Lords of the Sky: Fighter Pilots and Air Combat, from the Red Baron to the F-16

by Dan Hampton

Overview

The New York Times bestselling author of Viper Pilot and retired USAF F-16 legend Dan Hampton offers the first comprehensive popular history of combat aviation—a unique, entertaining, and action-packed look at the aces of the air and their machines, from the trailblazing aviators of World War I to today’s technologically expert warriors flying supersonic jets.

One of the most decorated fighter pilots in history, U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Dan Hampton goes back 100 years to tell the extraordinary stories of the most famous fighter planes and the brave and daring heroes who made them legend. Told in his acclaimed high-octane style, Lords of the Sky is a fresh and exhilarating look at the development of aviation for history and military buffs alike.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062298560
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	07/22/2014
Edition description:	Large Print
Pages:	896
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.70(d)

About the Author

Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Dan Hampton flew 151 combat missions during his twenty years (1986–2006) in the United States Air Force. For his service in the Iraq War, Kosovo conflict, and first Gulf War, Col. Hampton received four Distinguished Flying Crosses with Valor, a Purple Heart, eight Air Medals with Valor, five Meritorious Service medals, and numerous other citations. He is a graduate of the USAF Fighter Weapons School, USN Top Gun School (TOGS), and USAF Special Operations School. A frequent guest analyst on CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC discussing foreign affairs, military, aviation, and intelligence issues, he has published in Aviation History, the Journal of Electronic Defense, Air Force Magazine, Vietnam magazine, and Airpower magazine, and written several classified tactical works for the USAF Weapons Review. He is the author of the national bestsellers Viper Pilot and Lords of the Sky, as well as a novel, The Mercenary.

Table of Contents

Author's Note xi

Part I The War to End All Wars: 1914-1918

1 From Flight to Fight 3

2 Killer Scouts: 1914-1916 28

3 The Crucible 67

4 The Year of the Fighter: April 1917-April 1918 128

5 Darkness Crumbles 176

Part II In the Lap of the Gods: 1919-1939

6 Rise of the Mercenaries 199

Part III Cataclysm: 1939-1945

7 Colors 243

8 Clash of Eagles 292

9 The Star and the Rose 342

10 Meatballs and Flattops 431

11 Top of the Food Chain 483

Part IV Dawn of the Jet Age

12 MiGs and Machine Guns 519

13 Bombs, Guns, and Guts 584

14 Changing of the Guard 627

15 The Circle Closes 679

Epiolgue 743

Acknowledgments 747

Appendix A Anatomy of Dogfight 750

Appendix B Anatomy of a Surface Attack 750

Maps 768

Northwest Europe, 1915 768

Europe, 1919-1929 769

Northwestern Europe, 1940 770

North Africa, 1940 771

Eastern Europe, 1941 772

The Far East and the Pacific, 1941 773

South Korea, 1951 774

Vietnam and Vicinity 775

Thud Ridge and the Hanoi Area 775

Suez Canal Area, 1973 776

The Middle East, 1991 777

Southern Iraq and Vicinity, 2003 778

Glossary of Terms 779

Bibliography 790

Notes 818

Editorial Reviews

Dramatic, fast-paced, and definitive — a pleasure for everyone who loves reading about aviation, and the life-and-death drama of air combat.

MICHAEL KORDA

Superbly written. Paints a vivid picture of the skills, scares, scars, and science of air combat brilliantly, weaving them into a fascinating historical fabric that embraces technology, history, and politics. Buffs and the general public will agree that this is a first in the field!

Colonel WALTER BOYNE (USAF

An epic history of the fighter pilot world by a gifted author and historian with the trained eye of a combat pilot. This will be an enduring work of aviation literature. Experience the thrill, hear the wind, encounter the danger: Read this book!

Major General DON SHEPPERD (USAF Ret.)

An excellent, well-researched, literate overview of 20th century warfare and the development of the fighter plane. Lords of the Sky will captivate history and aviation buffs alike.

Stephen Coonts

Praise for Viper Pilot: “Hampton’s one of the most decorated pilots in Air Force history.... We may never see his like again.

New York Post

Meticulously researched and beautifully written, this must-read chronological history of fighter pilots reads like a great literary novel. Dan Hampton has crafted an important work that is sure to become a classic within the historic lore of military aviation.

CHRISTINA OLDS

An excellent, well-researched, literate overview of 20th century warfare and the development of the fighter plane. Lords of the Sky will captivate history and aviation buffs alike.

STEPHEN COONTS

An excellent, well-researched, literate overview of 20th century warfare and the development of the fighter plane. Lords of the Sky will captivate history and aviation buffs alike.” — STEPHEN COONTS, New York Times bestselling author of Flight of the Intruder

“Meticulously researched and beautifully written, this must-read chronological history of fighter pilots reads like a great literary novel. Dan Hampton has crafted an important work that is sure to become a classic within the historic lore of military aviation.” — CHRISTINA OLDS, co-author of Fighter Pilot: The Memoirs of Legendary Ace Robin Olds

Praise for Viper Pilot: “Hampton’s one of the most decorated pilots in Air Force history.... We may never see his like again.” — New York Post

“Dramatic, fast-paced, and definitive — a pleasure for everyone who loves reading about aviation, and the life-and-death drama of air combat.” — MICHAEL KORDA, author of With Wings Like Eagles and Ike

“An epic history of the fighter pilot world by a gifted author and historian with the trained eye of a combat pilot. This will be an enduring work of aviation literature. Experience the thrill, hear the wind, encounter the danger: Read this book!” — Major General DON SHEPPERD (USAF Ret.), co-author of Bury Us Upside Down; former Director of the Air National Guard.

“Superbly written. Paints a vivid picture of the skills, scares, scars, and science of air combat brilliantly, weaving them into a fascinating historical fabric that embraces technology, history, and politics. Buffs and the general public will agree that this is a first in the field!” — Colonel WALTER BOYNE (USAF, Ret.), Former Director of the National Air & Space Museum and author of Beyond the Wild Blue: A History of the United States Air Force

From the Publisher

Praise for Viper Pilot: “Hampton’s one of the most decorated pilots in Air Force history.... We may never see his like again.

New York Post

10/01/2013
Winner of four Distinguished Flying Crosses during 20 years' service with the U.S. Air Force, as recounted in his New York Times best-selling Viper Pilot, Hampton starts with the Red Baron's World War I triplane to clarify the history of famous fighting planes and how they changed warfare. Expect flash; with a 75,000-copy first printing.

Library Journal

This is the story of the fighter pilot, from his humble beginnings above the killing grounds of WWI through the War in Vietnam and the War in Iraq. Narrator John Pruden is the perfect choice for performing this lengthy work. Author Dan Hampton knows his stuff, with 20 years in the pilot's seat and 150 combat missions. He never falters as he tells the stories of pilots from many countries, giving all their just due. It's tough to keep a listener's attention for more than 25 hours, but Pruden makes it sound easy with a comfortable delivery as he discusses legendary pilots like Manfred von Richthofen, nicknamed "The Red Baron," and Eddie Rickenbacker. During WWII the players changed to include the pilots of Japanese Zeros and German Messerschmitts, and changed again in Korea, Vietnam, and Iraq with the development of supersonic aircraft. M.S. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine

AUGUST 2014 - AudioFile

This is the story of the fighter pilot, from his humble beginnings above the killing grounds of WWI through the War in Vietnam and the War in Iraq. Narrator John Pruden is the perfect choice for performing this lengthy work. Author Dan Hampton knows his stuff, with 20 years in the pilot's seat and 150 combat missions. He never falters as he tells the stories of pilots from many countries, giving all their just due. It's tough to keep a listener's attention for more than 25 hours, but Pruden makes it sound easy with a comfortable delivery as he discusses legendary pilots like Manfred von Richthofen, nicknamed "The Red Baron," and Eddie Rickenbacker. During WWII the players changed to include the pilots of Japanese Zeros and German Messerschmitts, and changed again in Korea, Vietnam, and Iraq with the development of supersonic aircraft. M.S. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine

AUGUST 2014 - AudioFile