Description Details
The essays and speeches in this volume are some of Dennis Drew's best and most important. They reflect the struggle over the past 30 years to relate classical military theory to modern airpower, the difficulties of dealing with the new realities of the post–Cold War era, the struggle to understand the true nature of airpower and put it into perspective, and finally the importance of educating Airmen and raising their thinking above the tactical level....

Description Details
In this study, we discuss five issues for change, and our recommendations provide the framework needed to produce the project’s desired end state of a measurable and sustainable expeditionary process that meets combatant commanders’ requirements across the range of military operations. The Air Force continues to support CCDR requirements around the globe. However, the stresses in today’s operating environment have revealed weaknesses in the way the Air Force presents forces and capabilities in support of CCDR needs. The challenge is to change current processes so that every deployment is not a custom-made wooden shoe....

Table of Contents Details
Executive Summary ix Introduction 1 Organize-Train-Equip 7 Force Presentation Model 15 Force Generation and Presentation 21 Training, Education, and Strategic Communication 25 Conclusion 31 Notes 32 List of Acronyms 33...

Description Details
The study reviews each force’s combat glider experience and analyzes it in light of the glider doctrine, or lack thereof, with which each began the war. While military cargo gliders have seen their day, recent technological advances in gliders make them a viable platform for certain missions requiring stealth and silence....

Table of Contents Details
ABSTRACT ii INTRODUCTION 1 PRE-WAR DEVELOPMENT 3 The Early Years in Germany 3 Early Gliders in the US 4 A US Military Glider? For What Purpose? 4 Gliders Head Into Combat. 5 Come Join the Glider pilot Corps! 8 Glider pilot Training Shortfalls 9 Military Gliders in Britain 12 OPERATIONAL USE OF GLIDERS 13 Germany 13 Early Commando Raids 14 Crete 15 Other Operations 16 US and Great Britain 17 Sicily 17 British Gliders are First to Normandy 24 US Glider Pilots Join the War in France 20 Disappointment at Arnhem 22 Operation Market 22 Glider Success Over the Rhine? 23 Operation Dragoon 24 US Commando Operations in Burma 25 Summation 26 POST-WAR GLIDER POLICY 27 TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES IN GLIDERS 29 TODAY’S LIMITED MILITARY ROLE FOR GLIDERS 31 CONCLUSIONS 32 NOTES 36 BIBLIOGRAPHY 42...

Description Details
While investigating these topics, my research centered on an interview with one of the former Soviet Union’s top missile engineers, the vice commander of Air Combat Command, discussions with the USAF Air Armament Center’s chief of advanced concepts, and on recently declassified CIA documents regarding the US reconnaissance program and National Intelligence Estimates. Also important to this work are Russian language sources documenting the Soviet need to develop mobile missiles. Although many other sources within the media and academia were tapped for information, these were the most prominent. As a result, this study highlights many of the great technological leaps America has made toward being able to attack mobile missiles, but it also underscores the need for improved coordination....

Table of Contents Details
1 INTRODUCTION . . . .1 2 THE EVOLUTION AND SPREAD OF MOBILE BALLISTIC MISSILES. . . 5 3 THE AMERICAN COLD WAR RESPONSE . . . . . . . . . 21 4 RESPONDING TO MOBILE BALLISTIC MISSILES IN THE POST–COLD WAR ENVIRONMENT. . . . . . . 37 5 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS . . . . . . . 51...

Description Details
One of the United States’ greatest military advantages is rapid global mobility. The Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF) provides a crucial supplement to the military’s mobility resources in time of war or national emergency. The proliferation of man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS), however, poses a growing threat to the CRAF and its critical airlift capacity. In this study, Lt Col Glen Downing describes the US government’s historical and potential future uses of the CRAF during contingency operations. He examines current CRAF policies, the operating environment, and the MANPAD threat, describing the negative consequences of the shoot down of a CRAF airliner. Positing several options to counter the threat, he analyzes each following the parameters of unit cost, operating cost, funding sources, insurability, and crew training. The study concludes with a thoughtful recommendation to the Department of Defense on a course of action to confront the MANPADS threat to the CRAF....

Description Details
The use of the heavy bomber during Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) is just one more chapter on the flexibility of airpower. Bombers in the early stages of the war destroyed the Taliban air force on the ground and the limited air-to-air defenses, as well as disrupting command and control nodes. Orbiting close over problem areas, heavy bombers, guided by ground terminal attack controllers, precisely struck key targets. The bombers were supplying something different than traditional CAS. This new form of warfare used small parties of ground troops in support of the massive firepower that the bombers could provide. Each war is different; and in this case, there were virtually no external threats to the bombers. With total air dominance and the freedom to range over the battlefield at will, utilizing heavy bombers in the GAPS role was possible. This combination of the JDAM along with improved communications systems made this new mission a reality. With the success of these operations, Colonel Theisen believes the USAF should initiate doctrine, rules of engagement, and training changes to accommodate this mission....

Description Details
The study concludes that a viable Air Force strategy in Africa is properly based on modest “ends” that reflect US national interests on the continent that are themselves limited in scope. These modest ends require that correspondingly limited “ways” and “means” be applied in order for the entire Air Force approach to remain balanced. The ways should focus on missions that create conditions for African states to solve their own security issues, thereby increasing their legitimacy. The means should focus on building the capacity for long-term operations in Africa with access to airfields, a force structure that includes strike and transport aircraft specialized for the region, an Air Force organization tailored to the peculiar demands of the continent, and specialized cultural training for Airmen. Spaven concludes that “only by accepting the risk of stepping beyond tactical and operational thinking can the Air Force do great things for the poorest of continents.”...

Table of Contents Details
1 THE GEOGRAPHY OF AFRICA . . . . . . . . . . 1 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 2 AIRPOWER IN AFRICA: LESSONS FROM THE PAST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 3 CURRENT US ACTIVITIES AND GUIDANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44 4 WHAT CAN AIRMEN EXPECT IN AFRICA? . . .47 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54 5 HOW SHOULD AIRMEN THINK ABOUT AFRICA? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62 6 CONCLUSION: A US AIR FORCE STRATEGY FOR AFRICA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75...

Description Details
In his book The Quest: Haywood Hansell and American Strategic Bombing in World War II, Charles Griffith makes a major contribution in detailing the role played by General Hansell from his early days as an instructor at the Air Corps Tactical School to the heady days and nights as a young war planner developing the air war plan used by the United States during World War II to his triumphs and disappointments as a commander in the field. While the book tells this story well, it does more than just relate the life and times of Possum Hansell. The book goes a long way toward explaining the origins of many of the arguments about the utility of airpower in the closing decade of the twentieth century....

Table of Contents Details
1 THE PROBLEMS OF AIRPOWER . . . . . . . . . 1 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 2 THE EARLY YEARS: EDUCATION AND ACTS .23 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 3 PLANNING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 4 THE FRICTIONS OF WAR . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123 5 THE GLOBAL BOMBER FORCE . . . . . . . . .129 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152 6 TRIUMPH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 7 TRAGEDY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210 BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213 INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223...

Description Details
A comparison of the Misty and A-10 FAC missions clearly demonstrates a failure of the USAF to develop a full range of suitable tactics for the direct attack of enemy fielded forces. Although the quantum leaps in weapons delivery accuracy from Vietnam to Kosovo now make it possible to destroy armor and artillery from the air, there has not been a corresponding improvement in target identification. Until USAF prioritizes the direct attack of ground forces and target identification, its ability to attack fielded forces effectively will remain limited. Drawing from the lessons of the Misty and A-10 FACs, the recommendations presented here focus on equipment, tactics and training, and doctrine....

Table of Contents Details
1 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2 HISTORY OF AIR INTERDICTION FROM WORLD WAR I THROUGH VIETNAM . . . . . . . 7 3 MISTY-FAC TACTICS: HYPOTHETICAL MISSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 4 HISTORY OF ATTACKING FIELDED FORCES: POST-VIETNAM TO KOSOVO . . . . . . . . . . . .41 5 A-10 FORWARD AIR CONTROLLER TACTICS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 6 CONCLUSION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79...

Description Details
The author's contention is that training for night air operations, particularly with our sister services, is in its infancy. Using his personal experience he sets out to recommend better uses of the training facilities of all the services to improve the situation . After examining the history of joint operations and night air operations, presenting a hypothetical joint night scenario to show the tremendous challenges of such operations, and describing the current status of joint night training programs, the author recommends a phased building-block approach that should increase the Air Force's capability to perform both single-service and joint operations any time of the day or night. This will ensure that we train as we plan to fight in future air operations....

Table of Contents Details
1 HISTORY AND BACKGROUND . . . . . . . . . . 1 Joint Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Night Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 2 DOING IT IN THE DARK THE CHALLENGE . . 17 Operation Tae Kwon Do . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 Mission Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Offensive Counterair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23 Defensive Counterair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 On-Call Close Air Support . . . . . . . . . . . . .35 Mission Execution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Offensive Counterair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38 Defensive Counterair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 On-Call Close Air Support . . . . . . . . . . . . .48 Mission Feasibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53 PHOTO SECTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55 3 CURRENT TRAINING PROGRAMS . . . . . . . 61 Requirements for Re...

Description Details
America’s First Air Battles: Lessons Learned or Lessons Lost? provides a successful evaluation of Michael Howard’s construct that current doctrine is probably wrong, but what matters is the capability of the military to get it right when a particular conflict begins. In the course of this evaluation, Lt Col Aldon E. Purdham Jr. examines several important airpower factors to include familiarity with the nature and geography of the conflict; parity with the adversary, especially in terms of air superiority; command and control of air assets, especially in interdiction and close air support missions; and the confluence of airpower weapons with doctrine and training....

Table of Contents Details
1 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 2 INITIAL PERIOD OF OPERATIONS IN THE KOREAN WAR, 25 JUNE–25 JULY 1950 . . . . . .5 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 3 INITIAL PERIOD OF OPERATIONS IN THE VIETNAM WAR, 2 MARCH–1 APRIL 1965 . . . 27 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41 4 INITIAL PERIOD OF OPERATIONS IN DESERT STORM, 17 JANUARY–15 FEBRUARY 1991 . . 45 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64 5 ANALYSIS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 6 CONCLUSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79...

Description Details
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....

Description Details
"From my experience in the aviation field, I find that this unique aviation and space history book provides a very realistic view on the use of technology in the aviation and space business as it was conquered during the past half century."...

Table of Contents Details
1 Aeronautical Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2 Pilots and Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 3 Aircraft Procurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 4 Aeronautics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59 5 Missiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 6 Computer Programming . . . . . . . . . . . .113 7 Spacefarers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .121 8 Secret Missiles and Tactics . . . . . . . . . . 161 9 Space Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .173 10 Pilots and Airplanes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183 11 Cyclogiro Aircraft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201 12 Giromill Wind Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211 13 Aquagiro Water Power . . . . . . . . . . . . .233...

Table of Contents Details
DISCLAIMER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ii FOREWORD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .v Theory of War . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 Patriotism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Air, Space , and Cyber Power . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Doctrine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Education , Training, and Lessons Learned . 24 Preparedness , Security, and Force Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30 Leadership and Professionalism . . . . . . . 32 Character and Leadership Traits . . . . . . 35 Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Logistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Intelligence, Surveillance , and Reconnaissance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 Unmanned Aerial Vehicles . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Information and Communication S . . . . . . 49 Joint Perspectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Coalition Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55 Airpower at War . . . . . . . . . . . ...