· 2015-09-16 · 56 AIRPOWERHistory / SUMMER2015 rier configuration is discussed (angled deck...

56 AIR POWER History / SUMMER 2015

rier configuration is discussed (angled decklayout, catapults, aircraft accommodation,defensive armament, and arresting gear).Finally, keel laydown and launch dates,yards where built, and initial deploymentsare described for each of the carriers.

Faltum moves on to describe flightdeck launch and landing operations, deckcrew assignments, maintenance processes,and preparation of the carrier for sea duty.Early “main battery” aircraft are men-tioned (e.g., F2H, F7U, F9F, FJ-4, F11F). Asubsequent chapter describes accommoda-tion of aircraft evolution to new types (e.g.,F–14, F/A–18, S–3, SH–60). Follow-uptechnical data for each aircraft type is pre-sented in an appendix. More aircraft pho-tos are needed here. Photos are accumulat-ed in a couple of sections, and the readerhas to flip back and forth to see whatFaltum is talking about. While there areample photos of carriers in various config-urations and operations, the many aircraftdiscussed are not all shown. A photo wouldhelp a reader remember the differencebetween the Grumman Tracker, Tracer,and Greyhound! Faltum also discussesnew developments in catapult systems,automatic carrier landing systems, defen-sive gun and missile systems, automationand information systems, and the carrierservice life extension programs. A 62-pageappendix details naval air wings,squadrons, their coding, aircraft types, anddeployments to each super carrier.

Several chapters show the value ofcarrier operations as deterrents in ColdWar hot spots (e.g., Suez, Lebanon, Africa,Quemoy), Viet Nam, the Gulf, Bosnia, andMiddle East. The causes and results ofseveral major carrier disasters, such as theForrestal fire, are also brought out.

The book has more than 100 black-and-white illustrations and maps coveringthe western Pacific, Vietnam, Mediter -ranean, Middle East, Indian Ocean, andCaribbean. The front endpaper providesport and starboard profiles and an over-head view of the Saratoga (Forrestal class).The rear endpaper displays similar views ofthe Constellation (Kitty Hawk class).

Overall, the book is an excellent refer-ence volume—a good anthology of supercarrier design requirements, technology,and operational use. Naval jargon andacronyms are explained in easily under-stood terms. Policy, threat, budgets, andtechnology status are placed in context toallow the reader a more comprehensiveunderstanding of the rationale behind,and application of, the first generation ofthe nation’s super carriers.

Frank Willingham, National Air andSpace Museum Docent

Fall of the Flying Dragon: SouthVietnamese Air Force, 1973-75. ByAlbert Grandolini. Houston TX: HarpiaPublishing and Moran Publishing JointVenture, 2011. Charts. Tables. Illustra -tions. Photographs. Notes. Appendices.Bib lio graphy. Index. Pp. 256. $48.00 ISBN978-0-9825539-7-8

Do not let this slick volume fool you.Fall of the Flying Dragon fills a major gapin Vietnam War history. The examinationof the relationship of the U.S. military andthe final fall of South Vietnam remainslargely untouched. Grandolini utilizessources from North and South Vietnamalong with personal accounts from partici-pants recently released. The story unfoldsclearly but sadly. It is, after all, a story ofdefeat at the hands of the CommunistNorth.

Grandolini, a military historian andfreelance aviation journalist, spent hisyouth in South Vietnam. This sparked hislong-time interest in Asian military histo-ry. Extensive use of lengthy personal let-ters, while sometimes tedious, offersrevealing perspective on the trials andtribulations endured by the SouthVietnamese. Despite the challengesinvolved at the end of the war, SouthVietnam’s air force made tremendousefforts to defend its country but, withoutU.S. assistance, were unable to hold backcommunist efforts.

Beginning with a brief summary ofthe early development of the SouthVietnamese Air Force (VNAF), Grandoliniexamines the sporadic growth and devel-opment of the VNAF emphasizing links tothe U.S. during the war years. The bulk ofthe book deals with the period followingthe 1973 cease-fire until the fall of theSouth in 1975.

Grandolini’s description of the “Finalbuild-up” initiated by the VNAF reveals adedication to organize, expand, focus, andtrain in preparation for the coming strug-gle against the North Vietnamese whichwere equipped with formidable Soviet air-craft such as the MiG–21 and deadly SA–2Guideline surface-to-air missiles. The highdrama, sacrifice, and dedication of theSouth Vietnamese forces during the tragicfinal events of April 1975, including evacu-ation in the face of overwhelming enemyforces, is difficult to read without emotion.Accounts of fuel shortages for operationsand family efforts to locate lost aviatorsonly scratch the surface of difficulties pre-sented here for the first time.

Throughout this book, wartimeimagery, much in color, is included onnearly every page. Each image is accom-panied by a detailed caption that addsdepth to the narrative story. Reference

notes following each chapter are equallydetailed, some a bit too long, and othersthat might have been included directly inthe book narrative.

That being said, a reader mayapproach this volume in three ways. Forthose wishing a new look at a time of thewar much neglected, reading the mainnarrative and looking at the images willprovide that experience. For those wishinggreater details, reading the full captionsadds depth to the personal stories oftenwith vivid descriptive details. Includingthe page-turning exercise necessary toinclude the chapter endnotes is well worththe effort and showcases the detailedresearch that shaped Grandolini’s work.Also included in the appendices are illus-trations of unit patches and aircraft cam-ouflage designs similar to those seen in theWarBird Series of slick aircraft tech soft-bound books.

The publisher’s mission statementsays their products are “The AviationBooks of a Different Kind: Unique Topics,In-depth Research, Rare Pictures, HighPrinting Quality.” Grandolini’s, Fall of theFlying Dragon: South Vietnamese AirForces 1973-75, hits the Harpia Publishingtarget with a CEP of zero.

Lt. Col. Dik Daso, USAF (Ret.), PhD, AdjunctHistory Faculty, Univ. of South Carolina

Reconnaissance and Bomber Aces ofWorld War 1 [Book 123 of Aircraft of theAces series]. By Jon Guttman. Oxford UK:Osprey Publishing, 2015. Photographs.Appendices. Bibliography. Notes. Index.Pp. 96. $22.95 ISBN-10: 178-200801-2

Historian and author Jon Guttmanmanages to pack a great deal of materialinto the nearly 100 pages of his mostrecent addition to the Osprey Aircraft ofthe Aces collection. Nearly every page hasa photograph or two together with accom-panying text that is equally as informativeand descriptive as the rest of the book.

In the decades since World War Iended, it seems as if pursuit pilots havebeen the mainstay of war-in-the-air books.Occasionally a book comes along, such asthis one, which tells a different story. Thisone isabout the arbeitsflieger, or workingaviator: the reconnaissance and bomberpilots and crews.

Guttman brings together in one vol-ume a number of these individuals andtheir valiant battle records. Although thebook does not cover all of the combatantswho could be called an ace, it does lay outa cohesive examination of many of theseindividuals. To Guttman’s credit he does

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SUMMER 2015 - Volume 62, Number 2WWW.AFHISTORICALFOUNDATION.ORG

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