****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
I found the book so facinating that I read it in 12 hrs. Part of my interest is that I flew on G's as an RN for 5 yrs in the 80's. I heard the urban legends, myths, and other stories surround the Linebacker II operation. This book rings true on many levels.The author introduces the subject with a bit of history on the USAF and Strategic Air Command. He did gloss over some details, like LeMay taking a rag tag outfit of cobbled together units and forging SAC in his own image. But this is a minor point. The author is setting up the cultural conflict in SAC that is evident in the events of Linebacker II. And this rings so true, many of the cultural artifacts were still in existence in 1989.There is the discussion on how SAC developed and was involved in the conflicts of Korea and Viet Nam. How the culture of zero mistakes and top down decision making, thought necessary for a nuclear excahnge where it is likely you are going with what you have, doesn't fit the conventional battlefield. In the conventional battel field, you go back day after day.The author then takes you to the policitcal decision making that lead up to the battle of Linebacker II, and the squawbling of the generals. It was faciniating, that the bottomline to the battle and the return to the peace table had less to do with the destruction on the ground than the political wills of the leaders, manifested in the battle itself. The fact that Nixon held the line and forced the bombing to continue, even after the NV signaled their desire to go back, signaled that Nixon was one to be dealt with and that the NV need to work with him to get a deal.The book then goes to the day by day activities of the battle, from both the aircrew and and NVA side. From the aircrew side, the author did his homework and though not loosing the audience in the detail and minutia of the cockpit, his descriptions ring true. I never had the opportunity to work the ASQ-38 offensive system, (I was one of the first to be totaly trained on the replacement OAS system), I worked with many who had and the details are there.In the day to day activities, the author describes the problems created by the command structure, the lower commands reactions and attempts to compensate and correct, and how that interaction played out. He also provides vivid descriptions of the actual engagements and tactics used, how the tactics faired, and the response on both sides to gain advantage.I thought the book was superb example of military history focused on a pivital battle in the war. It provides enough detail for people familar with the military and the systems, but doesn't get bogged down to lose the uninitiated. It provides great insight in the thought process and cultural history of the services and the different commands with the USAF. Many of these issues exist even today.I especially like the discussion of the urban legend of the mutiny within the crew force. In my day, the story became that the crews mutined during a CINCSAC vist to Andersen AFB Guam, during the Linebacker II operation. This mutiny forced CINCSAC to hurriedly leave the base to save his skin. Having read the book, I could see the grains of truth in the legend, and how it merged over time, coupled with the modern crew force twisting it to meet their personal desires. Having been a "Crewdog", I can see how the U-Tapo story got twisted in to a mutiny, and the consequent disregard of orders that were blatantly stupid in combat, and the blending of the cold reception of the CINCSAC after the battle into the modern legend.
