Brian D. Laslie - Air Powers Lost Cause

Published by Rowman & Littlefield

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Copyright 2021 by The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Laslie, Brian D., author.

Title: Air powers lost cause : the American air wars of Vietnam / Brian D. Laslie.

Other titles: American air wars of Vietnam

Description: Lanham : Rowman & Littlefield, [2021] | Series: War and society | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2020049448 (print) | LCCN 2020049449 (ebook) | ISBN 9781442274341 (cloth) | ISBN 9781442274358 (epub)

Subjects: LCSH: Vietnam War, 1961-1975Aerial operations, American. | Air powerUnited StatesHistory. | United States. Air ForceHistoryVietnam War, 1961-1975. | United States. NavyHistoryVietnam War, 1961-1975. | Vietnam War, 1961-1975Naval operations, American.

Classification: LCC DS558.8 .L365 2021 (print) | LCC DS558.8 (ebook) | DDC 959.704/3480973dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020049448

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020049449

The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information SciencesPermanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

In the fall of 1997 I took my first class with Dr. Kyle Sinisi. Between 1997 and May of 2001, I took numerous classes with both Captain Kyle Sinisi and Colonel/Brigadier General Michael Barrett. In the spring of 2021 I published this book in their series. For pushing me to be a better historian for over twenty years and helping me every step of the way, I dedicate this book to them.

You have a row of dominoes set up; you knock over the first one, and what will happen to the last one is that it will go over very quickly.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower

My solution to the problem would be to tell them frankly that theyve got to draw in their horns and stop their aggression or were going to bomb them back into the Stone Ages.

General Curtis E. LeMay, Mission with LeMay: My Story

A LIST OF ACKNOWLEDGMENTS IS just like an acceptance speech at the Academy Awards, with two exceptions: having more time to get it right, and the lack of a gold statue to sit on my desk.

I would first like to thank Dr. Kyle Sinisi and Brigadier General Michael Barrett at The Citadel. They invited me into this project and were both professors of mine when I was an undergraduate there. Not only for this work, but for a lifetime of learning, I am in their debt.

Dr. Robert Thompson III helped get this project started and was always able to answer any questions I had about the ground war in Vietnam. Dr. Michael Hankins of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum spent many hours reading this manuscript and many more on the phone with me, discussing it. His talent and contributions toward helping me to coalesce ideas and concepts are immeasurable. Dr. John Terino also went through this manuscript with a fine-tooth comb, and I am forever grateful.

As with every other book I have written, special thanks goes to the Clark Special Collections Branch at the US Air Force Academy library. I would never have been able to do this work without the help of the director, Dr. Mary Ruwell. As the project came to a close, Dr. Judith Henchy, head of the Southeast Asia Center at the University of Washington, graciously helped to locate sources that spoke to the perspective of North Vietnamese participants.

The great team at the Air Force Historical Research Agency (AFHRA) under Dr. Charlie OConnell and Dr. Dixie Dysart helped with primary source location, both with original documents and turning many of them into digital format. These stellar members included Sam Shearin, Leander Morris, Tammy Horton, and Maranda Gilmore. I have to single out Sam Shearin, as his prowess in responding to random e-mails remains unmatched in the modern era. I would be remiss if I didnt mention a few others here, including Sheon Montgomery at the Vietnam Archive at Texas Tech, and Edwin E. Mose and his superb Vietnam bibliography.

Many men were willing to share their histories and perspectives with me, including Mr. C. R. Lucky Anderegg; General Merrill McPeak, former chief of staff of the US Air Force; and Fred Smith, among others. At the Air Force Association, Mr. Chet Curtis aided in tracking down the Misty Fast-FAC Pilots Panel from 2011.

Finally, I would like to thank the terrific team at Rowman & Littlefield, including Katelyn Turner, Melissa Hayes, Janice Braunsteinand, especiallymy editor, Susan McEachern, for sticking with this book to the end. As always, the greatest thanks and acknowledgments go to my wife, Heather, and my daughters, Savannah and Aspen.