The US Army's Special Operations Aviation Regiment fields the best helicopter pilots in the world. Alan Mack was one of these intrepid Night Stalkers, proving his mettle through the rigors of training, endless deployments, and decades of war, during which he hunted Osama bin Laden, rescued American warriors from the jaws of death, was shot up, shot down, and only survived due to his indomitable will and the grace of God. -Steven Hartov, New York Times Bestselling co-author of IN THE COMPANY OF HEROES and THE NIGHT STALKERS Alan Mack has achieved something quite extraordinary: an enthralling combat memoir that provides at the same time a compelling commentary on two decades of war. Perhaps most importantly, it is a searingly honest human story of the personal cost endured by the families of those who serve, and an inspiring tale of resilience. In short -- Mack has produced a triumph of story-telling. -Andy Milburn, author of WHEN THE TEMPEST GATHERS Alan Mack is the real deal, part of an elite band of ultimate aviators. Throughout all the setbacks - getting shot down, losing comrades, and tragedy on the home front - he endures. He is the living embodiment of his unit's motto: "Night Stalkers Don't Quit!" -Toby Harnden, author of FIRST CASUALTY A been-there, done-that pilot in the world's most elite helicopter unit, Alan Mack delivers a gritty, inside look at life as a Night Stalker - from intense combat missions overseas to the tragic costs that lifestyle can impose on a family. -Sean Naylor, author of New York Times Bestseller RELENTLESS STRIKE Al Mack reminds us that the blank check our service members sign to our country is drawn against their families as well. The challenges can be heartbreaking. His candid memoir speaks of courage and tragedy, both on the battlefield and at home. - Taya Kyle, New York Times Bestselling author of AMERICAN WIFE Razor 03, A Night Stalker's Wars, is an eye-opening description of what goes on behind the scenes of special operations from a pilot's perspective. Al Mack's edge-of-the-seat stories provide a compelling rendition of what it's like to ride to Hell and back in an MH-47 Chinook. An incredible story hardly believable had I not witnessed it first hand. -- Command Master Chief (SEAL) Britt K. Slabinski, United States Navy (Ret) Medal of Honor Recipient

Is there a reason for the busy citizen-leader to read about air and space history, theory, and doctrine? Yes, asserts David Mets, because without some vision of what the future is likely to bring, we enter new conflicts unarmed with any ideas and highly vulnerable to confusion and paralysis. He wrote this book to help the aspirant American leader build a theory of war and air and space power, including an understanding of what doctrine is, and what its utility and limitations are.

Since its earliest days, airpower has been one of the dominant forces used by the American military. American airmen, both Navy and Air Force, have been continually striving to achieve precision strikes in high altitude, at long range, or in darkness. The search for precision attack from standoff distances or altitudes has been imperative to national objectives with expenditure of American lives, treasure, and time.

This work covers the whole history of American aviation with special attention to the development of smart weapons and unmanned aerial vehicles and the influence they have had on the effectiveness of airpower. In a chronological treatment, emphasizing theory and doctrine, technology, tactics, and strategy. Mets also details both combat experience and intellectual processes, lethal and non-lethal, involved in the preparation of airpower. In addition to the narrative discussion, the work offers sidebars and feature sections that facilitate the understanding of key weapons systems and operational challenges. It also offers A Dozen-Book Sampler for Your Reading on Air and Space Theory and Doctrine. The work concludes with a brief look at information warfare and with some speculations about the future.

Through this thorough consideration of the evolution of American airpower and technology, Mets provides, not only a map of the past, but a guide to future generations of airpower and its potential for keeping the United States strong and safe.

This book is the only full-scale account of the strategic air offensive against Germany published in the last twenty years, and is the only one that treats the British and the Americans with parity. Much of what Levine writes about British operations will be unfamiliar to American readers. He has stressed the importance of winning air superiority and the role of escort fighters in strategic bombing, and has given more attention to the German side than most writers on air warfare have. Levine gets past a simple account of what we did to them and describes the target systems and German countermeasures in detail, providing exact yet dramatic accounts of the great bomber operations--the Ruhr dams, Ploesti, and Regensburg and Schweinfurt. The book is broad-guaged, touching many matters, from the development of bombing doctrine before the war to the technical development of the Luftwaffe and the RAF, jets and V-weapons, to the role of the heavy bombers in supporting land and sea operations.

Levine stresses the impact of bombing on the war, and generally endorses the strategic air campaign as worthwhile and effective. But he concludes that many mistakes were made by the Allies--both the British and the Americans--in tactics, the development of equipment, and in the selection of targets. Levine sees strategic bombing as a powerful tool that was often misused, particularly when the doctrine of area bombing flourished. Scholars, students, and buffs interested in World War II and/or the history of aviation will find this study of great interest.

More thrilling than any fiction, this book charts the true story of RAF crewman Denys Teare's year in Occupied France, a year spent a half-step ahead of Gestapo troopers determined to hunt him down.

The 2006 Israel-Hezbollah War may well be a paradigm for twenty-first century warfare. The technically sophisticated Israel Defense Forces (IDF) were confronted by a much smaller but well-armed and highly unconventional "state within a state" opponent. Israel launched an intensive 34-minute air assault designed to essentially disarm Hezbollah; it did not. Hezbollah's interspersion within the civilian population presented major targeting problems for the IDF, setting up condemnation of Israel's "over-reaction" in the international press. Airpower became the big loser in the press and after-action reports. Divining Victory examines the decisions, the effects, and the lessons learned for those who must confront similar enemies. Originally published in 2007. Recommended on the 2008 Royal Ar Force Chief of the Air Staffs' reading list.

Originally issued in 1981 by the U.S. Office of Air Force History. Profusely illustrated with maps, charts and photographs throughout. An innovative adaptation of existing aircraft, the gunship was used to interdict enemy reinforcements and protect friendly villages, bases, and forces, especially at night. Ballard's book describes how the fixed-wing gunship evolved from a modified cargo aircraft to a sophisticated weapons system with considerable firepower. The author highlights the tactics, key decisions, and the constant need for adaptation.

July 1990 marked the 50th anniversary of one of the most critical and decisive struggles in the European theater of World War II. Following the withdrawal of British forces at Dunkirk and the fall of France, the Battle of Britain pitted some 2,800 Luftwaffe aircraft against some 650 serviceable RAF fighter aircraft. For the next four months Britain faced daily attacks against airfields and military installations, ports, and civilian and industrial centers. The failure of the Luftwaffe to overwhelm and destroy the RAF undercut German efforts to mount an invasion of Britain, and by November the airwar shifted to the Blitz phase, the attempt to destroy civilian morale through attacks on urban centers and airfields, which was to last essentially for the rest of the war. Dangerous Sky attempts to bring together all the main sources published through 1989 dealing with the battle. The Guide provides information on how to conduct RAF research, and it organizes materials ranging from official documents through memoirs and biographies to secondary histories under major categories. Within each category, materials are cited in alphabetical order and short descriptive comments are provided. Access to materials is augmented by an author index. This research guide is essential to students, military buffs, and researchers concerned with the British side of this crucial phase of World War II.

A facsimile reprint of the original NATOPS flight manual for the F-4J.

THE SUNDAY TIMES NON FICTION BESTSELLER WHSmith NON-FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR 2018 'The best book you will ever read about Britain's greatest warplane' Patrick Bishop, bestselling author of Fighter Boys 'A rich and heartfelt tribute to this most iconic British machine' Rowland White, bestselling author of Vulcan 607 'As the RAF marks its centenary, Nichol has created a thrilling and often moving tribute to some of its greatest heroes' Mail on Sunday magazine The iconic Spitfire found fame during the darkest early days of World War II. But what happened to the redoubtable fighter and its crews beyond the Battle of Britain, and why is it still so loved today? In late spring 1940, Nazi Germany's domination of Europe had looked unstoppable. With the British Isles in easy reach since the fall of France, Adolf Hitler was convinced that Great Britain would be defeated in the skies over her southern coast, confident his Messerschmitts and Heinkels would outclass anything the Royal Air Force threw at them. What Hitler hadn't planned for was the agility and resilience of a marvel of British engineering that would quickly pass into legend - the Spitfire. Bestselling author John Nichol's passionate portrait of this magnificent fighter aircraft, its many innovations and updates, and the people who flew and loved them, carries the reader beyond the dogfights over Kent and Sussex. Spanning the full global reach of the Spitfire's deployment during WWII, from Malta to North Africa and the Far East, then over the D-Day beaches, it is always accessible, effortlessly entertaining and full of extraordinary spirit. Here are edge-of-the-seat stories and heart-stopping first-hand accounts of battling pilots forced to bail out over occupied territory; of sacrifice and wartime love; of aristocratic female flyers, and of the mechanics who braved the Nazi onslaught to keep the aircraft in battle-ready condition. Nichol takes the reader on a hair-raising, nail-biting and moving wartime history of the iconic Spitfire populated by a cast of redoubtable, heroic characters that make you want to stand up and cheer.

The Air War in Vietnam is a deep dive into the effectiveness of air power during the Vietnam War, offering particular evaluation of the extent to which air operations fulfilled national policy objectives. Built from exhaustive research into previously classified and little-known archival sources, Michael Weaver insightfully blends new sources with material from the State Department's Foreign Relations of the United States Series. While Air Force sources from the lion's share of the documentary evidence, Weaver also makes heavy use of Navy and Marine materials. Breaking air power into six different mission sets--air superiority, aerial refueling, airlift, close air support, reconnaissance, and coercion & interdiction--Weaver assesses the effectiveness of each of these endeavors from the tactical level of war and adherence to US policy goals. Critically, The Air War in Vietnam perceives of the air campaign as a siege of North Vietnam. While American air forces completed most of their air campaigns successfully on the tactical, operational, and strategic levels, what resulted was not a failure in air power, but a failure in the waging of war as a whole. The Air War in Vietnam tackles controversies and unearths new evidence, rendering verdicts both critical and positive, arguing that war, however it is waged, is ultimately effective only when it achieves a country's policy objectives.