I enjoyed both of their books as well, despite the usual blind spots one finds with Olds. I. Sure you’ve also read Thiud Ridge by Broughton. Bury Us Upside Down by Newman, et.al. was an interesting read on the f-100 FACs.Originally Posted by SeriousStudent
For you air power aficionados here are a few other books you might enjoy:
"Men Who Killed the Luftwaffe: The U.S. Army Air Forces Against Germany in World War II," by Jay Stout
"Target Tokyo: Jimmy Doolittle and the Raid That Avenged Pearl Harbor," by James Scott
"The Hunter Killers: The Extraordinary Story of the First Wild Weasels, the Band of Maverick Aviators Who Flew the Most Dangerous Missions of the Vietnam War," by Dan Hampton
Last edited by DMF13; 02-15-2019 at 12:17 AM.
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"Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Then I said, "Here I am. Send me." - Isaiah 6:8
If you enjoyed "Bury Us Upside Down," you should see if you can find a copy of "The Ravens: The Men Who Flew in America's Secret War in Laos," by Christopher Robbins.
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"Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Then I said, "Here I am. Send me." - Isaiah 6:8
Sorry for my terrible typing above. Sigh.
I’ve been considering The Hunter Killers. Reviews kinda put me off, but I’m sure I’ll end up reading it at some point.
I have also been intermittently reading three novels called Vietnam Air War Trilogy by Tom Wilson. For the price of free it’s ok. Wouldn’t pay for it though.
Hampton isn't the greatest author ever, but he does a good job. He also writes about the origins of the Wild Weasels from the perspective of someone who flew the modern replacement, the F-16 CJ.
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"Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Then I said, "Here I am. Send me." - Isaiah 6:8
I Could Never Be So Lucky Again, the autobiography of James H. Doolittle. If all you know of Jimmy Doolittle is that he was an air racer and commanded the first bombing raid on Japan, stand by for surprises. ( Such as he earned a doctoral degree from MIT.)
Last edited by Stephanie B; 02-15-2019 at 09:11 AM.
If we have to march off into the next world, let us walk there on the bodies of our enemies.
More air power reads:
Dan Hampton also wrote "Viper Pilot", which is his personal memoir. Also check out his book "Lords of the Sky", which is a history of fighters and fighter pilots from WW1 through the jet age. I thought "The Hunter Killers" was his weakest effort.
Jack Broughton also wrote "Going Downtown," which is a followup to "Thud Ridge". If you read either one, be sure to read both.
"A Lonely Kind of War" was written by a FAC in Vietnam. I found it used a long time ago and I don't know if it's still available anywhere but it's excellent. I don't remember the author.
"Sea Harrier Over the Falklands" by Sharkey Ward was written by a squadron commander who flew off of HMS Invincible. Very good.
I have A Lonely Kind of War on my Kindle. It’s written by Marshall Harrison.
I really like the Wings of War series by Mark Berent. There are five books in the series and it’s mostly about the air war in Vietnam from the pilots flying missions to the Air Force General who has to deal with LBJ. That gets your BP up.
Just a dog chauffeur that used to hold the dumb end of the leash.
Elementary? Junior High? I read a lot of WWI, WWII aviation history. While I do not remember much actual content, The Blond Knight of Germany about Erich Hartmann is one title that comes to mind. Plugging in block heaters during the winter one time made me think of the chapter when he wrote about how during the winters in Russia they learned to light a fire of fuel under the oil pans to get their engines warm enough to start.
Last edited by NEPAKevin; 02-15-2019 at 03:41 PM.
"You can't win a war with choirboys. " Mad Mike Hoare
Elementary, but that saying of his is one I’ve carried with me all my life. I used to get in trouble for reading in class....much of it was history though as the daughter of two car nuts I also had a sub to autoweek by the time I was 7 or 8, etc. I literally was introduced to the birds and bees by my parents when I asked, at some young age, why I wasn’t allowed to have a shirt that said, injection is nice but I’d rather be blown; I’d seen an ad for it in hot rod. I thought it was about car parts. Heh heh.
One worries with some treatments of German aces that they are given a free pass for nazism and so on. I don’t read as much MH now as I did then, but usually manage a couple books a year on the topic. I’ve seen that book about Hartmann many times, and perhaps one day I’ll read it.
Edit - my father told similar tales of trying to keep armor running in the extreme cold in Korea in 1950-51 when he spent a year in combat in a battalion of Shermans.
Last edited by Medusa; 02-15-2019 at 03:48 PM.
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