Document created: 25 March 02
Aerospace Power Journal - Spring 2002

In this new section of “Net Assessment,” you will find additional reviews of aviation-related books and CD-ROMs but in a considerably briefer format than our usual offerings. We certainly don’t mean to imply that these items are less worthy of your attention. On the contrary, our intention is to give you as many reviews of notable books and electronic publications as possible in a limited amount of space. Unless otherwise indicated, the reviews have been written by an APJ staff member.

 

Sharing Success- Owning Failure: Preparing to Command in the Twenty-First Century Air Force by Col David L. Goldfein. Air University Press (http://www.au.af.mil/au/aul/aupress), 131 West Shumacher Avenue, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama 36112-6615, 2001, 130 pages, $8.50.

Sometimes big things- in this case, big ideas- come in small packages. Written by the former commander of the Triple Nickel and, perhaps more notably, one of the pilots shot down and rescued during Operation Allied Force, Sharing Success- Owning Failure is an enjoyable and inspiring read. From his own experiences and those of other leaders, Col David “Fingers” Goldfein has collected important lessons on leadership- specifically command- and tells them in a personal and direct style. If you are looking for an exhaustive, academic book on leadership, look elsewhere. That’s not what Goldfein intended this book to be. If, on the other hand, you want something you can read in an evening and remember for a decade, this is it. Published by Air University Press, Sharing Success- Owning Failure is available free to Department of Defense personnel and organizations and is a must-read for anyone heading toward command.

The Pocket Guide to Military Aircraft and the World’s Airforces edited by David Donald. Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. "http://www.sterpub.com/sterling.htm" ), 387 Park Avenue South, New York, New York 10016-8810, 2001, 192 pages, $14.95.

The Pocket Guide to Military Aircraft and the World’s Airforces is a fairly concise general-reference book. Although the omission of Brazil’s EMB-145 airborne early warning and ground-surveillance platform is surprising, the inclusion of defunct Russian aircraft such as the AN-70, Kamov-50, and the MiG 1.42 is perhaps a greater flaw. In its 192 pages, this book presents the salient details of 125 aircraft, both fixed and rotary wing, of 79 air forces. Granted, this isn’t a Jane’s publication, but Pocket Guide’s compactness and generally good coverage is worthy of its place on the quick-reference shelf. 

Aircraft of World War II: A Visual Encyclopedia by Michael Sharpe, Jerry Scutts, and Dan March. Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. "http://www.sterpub.com/sterling.htm" 387 Park Avenue South, New York, New York 10016-8810, 2001, 512 pages, $24.95.

Some the world’s best aviation photographers compiled Aircraft of World War II, which contains pictures of and data about virtually every major aircraft used in that conflict. This book will delight World War II and aviation buffs alike.

Battle over Bavaria: The B-26 Marauder versus the German Jets, April 1945 by Robert Forsyth with Jerry Scutts. Classic Publications "http://www.classic-books.co.uk" Friars Gate Farm, Mardens Hill, Crowborough, East Sussex TN6 1XH, En-gland, 1999, 200 pages, $42.00.

This book combines a coffee-table presentation with a monographic account of the meeting between American B-26 medium bombers and German Me 262 jet fighters. The operational account of this strange, late-war air battle occupies but a few pages. The remainder of this handsome book includes many personal accounts, sidebars, and brief unit histories of the German fighters, American B-26 bomb groups, and P-47 fighter groups. Forsyth also includes several full-page color renditions of the American and German aircraft. Students of the World War II air war will find Battle over Bavaria a nice addition to their collections.

The Enterprise of Flight: The American Aviation and Aerospace Industry by Roger E. Bilstein. Smithsonian Institution Press "http://www.si.edu/sipress" SI Building, Room 153, Washington, D.C. 20560-0010, 2001, 304 pages, $19.95 (softcover).

Roger Bilstein gained great credibility with Flight in America, his pioneer, sweeping volume on American aviation. The Enterprise of Flight, an updated paperback edition that continues the study of aircraft manufacture and production, is very useful for understanding important aspects of military aviation, especially the interwar years that gave birth to the US Air Force. Bilstein studies both the technology and international competition associated with aircraft manufacture, covering not only American airlines but also the military. In a new introduction, he also discusses the F-22 Raptor in relation to the American aviation industry and makes observations about space, missiles, and rockets.

Bloody Ridge: The Battle That Saved Guadalcanal: A Memoir by Michael S. Smith. Presidio Press "http://www.presidiopress.com/catalog/new/BloodyRidge.htm" P.O. Box 1764, Novato, California 94948, 2000, 288 pages, $27.95 (hardcover).

In July 1942, the US Joint Chiefs of Staff decided to eject the Japanese from the Solomon Islands in an effort to turn the tide of Japanese expansion in the Pacific Ocean. The chosen target was Guadalcanal. Early on the morning of 7 August, Rear Adm Richmond K. Turner’s Task Force 62, consisting of over 80 ships, executed Operation Watchtower. Maj Gen Alexander A. Vandegrift’s First Marine Division took the Japanese garrison by surprise, overrunning Henderson Field, the island’s landing strip. Outnumbered by at least three to one, the marines withstood a series of determined assaults on a ridge just one mile from the field. After battle reinforcements arrived, the process of slugging it out for the rest of the island began. Michael Smith’s book is the tactical story of that battle, known as Bloody Ridge.

Bloody Ridge, which relies on many reports, letters, and previous books, is an adequate treatment of the subject but has several shortcomings. For one, there is very little discussion of Guadalcanal’s strategic implications. Furthermore, the author’s use of the word enemies in referring to US marines is awkward, especially for an American audience. The book lacks a bibliography and fails to substantiate such issues as the ignominious removal and discharge of Maj Charles A. Miller in the aftermath of the battle. Moreover, the author’s use of the term Cactus Express rather than the established Tokyo Express as the nickname of the Japanese reinforcement effort is puzzling. Lastly, the book devotes more space to events preceding and following the battle than to the battle itself.

Although Bloody Ridge has flaws, it is a decent tactical study of the early days of the six-month-long Guadalcanal campaign. Readers looking for a muddy-boots version of the events will find Smith’s book a good fit. Those looking for a more solidly written historical work may be disappointed.

Command Sgt Maj James H. Clifford, USA
Fort Gillem, Georgia

Luftwaffe at War, vol. 17, The Sea Eagles: The Luftwaffe’s Maritime Operations, 1939–1945 by Peter C. Smith. Stackpole Books (http:// www.stackpolebooks.com/Stackpolebooks.storefront), 5067 Ritter Road, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania 17055-6921, 2001, 72 pages, $14.95.

Stackpole Books has added yet another volume to its Luftwaffe at War series. The Sea Eagles is an interesting look at this seldom-reported aspect of the Luftwaffe’s combat-and-support operations. Peter Smith begins with a well-written four-page synopsis of the Luftwaffe’s maritime operations and then traces its early roots in the 1920s through the Legion Kondor to operations in Norway, the North Atlantic, and the Mediterranean. As with other books in this series, The Sea Eagles includes more than 160 photographs, 17 of them in color. Although this book is not the definitive work on this aspect of World War II, the author’s information is interesting, well presented, well crafted, and easy to grasp. Readers interested in this area of Luftwaffe operations will appreciate the pictures of the men, aircraft, and weapons. I recommend The Sea Eagles to any student of the Luftwaffe.

Lt Col Robert Tate, USAFR
Maxwell AFB, Alabama

Disclaimer

The conclusions and opinions expressed in this document are those of the author cultivated in the freedom of expression, academic environment of Air University. They do not reflect the official position of the U.S. Government, Department of Defense, the United States Air Force or the Air University.

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