One of the more popular 'Warbirds' seen at airshows, the T-28 Trojan was both America's front-line trainer, preparing thousands of pilots for jet flight, as well as a serious combat aircraft used by many nations, including the U.S. during its involvement in Vietnam. Stubby and unglamorous in appearance, the Trojan was a superb performer in the air, the ideal platform from which to train new pilots as well as fly missions over the jungles of southeast Asia. Genat provides excellent photographic coverage as well as a nuts and bolts examination of the physical and flying characteristics of this famous aircraft.
During the Vietnam War, the US Air Force secretly trained pilots from Laos, skirting Lao neutrality in order to bolster the Royal Lao Air Force and their own war efforts. Beginning in 1964, this covert project, "Water Pump," operated out of Udorn Airbase in Thailand with the support of the CIA. This Secret War required recruits from Vietnam-border region willing to take great risks--a demand that was met by the marginalized Hmong ethnic minority. Soon, dozens of Hmong men were training at Water Pump and providing air support to the US-sponsored clandestine army in Laos. Short and problematic training that resulted in varied skill levels, ground fire, dangerous topography, bad weather conditions, and poor aircraft quality, however, led to a nearly 50 percent casualty rate, and those pilots who survived mostly sought refuge in the United States after the war. Drawing from numerous oral history interviews, Fly Until You Die brings their stories to light for the first time--in the words of those who lived it.
"Trader Jon's: Cradle of U.S. Naval Aviation" is a history of one the most famous bars in American history-and a tribute to all the U.S. Navy Aviators who passed through its doors. A gritty strip joint in which local women made good money taking off their clothing, it also was the secret location for the initiation of Newbie flyers for the legendary Blue Angels. For nearly four decades, Trader Jon's was where the men who trained to fly the monster jets of the U.S. Navy let down their hair before going off to fight-and sometimes die-in lonely battles above obscure patches of water and land over Korea, Vietnam, and Bosnia. It was where America's astronauts contemplated their future as they gazed at the time-worn artifacts of the past. It was where nearly every major symbol of the American Dream, including John Wayne, Bob Hope, Henry Fonda, and Elizabeth Taylor, found temporary solace. Artifacts lined the walls, pasted floor to ceiling, along with hundreds of framed photographs of the pilots, astronauts, and movies stars who visited the bar-and from the ceiling hung giant model airplanes, their wings tipped in mock flight as they circled within the soft glow of 25-watt passion lights. When Trader Jon's owner, Martin Weismann, died in 2000, the bar was closed and his memorabilia collection, valued at more than $2 million, was purchased by a Pensacola law firm and donated to the Naval Aviation Museum Foundation, where it will be preserved and maintained in Pensacola. Among those who mourned the bar's passing is Retired Vice Admiral Jack Fetterman, who recalls Weismann as someone who never said anything bad about anyone: "You talk about bonding, and you talk about brotherhood, and you talk about what naval aviation was all about. Trader kind of provided that foundation." One measure of the Navy's deep regard for Weismann is the singular honor it afforded him by naming a runway after him-TRADR-ONE.
To lead the US Air Force into the future, it is necessary to understand the past and present nature of the force. With this in mind, Air Force leaders have always sought to arm members of the force with a basic knowledge and understanding of Air Force culture and history. This volume is a contribution to that ongoing educational process, but as the title states, this is only an introduction. The information provided here merely scratches the surface of the fascinating stories of the people, equipment, and operations of the Air Force Topics that are covered here in only a few short paragraphs have been, and will continue to be the subject of entire books. We hope this volume will be a starting point and a reference work to facilitate your continuing study of aerospace power. The reader should keep in mind that all the people, operations, and aerospace craft included in this book have been important to the US Air Force, but they are not the only ones that have been important. The US Air Force has gained much from other nations, other US military services, and civilian organizations and these outside influences on the US Air Force are not included in this volume. This Introduction to the United States Air Force is organized into two parts and five appendices. The first part is organized chronologically and groups significant operations and personalities together in several critical periods in the development of the US Air Force. The second part covers aerospace craft and is organized by type (fighters, bombers, missiles, etc,) in order to show the development of each type over time. Following Part II are appendices listing the senior leaders of the early air forces (before the creation of the US Air Force in 1947), the Air Force Chiefs of Staff, the Chief Master Sergeants of the Air Force, Fighter Aces, and Medal of Honor Winners.
The story of special air warfare and the Air Commandos who served for the ambassadors in Laos from 1964 to 1975 is captured through extensive research and veteran interviews. The author has meticulously put together a comprehensive overview of the involvement of USAF Air Commandos who served in Laos as trainers, advisors, and clandestine combat forces to prevent the communist takeover of the Royal Lao Government. This book includes pictures of those operations, unveils what had been a US government secret war, and adds a substantial contribution to understanding the wider war in Southeast Asia.
Winner of a Scotsman Fringe First Award 2013. Shortlisted for the Amnesty International Freedom of Expression Award 2013 at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, 2013. Seamlessly blending the personal and the political, Grounded tells the story of a hot-rod F16 fighter pilot whose unexpected pregnancy ends her career in the sky. Repurposed to flying remote-controlled drones in the Middle East from an air-conditioned trailer near Vegas, the Pilot struggles through surreal twelve-hour shifts far from the battlefield, hunting terrorists by day and being a wife and mother by night. A tour de force play for one actress, Grounded flies from the heights of lyricism to the shallows of workaday existence, targeting our assumptions about war, family, and the power of storytelling. Grounded was the winner of the 2012 Smith Prize.
