sud Aviation S.E. 210 Caravelle was a 1950s-era French-built jet airliner named after the famed 15th-century caravela ships used during the Age of Exploration. Along with the British de Havilland Comet, on which it was partially based, the Caravelle was one of the earliest jet-powered passenger airliners. In April 1959, it became the world's first successful jet airliner to enter scheduled service, which it did with Scandinavian Air Lines System (SAS). The S.E. 210 remained in production until 1972 and eventually retired in 2005.

With its unusual rear-mounted engines, it influenced such later jet airliner designs as the Douglas DC-9 and Tupolev Tu-134. The history of the Caravelle's design, development, and operational use is presented in detail in this book, as is its use by many of the world's most famous airlines of the era, including Air France, SAS, Swissair, Finnair, Royal Jordanian, Austrian Airlines (AUA), United, Indian Airlines, and VARIG. Technical specifications for the Caravelle and its variants, as well as period photographs, bring to life the fascinating history of this early, and influential, commercial jet airliner.