Download or read book Throw a Nickel on the Grass a Fighter Pilot s Life Narrative written by Warren Kerzon and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on 2016-02-21 with total page 184 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Personal history of my 22+ years as an Air Force fighter pilot starting when I first dreamed about my future career, through flight school, operational experience in France, Germany, then Test Pilot School, flight test projects, combat experience in Southeast Asia, and other assignments; short summary of follow-on 15-year career in the aerospace industry.
Download or read book Throw a Nickel on the Grass written by Norman Phillips and published by Trafford Publishing. This book was released on 2012-11 with total page 399 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Rick North has never spent much time on reflection. For twenty-five years, he has immersed his body and soul in the US Air Force as a forward-looking, self-assured officer. Yet in North's early life, there were no absolutes. Now, as he lies in a hospital bed in Southeast Asia, the victim of a futile war, he begins to contemplate his past as he is carried further and further away from the only life he has known. Raised by illiterate Polish grandparents, North develops the independence and insatiable curiosity that eventually leads him on an adventurous journey through World War II, where he flies in the Italian campaign and transforms into a steely-eyed, decorated fighter pilot. As he rises in the ranks to colonel, he edges closer to bureaucracy and some of its leaders, dimming his once idealistic views. But after he reluctantly volunteers for the Vietnam War, he is shot down in Laos and saved in a daring rescue--an event that alters his life forever. Based on a true story, Throw a Nickel on the Grass shares one man's incredible and challenging journey through life and war, and his ultimate discovery of true happiness.
Download or read book Nickel on the Grass written by Phil Handley and published by . This book was released on 2006 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nickel On The Grass is a series of vignettes that capture the life of an extraordinary aviator, fighter pilot and leader, Colonel Phil Handley. In a career that spanned 26 years "Hands" earned a reputation as an exceptional pilot and leader in war and peace. I do not know anybody who served with him who does not admire him for his dedication, integrity and courage.The central theme of the stories he relates is that the fraternity of true fighter pilots is made up of men who share a love of adventure, have exceptional flying skills, are willing to risk all rather than admit defeat and believe earning the respect of their peers is their greatest accomplishment. The really good ones possess a sixth sense about people and machines that gives them an edge over mere mortals in the air and on the ground. This is a book about a man who lived most of the stories and counts among his friends and acquaintances the central characters in the others. It has been my privilege to have been his friend and fellow fighter pilot for the past 30 years. General Ron Fogleman, USAF, Ret. Chief of Staff, USAF, 1994-1997
Download or read book Throw a Nickel on the Grass written by NORMAN PHILLIPS and published by Trafford Publishing. This book was released on 2012-11-30 with total page 397 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Rick North has never spent much time on reflection. For twenty-five years, he has immersed his body and soul in the US Air Force as a forward-looking, self-assured officer. Yet in Norths early life, there were no absolutes. Now, as he lies in a hospital bed in Southeast Asia, the victim of a futile war, he begins to contemplate his past as he is carried further and further away from the only life he has known. Raised by illiterate Polish grandparents, North develops the independence and insatiable curiosity that eventually leads him on an adventurous journey through World War II, where he flies in the Italian campaign and transforms into a steely-eyed, decorated fighter pilot. As he rises in the ranks to colonel, he edges closer to bureaucracy and some of its leaders, dimming his once idealistic views. But after he reluctantly volunteers for the Vietnam War, he is shot down in Laos and saved in a daring rescuean event that alters his life forever. Based on a true story, Throw a Nickel on the Grass shares one mans incredible and challenging journey through life and war, and his ultimate discovery of true happiness.
Download or read book Emergency War Plan written by Sean M. Maloney and published by U of Nebraska Press. This book was released on 2021-02 with total page 544 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Emergency War Plan examines the theory and practice of American nuclear deterrence and its evolution during the Cold War. Previous examinations of nuclear strategy during this time have, for the most part, categorized American efforts as “massive retaliation” and “mutually assured destruction,” blunt instruments to be casually dismissed in favor of more flexible approaches or summed up in inflammatory and judgmental terms like “MAD.” These descriptors evolved into slogans, and any nuanced discussion of the efficacy of the actual strategies withered due to a variety of political and social factors. Drawing on newly released weapons effects information along with new information about Soviet capabilities as well as risky and covert espionage missions, Emergency War Plan provides a completely new examination of American nuclear deterrence strategy during the first fifteen years of the Cold War, the first such study since the 1980s. Ultimately what emerges is a picture of a gargantuan and potentially devastating enterprise that was understood at the time by the public in only the vaguest terms but that was not as out of control as has been alleged and was more nuanced than previously understood.
Download or read book The Brink written by Marc Ambinder and published by Simon & Schuster. This book was released on 2019-07-30 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “An informative and often enthralling book…in the appealing style of Tom Clancy” (Kirkus Reviews) about the 1983 war game that triggered a tense, brittle period of nuclear brinkmanship between the United States and the former Soviet Union. What happened in 1983 to make the Soviet Union so afraid of a potential nuclear strike from the United States that they sent mobile ICBMs (intercontinental ballistic missiles) into the field, placing them on a three-minute alert Marc Ambinder explains the anxious period between the United States and the Soviet Union from 1982 to 1984, with the “Able Archer ’83” war game at the center of the tension. With astonishing and clarifying new details, he recounts the scary series of the close encounters that tested the limits of ordinary humans and powerful leaders alike. Ambinder provides a comprehensive and chilling account of the nuclear command and control process, from intelligence warnings to the composition of the nuclear codes themselves. And he affords glimpses into the secret world of a preemptive electronic attack that scared the Soviet Union into action. Ambinder’s account reads like a thriller, recounting the spy-versus-spy games that kept both countries—and the world—in check. From geopolitics in Moscow and Washington, to sweat-caked soldiers fighting in the trenches of the Cold War, to high-stakes war games across NATO and the Warsaw Pact, “Ambinder’s account of a serious threat of global annihilation…is spellbinding…a masterpiece of recent history” (Publishers Weekly, starred review). The Brink serves as the definitive intelligence, nuclear, and national security history of one of the most precarious times in recent memory and “shows the consequences of nuclear buildups, sometimes-careless language, and nervous leaders. Now, more than ever, those consequences matter” (USA TODAY).
Download or read book Flying High written by S. Melvin Rines and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2021-12-15 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The world is at war—Pearl Harbor and WWII. A desire to serve, a chance to fly—he joins the navy’s V-5 program, the finest flight training ever devised. Come fly with him in open-cockpit biplanes, low-wing trainers, dive bombers, and fighters as he wins the gold wings of a naval aviator, an officer’s stripes, and the designation of carrier-based fighter pilot. Recalled for the Korean War—this time to fly newly developed jets. Soar with him on his first flight, to heights he’d not reached and speeds he’d never seen. Recalled for the Korean War—take a front-row seat on a massive U.S. Navy aircraft carrier in combat and experience the riveting, heart-stopping life of a jet fighter pilot racking up fifty-five missions over Korea. Catapult launches, shootings and being shot at, and landing on a rolling, bobbing flight deck are vividly depicted—along with spectacular crashes and agonizing fatalities, while cavorting with stars in Hollywood and Palm Springs. Recalled for the Korean War – this time to fly newly developed jets. Soar with him on his first flight, to heights he’d not reached and speeds he’d never seen. Recalled for the Korean War -take a front-row seat on a massive U.S. Navy aircraft carrier in combat, and experience the riveting, heart-stopping life of a jet fighter pilot racking up fifty- five missions over Korea. Catapult launches, shootings and being shot at and landing on a rolling, bobbing flight deck are vividly depicted – along with spectacular crashes and agonizing fatalities. While cavorting with stars in Hollywood and Palm Springs.
Download or read book Five Nickels written by Jim “Boots” Demarest and published by Permuted Press. This book was released on 2022-02-15 with total page 221 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On February 15, 1991, Captain Steve Phillis was leading his wingman, Lieutenant Rob Sweet, on their thirtieth combat mission of Desert Storm flying the A-10 Warthog. They were tasked with attacking Iraq’s vaunted Medina Division of the Republican Guards—by far their most dangerous mission of the war. Near the end of their attacks, Rob was forced to eject from his aircraft and began a five-minute parachute ride down to the troops he and Steve had just finished bombing. Steve, an experienced combat search and rescue pilot and distinguished graduate of the Air Force Fighter Weapons School, immediately sprang into action to save the life of his wingman. After spending three minutes and forty-five seconds circling Sweet, Steve’s A-10 was hit by an enemy surface-to-air missile. Five Nickels: True Story of the Desert Storm Heroics and Sacrifice of Air Force Captain Steve Phillis, is a love story. Steve loved his family, fiancée, fellow fighter pilots, country, wingman, and life. Yet he was willing to risk them all to fight—and if necessary, die—for what he believed in. Steve’s story—from Rock Island, Illinois to the Air Force Academy, to his life as an A-10 fighter pilot—is the stuff of heroes. As Steve’s Academy classmate and boxing partner, fellow fighter pilot and “Top Gun” graduate, Jim “Boots” Demarest is uniquely qualified to tell Steve’s story. A gifted storyteller, Boots shares his experience with Steve from the Academy Boxing Team to paint a complete picture of the man who had so much to live for, yet was willing to risk it all to do the right thing. Five Nickels is filled with the details of Steve’s life and loves that will capture, enchant, and pull readers in. His story of combat heroics in the face of incredible danger will captivate and inspire all who read it.
Download or read book The 3rd Greatest Fighter Pilot written by William T. Creech and published by AuthorHouse. This book was released on 2005 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Book is a story of the life and times of a professional Fighter pilot. Where did he come from? What are the early life experiences that effected his abilities and capabilities to be a Great Fighter Pilot? What characteristics of a person and his experiences are important in becoming a leader of men and of becoming a superb fighter pilot? Why does this fighter pilot relegate himself to being the Third Best Fighter Pilot, rather than the first best? What is it like to be shot down in the jungles of North Burma, alone and with no help toward survival other than his own will? And later in that combat tour, how does one manage survival in the unending expanse of the Gobi Desert? What are the pressures that are forced upon the leader of a combat fighter squadron? How does he maintain a high morale in a unit when there are few positive factors available to assist? How are political pressures dealt with on a day to day basis? This book is a MUST READ for any young commander of fighter pilots. It's also a great read for those who are just interested in the subject of flying. The author's answers to all these questions are studies in perseverance, loyalty, dedication, and intense desire to do what many others would find impossible.
Download or read book Fighter Pilot written by Christina Olds and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2010-04-13 with total page 417 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Fighter Pilot is the memoir of legendary ace American fighter pilot and general officer in the U.S. Air Force, Robin Olds. Robin Olds was a larger-than-life hero with a towering personality. A graduate of West Point and an inductee in the National College Football Hall of Fame for his All-American performance for Army, Olds was one of the toughest college football players at the time. In WWII, Olds quickly became a top fighter pilot and squadron commander by the age of 22—and an ace with 12 aerial victories. But it was in Vietnam where the man became a legend. He arrived in 1966 to find a dejected group of pilots and motivated them by placing himself on the flight schedule under officers junior to himself, then challenging them to train him properly because he would soon be leading them. Proving he wasn't a WWII retread, he led the wing with aggressiveness, scoring another four confirmed kills, becoming a rare triple ace. Olds, who retired a brigadier general and died in 2007, was a unique individual whose personal story presents one of the most eagerly anticipated military books in recent memory. Please note: This ebook edition does not include the photo insert from the print edition.
Download or read book Unforgotten Hero written by Jim Escalle and published by Traylor House Publishers. This book was released on 2013-07-27 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Unforgotten Hero tells the captivating life story of Second Lieutenant Jimmy L. Escalle, a U.S. Air Force fighter pilot who became missing in action during the Korean War. Growing up in a small farming town in California’s San Joaquin Valley during the 1930s and 1940s, Jim was a devoted son, a caring older brother, a talented athlete, and a young man of moral character who always put others first. He started high school as the Second World War was at its peak, and graduated during a time of transition within America and around the world. He had always wanted to fly airplanes someday, and with the introduction of jet propulsion during his high school years, he dreamed of becoming a jet pilot. Called to serve his country after the Korean War began, his dream became a reality when he joined the Air Force and eventually got the opportunity to fly the F-86 Sabre, regarded as the most advanced jet fighter of its time. Soon after arriving in Korea he went on his first missions, which were MiG Alley sweeps. However, since Jim was assigned to a fighter-bomber squadron, the majority of his combat missions were air-to-ground. These were the most dangerous missions. In Korea, more pilots had been killed or listed as MIA due to being shot down by ground fire rather than enemy aircraft. For Jim, this fact was realized only five weeks before the armistice was signed. He paid the ultimate price for freedom when he disappeared while on a combat mission over North Korea and was never seen or heard from again.
Download or read book To Fly and Fight written by Clarence E. "Bud" Anderson and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2017-05-12 with total page 576 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bud Anderson is a flyers flyer. The Californians enduring love of flying began in the 1920s with the planes that flew over his fathers farm. In January 1942, he entered the Army Air Corps Aviation Cadet Program. Later after he received his wings and flew P-39s, he was chosen as one of the original flight leaders of the new 357th Fighter Group. Equipped with the new and deadly P-51 Mustang, the group shot down five enemy aircraft for each one it lost while escorting bombers to targets deep inside Germany. But the price was high. Half of its pilots were killed or imprisoned, including some of Buds closest friends. In February 1944, Bud Anderson, entered the uncertain, exhilarating, and deadly world of aerial combat. He flew two tours of combat against the Luftwaffe in less than a year. In battles sometimes involving hundreds of airplanes, he ranked among the groups leading aces with 16 aerial victories. He flew 116 missions in his old crow without ever being hit by enemy aircraft or turning back for any reason, despite one life or death confrontation after another. His friend Chuck Yeager, who flew with Anderson in the 357th, says, In an airplane, the guy was a mongoosethe best fighter pilot I ever saw. Buds years as a test pilot were at least as risky. In one bizarre experiment, he repeatedly linked up in midair with a B-29 bomber, wingtip to wingtip. In other tests, he flew a jet fighter that was launched and retrieved from a giant B-36 bomber. As in combat, he lost many friends flying tests such as these. Bud commanded a squadron of F-86 jet fighters in postwar Korea, and a wing of F-105s on Okinawa during the mid-1960s. In 1970 at age 48, he flew combat strikes as a wing commander against communist supply lines. To Fly and Fight is about flying, plain and simple: the joys and dangers and the very special skills it demands. Touching, thoughtful, and dead honest, it is the story of a boy who grew up living his dream.
Download or read book 9 Lives of a Fighter Pilot written by Greg Raths and published by . This book was released on 2013-01 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A pilot's life is never dull, especially when you're a jet fighter pilot in the Marines flying assault missions in Iraq during Saddam Hussein's reign and then when you work at the White House under President Clinton! In training and in war, in the air and on the grounds sometimes you have close calls with Death. And sometimes you get nine lives. You better live the ninth to its fullest! This is Colonel Greg Raths' tale... from the cradle through his Mayberry-like upbringing through his wild college days and wilder air training days to his time in the war, at the White House and beyond. Raths wrote this book to serve as a roadmap for success that any young man or woman can follow. It's all in the planning. And it's all about living large and in charge.
Download or read book Call Sign KLUSO written by Rick Tollini and published by Casemate. This book was released on 2021-04-01 with total page 201 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A US Air Force Captain tells the story of his life and service during Operation Desert Storm in this thrilling military memoir. A pilot all his life, Rick “Kluso” Tollini turned his childhood dream into a reality when he became a fighter pilot for the US Air Force. In Call Sign KLUSO, Rick “Kluso” Tollini puts the fraught minutes above the Iraqi desert that made him an ace into the context of a full life; exploring how he came to be flying a F-15C in Desert Storm, and how that day became a pivotal moment in his life. He recounts his training, preparation, and missions, as well as the life of a fighter pilot in a combat zone. He also explores life as an air force veteran, and his turn to Buddhism as he comes to terms with his actions in combat. Rick’s first experience of flying was in a Piper PA-18 over 1960s’ California as a small boy, and his love of flying through his teenage years was fostered by his pilot father, eventually blossoming into a decision to join the Air Force as a pilot in his late twenties. Having trained to fly jets he was assigned to fly the F-15 Eagle with the “Dirty Dozen,” the 12th Tactical Fighter Squadron, at Kadena AB, Japan, before returning Stateside to the 58th Tactical Fighter Squadron “The Gorillas.” Throughout training, Reagan’s fighter pilots expected to face the Soviet Union, but Rick’s first combat deployment was Desert Storm.
Download or read book Once a Fighter Pilot written by Jerry W. Cook and published by McGraw-Hill Companies. This book was released on 1996 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Beginning back in 1942 when, at age 5, he was mesmerized by a shiny Lockheed P-38 doing loops over his backyard, Jerry Cook dreamed of becoming a fighter pilot. Against tough odds, he pursued his ambition with single-minded zeal, becoming one of the best and brightest candidates in the Air Force Aviation Cadet Program in the mid-1950s. Even after his inauspicious first night solo flight - when his equipment failed but he somehow managed to land safely - Cook never wavered from his goal. Eventually, he attained Nirvana (or so he thought) when he was assigned to duty in Vietnam. Finally, he would be able to use all of his training and skills. By the time his one-year hitch was up, he had flown more than 400 combat hours. During those days, he survived more near-misses than he cares to remember - somehow maintaining his wry sense of humor in spite of everything. With rare wit, candor, and insight, Cook shares his personal experiences as one of flying's most elite group, recounting the days leading up to his distinguished military career, as well as his tour of duty in Vietnam. A compelling slice of history as well as a revealing insider's account of the rarefied world of fighter pilots, this is also a coming-of-age story of desire, determination, and dedication played out against a background of political unrest and moral uncertainty.
Download or read book A Patriot s Calling written by Lt Colonel Dan Rooney and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2020-02-25 with total page 217 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A decorated fighter pilot and PGA professional tells the story of his life and service—to both his nation and others—in this remarkable memoir that is a stirring record of faith, patriotism, family, philanthropy, and golf. What does it mean to be a patriot? For Oklahoma native Dan Rooney, it is someone who not only puts his life on the line for country, but who opens his heart and mind and seeks to build a life that embodies the purest and most concentrated essence of himself. For many, Rooney is the model of a patriot: as an Air Force pilot who deployed to Iraq, serving three tours of duty; as a professional golfer who established a nonprofit foundation awarding thousands of scholarships to the children of fallen and disabled veterans; as the father of five daughters; as a man of faith, whose copilot, both in the skies and on the ground, has always been God. A Patriot’s Calling is his autobiographical journey through some of the most character-defining moments of his awe-inducing life and career. “On my third tour of duty in Iraq as F -16 fighter pilot, I felt a powerful calling from God to share the miraculous fusion of people and experiences uniquely placed along my journey. During my reflection, I began to understand how the forces of synchronicity had shaped my life. Synchronicity, or, as I like to call it, ‘chance with a purpose,’ is all around us. These encounters with God’s messengers are the sign-posts along the road of life guiding us toward our essence.” A Patriot’s Calling illuminates Rooney’s true essence—and offers guidance and inspiration for us all. A Patriot’s Calling includes 40 photos and 3 maps.
Download or read book Crash and Burn written by Jack Edward Wright and published by Winepress Publishing. This book was released on 2003 with total page 191 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: United States Air Force Captain Jack Wright had been a pilot in the Air Force for over five years. He had a very strong start in a wonderful career. The Air Force gave Jack the opportunity to become Fighter Aircraft qualified in the F-100. This opportunity was the realization of a dream. Little did Jack realize that this duty would also end his career in the Air Force. He certainly did not realize it would require a reevaluation of his life goals. Accepting this assignment would result in changing who Jack was and what was important to him. The book tells of the thrill of becoming and being a pilot. It tells of his service in Vietnam. It tells of a very troubled childhood and the determination that childhood gave him to set and achieve goals. Most important, this book tells of how God met Jack's needs and walked with him through every situation he faced.
