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A Need to Know |
More than a tool of policy makers to gather intelligence, Air Force reconnaissance efforts shaped early Cold War doctrine and war planning. Dr. Farquhar argues that a lack of information on Soviet strategic capabilities dominated the organization, operational planning, and equipment of the postwar Air Force. To support his assertion, Farquhar traces the development of aerial reconnaissance from the first balloon ascents through World War II as a prelude. He then examines early Cold War peripheral reconnaissance and overflights of the Soviet Union. He explains the evolution of intelligence-gathering technology, bureaucratic growth, and a relative lack of attention paid to electronic warfare before the Korean War. Based primarily on archival sources, the book serves as an excellent reference for air doctrine, intelligence, and electronic warfare in the formative years of the Cold War. [John T. Farquhar / 2004 / 233 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-124-4 / Cost: $21 / AU Press Code: B-34] |
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A War of Their Own |
Captain Rodman, an instructor weapon-systems officer at Dyess AFB, Texas, examines the distinctive nature of Fifth Air Force's role in the air war over the Southwest Pacific Area during World War II. Especially notable is Gen George Kenney's innovative use of light attack aircraft as well as both medium and heavy bombardment aircraft, characterized by theater-specific tactics, ordnance, and structural modifications. A War of Their Own also considers the free exchange of aircraft and missions in the Southwest Pacific—a hallmark of that theater—in terms of the conflict between doctrine and tactics that underlay Fifth Air Force's relationship to the prewar Army Air Corps and the postwar Air Force. The author also notes the relevance of the Fifth's experiences to airpower. [Matthew K. Rodman / 2005 / 184 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-135-X / Cost: $14 / AU Press Code: B-96] |
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A-10s over Kosovo |
The NATO-led Operation Allied Force was fought in 1999 to stop Serb atrocities against ethnic Albanians in Kosovo. This war, as noted by the distinguished military historian John Keegan, “marked a real turning point . . . and proved that a war can be won by airpower alone.” Colonels Haave and Haun have organized firsthand accounts of some of the people who provided that airpower—the members of the 40th Expeditionary Operations Group. Their descriptions—a new wingman’s first combat sortie, a support officer's view of a fighter squadron relocation during combat, and a Sandy’s leadership in finding and rescuing a downed F-117 pilot—provide the reader with a legitimate insight into an air war at the tactical level and the airpower that helped convince the Serbian president, Slobodan Milosevic, to capitulate. [Christopher E. Haave and Phil M. Haun / 2003 / 367 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-122-8 / Cost: $33 / AU Press Code: B-90] |
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Aerospace Power in the Twenty-First Century |
In Aerospace Power in the Twenty-First Century: A Basic Primer, Dr. Clayton K. S. Chun exposes readers to relevant aerospace capabilities, theories, uses, elements of operational planning, and key issues. After introducing basic definitions and concepts, Dr. Chun uses case studies of both successful and unsuccessful applications of aerospace power to illustrate its functions and abilities. Designed primarily for readers new to the subject, Aerospace Power in the Twenty-First Century also serves as a useful source of information about the strengths and weaknesses of air and space forces. [Clayton K. S. Chun / 2001 / 356 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-091-4 / Cost: $29 / AU Press Code: B-80] |
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Aerospace Power: The Case for Indivisible Application |
Major Myers offers a serious alternative to "aerospace folklore." He proposes an indivisible airpower concept and argues that it would result in a far more flexible aerospace force structure—one that gets the most from our increasingly expensive and limited assets and applies the right force at the right place at the right time. [Grover E. Myers / 1986 / 96 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-013-2 / Cost $4.75 / AU Press Code: B-15] |
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Air Warfare |
Since this study was published initially in 1926, designers, engineers, pilots, and students of aviation have had an opportunity to discern its merits and to analyze its shortcomings. Still, in that historic year, with the public reeling from the outcome of the Scopes Monkey Trial, Charles Lindbergh's solo transcontinental flight, and the Billy Mitchell trail and verdict, William C. Sherman advanced a need for aerial navigation and cogently told us of the merits of flying. Coming at a time when flying was in its infancy, the book ushered in a new era in airpower historiography. Sherman relied on an assortment of illustrations to buttress his contention that aerial navigation will play a large role in the future of air tactics. Readers may not be pleased with the paucity of citations and the absence of a bibliography, but Sherman makes it clear that Air Warfare was based on his notes while he was an instructor at the Air Service Tactical School and at the Command and General Staff School. Air Warfare advances our understanding of aerial navigation so much so that Sherman can take credit for being the inspiration behind some of the technology currently used in military operations. [William C. Sherman / 2002 / 306 pages / ISBN: 978-1-58566-104-6 / Cost: $27 / AU Press Code: B-86] |
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Airhead Operations |
Colonel Cirafici reviews airhead activity in contingencies during World War II and in operations Urgent Fury, Just Cause, Desert Shield/Storm and Restore Hope. He examines the newly activated Air Mobility Command (AMC) structure within the theater and discusses the Somali civil war to illustrate how airhead's air mobility forces fit into the overall scheme of force deployment, reassembly, employment, and sustainment. Colonel Cirafici identifies some problems and needed improvements and recommends that AMC look beyond past successes and provide greater effort toward training and exercises to promote jointness at all operational levels. [John L. Cirafici / 1995 / 109 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-057-4 / Cost: $6.5 / AU Press Code: B-60] |
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Airlift Doctrine |
Colonel Miller shows how the worldwide orientation of American foreign policy, the numerous threats to free-world interests, and the speed and complexity of modern warfare have combined with political and resource constraints to produce today's airlift doctrine and force structure. [Charles E. Miller / 1998 / 447 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-019-1 / Cost: $17 / AU Press Code: B-21] |
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Airpower and Ground Armies |
These four independent essays provide a perspective on airpower doctrine development that varies somewhat from the usual view. Essay 1 describes the organization, doctrine, operational practices, and personality of the air forces in the western desert from 1940 to 1943. Essay 2 describes and analyzes the events in northwest Africa during Operation Torch while the third analyzes the machination in policy development in Washington. Essay 4 analyzes the great tactical aviation exercise in northwest Europe, emphasizing the famous cooperation between George S. Patton and Otto P. Weyland. [Daniel R. Mortensen, ed. / 1998 / 224 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-047-7 / Cost: $13 / AU Press Code: B-50] |
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Airpower and Maneuver Warfare |
The authors identify and discuss the fundamental concepts and principles of maneuver warfare, compare and contrast it to attrition-style warfare, and trace its origins and history. They examine the role of airpower in enhancing maneuver during the early German campaigns of World War II, in Germany's 1941 Russian campaigns, and in the Soviet version of maneuver warfare in World War II. They analyze the importance of airpower in maneuver warfare employed by Israel in the 1967 and 1973 wars and by coalition forces in the Gulf War. Dr. van Creveld forecasts what the role of airpower will be in warfare during the coming years. The book includes a response to the authors by the air doctrine analysts at Air University. [Martin van Creveld, Kenneth S. Brower, and Steven L. Canby / 1994 / 284 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-050-7 / Cost: $17 / AU Press Code: B-53] |
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Airpower and the Environment |
With insightful and innovative chapters written by experts in various disciplines, this book chronicles and analyzes the effects of airpower on the environment. It also highlights the fact that military forces now take far more care of the environment than ever before and that many militaries, even in less developed regions such as central Africa, have developed strategies to minimize all harm and even to do environmentally beneficial activities. This book reveals that some military forces, utilizing the speed, reach, and intelligence-gathering capabilities of air assets, are providing highly positive contributions to conservation efforts and the maintenance and protection of ecological protection zones. This is a positive story and it brings richness and variety to this seminal collection of essays. The Library Journal put Airpower and the Environment on its 2013 Notable Government Documents list! [2013 / 542 pages / ISBN: 978-1-58566-223-4 / Cost: $0 / AU Press Code: B-131] |
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Airpower for Strategic Effect |
Airpower for Strategic Effect is intended to contribute to the understanding of airpower—what it is, what it does, why it does it, and what the consequences are. This is the plot: airpower generates strategic effect. Airpower’s product is strategic effect on the course of strategic history. Everything about military airpower is instrumental to the purpose of securing strategic effect. [Colin S. Gray/ 2012 / 367 pages / ISBN: 978-1-58566-218-0 / Cost: $45 / AU Press Code: B-122] |
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Airpower in Three Wars |
This publication is a reprint of General Momyer's book originally published in 1978. The book offers the general's observations, many from personal experience, of airpower in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. It is an account of the evolution of practical airpower through strategies and campaigns. The book examines strategy, command and control of airpower prior to and during the Vietnam conflict, air superiority, interdiction in all three wars, airpower and the ground battle, and experiences in blunting an attack using airpower. [William W. Momyer / 2003 / 426 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-116-3 Cost: $34 / AU Press Code: B-89] |
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Airpower Myths and Facts |
Ever since the US Army bought its first “aeroplane” in 1909, debates have raged over the utility, effectiveness, efficiency, legality, and even the morality of airpower and strategic bombing. Unfortunately, much of this controversy has been colored by accusations, misconceptions, inaccuracies, myths, and simple untruths. If airpower needs criticizing—and certainly there are times when criticism is appropriate—it must be based on accurate information. In Airpower: Myths and Facts, Col Phillip S. Meilinger, USAF, retired, raises points and counterpoints that attempt to clear away some of the detritus that obscures the subject, thus allowing more informed debate on the real issues concerning airpower and strategic bombing and giving our political and military leaders a better basis on which to form decisions in future conflicts. [Phillip S. Meilinger / 2003 / 147 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-124-6 / Cost: $5 / AU Press Code: B-91] |
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Beyond Horizons |
In this book, the author embarks on a study of the Air Force’s long involvement in initiating, developing, and applying the technology of space-based systems in support of the nation’s security. His analysis ranges from America's space and missile efforts prior to the launch of the Soviet sputniks in 1957, right up to the coming of age of military space employment in the Persian Gulf War of 1991. The author offers an assessment of the Air Force's leadership position in the ongoing debate over service roles and missions and its vision for the nation's space program entering the new century. This book is a slightly revised edition of a book originally published by Air Force Space Command in 1997. [David N. Spires; George W. Bradley III, sr. ed.; Rick W. Sturdevant and Richard S. Eckert / 1998 / 406 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-060-4 / Cost: $26 / AU Press Code: B-63] |
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Biplanes and Bombsights |
Colonel Williams presents a comprehensive study of British bombing efforts in the Great War. He contends that the official version of costs and results underplays the costs while overplaying the results. Supported by postwar findings of both US and British evaluation teams, he argues that British bombing efforts were significantly less effective than heretofore believed. Colonel Williams also presents a strong argument that German air defenses caused considerably less damage to British forces than pilot error, malfunctioning aircraft, and bad weather. That we believed otherwise supports the notion that British bombing raids had forced Germany to transfer significant air assets to defend against them. Williams, however, found no evidence that any such transfer occurred. Actual results, Colonel Williams argues, stand in strong contrast to claimed results. [George K. Williams / 1999 / 330 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-073-6 / Cost: $25 / AU Press Code: B-68] |
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Bombing the European Axis Powers |
In Bombing the European Axis Powers Dr. Richard G. Davis, currently a division chief for the US Army Center for Military History, provides a detailed chronological narrative of the Anglo-American strategic bomber offensive against Hitler’s Germany, his European allies, and German-occupied territory. Davis also includes several in-depth discussions covering such topics as the evacuation of Sicily, Allied airpower and the Holocaust, the bombing of Dresden, and overall Anglo-American policy concerning city-area bombing. A CD-ROM on inside back cover contains graphics and seven Excel spreadsheets with a key that chronicle bombing data from 1939 through 1945. The files are available here for download. [Richard G. Davis / 2008 / 648 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-148-1 / Cost: $55 / AU Press Code: B-99] |
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Challenges in the Multipolar Space-Power Environment |
This work presents and overview of ballistic missile defense (BMD) initiatives and their attendant technologies with a careful analysis of their existing capabilities and potentialities to make recommendations as to the BMD initiatives that are most likely to provide realistic expectations of useful defense capabilities in the near to mid-term. There is also an extended discussion of the implications of BMD in the relationships of the United States and the nations of Asia, particularly Russia, China, India, Pakistan, Iran, North Korea, and Japan. [Matthew M. Schmunk, Capt, USAF, and Michael R. Sheets, Capt, USAF / 2007 / 60 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-166-X / AU Press Code: P-48] |
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Circling the Earth |
In December 1942, barely a year after the United States had entered World War II, the American military establishment was already planning a postwar overseas base network. Although initially designed to support an international police force, the plans increasingly assumed a national character as the Grand Alliance dissolved into the confrontations of the Cold War. Dr. Converse not only illustrates how Army, Navy, and Air Force planners went about their work but also analyzes the numerous factors influencing the nature, extent, and location of the projected base system. These included requirements for postwar US physical and economic security, rapidly changing technology, interservice rivalries, civil-military conflicts, and reactions by other nations to the prospect of American bases near or on their soil. [Elliott V. Converse III / 2005 / 265 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-141-4 / Cost: $22 / AU Press Code: B-97] |
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Combat Search and Rescue in Desert Storm |
Budgetary, political, and organizational changes left the USAF unprepared for the combat search and rescue (CSAR) mission going into Desert Storm. Colonel Whitcomb relates his and others’ experiences from CSAR in Southeast Asia and examines the organization that was established to provide CSAR services in the Iraq-Kuwait theater of operations. He traces each incident from beginning to end along with the tactical and sometimes strategic implications. Scores of interviews, e-mails, and published works provide a compendium of lessons learned and recommendations gleaned from those who flew the missions and made the decisions in Iraq. [Col Darrel D. Whitcomb, USAFR, retired / 2006 / 325 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-153-8 / Cost: $26 / AU Press Code: B-102] |
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Engineering the Space Age |
Few people have experienced as much aerospace history as Bob Brulle, and fewer still possess his meticulous recall and research skills. The P-47 fighter pilot turned engineer, inventor, educator, and author found himself immersed in the Cold War race to the moon, developing cutting-edge technology, instructing future astronauts in aerodynamics and orbital mechanics, perfecting high-performance fighter aircraft to meet the Soviet challenge, overseeing the procurement of new weapon systems, and exploring alternative energy sources. In Engineering the Space Age, he shares his unique personal insights into the triumphs and tragedies of one of the most exciting eras in American history. [Lt Col Robert V. Brulle, USAF, Retired / 2008 / 290 pages / ISBN: 978-1-58566-184-8 / Cost: $24 / AU Press Code: B-113] |
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Expansion or Marginalization: How Effects-Based Organization Could Determine the Future of Air Force Space Command |
The Air Force Space Command is currently a domain-based organization: the command “does things in and through space.” Tomme argues instead for an effects-based organization, whereby missions are grouped according to similar effects rather than platforms and locations. Separating combat effects producers from combat support effects producers would create synergies of training and organization to produce a more effective and potent force. Under Tomme’s recommendations, the Air Force Space Command would become the linchpin for command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance effects delivery for the nation. Tomme’s analysis of Space Command also has implications for the organization of the recently announced Air Force Cyberspace Command. [Edward B. “Mel” Tomme, DPhil/57 Pages/AP-60] |
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Flying Reactors |
Lt Col Downey, USAFR; Wing Cdr Forestier, RAAF; and Lt Col David E. Miller, USAF, advocate a feasibility study for reactors in space and explore a deeper problem with widespread societal rejection concerning the theoretical employment of nuclear technology in space. They point first to the mission enabling advantages of nuclear reactors in space—factors like light weight, high power, long life, and potentially lower costs. They see that nuclear-powered spacecraft would serve long-range NASA missions as well as permit effective hyperspectral satellites that would have profound benefits for the Department of Defense. The limiting factors for nuclear power in space are a compelling mission requirement and broad acceptance in popular support. Many opponents either have general doubts about such an undertaking or perceive cataclysmic dangers. A failure of a space launch carrying nuclear systems would produce something on the order of a “dirty” nuclear bomb. Two things were clear to the authors. One, nuclear space developers must convince the public that they are capable of developing a safe and robust system. Two, because the political battle is primarily over perceived risks rather than empirically based understanding, employment of a values-focused decision strategy is necessary to convince the public and congressional leaders of the feasibility of a space nuclear program. [James R. Downey, Anthony M. Forestier, and David E. Miller / 2005 / 124 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-138-4 / AU Press Code: P-39] |
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Future War |
Colonel Barnett compares the next 15 years to the 15 years between World Wars I and II. He concludes that the changes between the two world wars may be dwarfed by those occurring within the next decade and one-half. He envisions possible wars with niche competitors and peer competitors, giving theoretical scenarios of each. Colonel Barnett views communications technology and stealth technology as keys to victory in future war. [Jeffery R. Barnett / 1996 / 196 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-004-3 / Cost: $12 / AU Press Code: B-5] |
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GPS versus Galileo |
This study investigates Europe's motives to develop the independent satellite navigation system known as Galileo despite the existence of America's successful global positioning system (GPS). It begins by analyzing both systems to familiarize the reader with global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) and to provide an understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of GPS and Galileo, as well as the systems’ similarities and differences. Although the two systems have different founding principles, they employ similar infrastructures and operational concepts. In the short term, Galileo will provide better accuracy for civilian users until GPS upgrades take effect. But performance is only part of the rationale. The author contends that Europe’s pursuit of Galileo is driven by a combination of reasons, including performance, independence, and economic incentive. With Galileo, Europe hopes to achieve political, security, and technological independence from the United States. Additionally, Europe envisions overcoming the US monopoly on GNSS by seizing a sizable share of the expanding GNSS market and setting a new world standard for satellite navigation. Finally, the author explores Galileo’s impact on the United States and reviews US policy towards Galileo. The paper concludes with recommendations to strengthen the competitiveness of GPS. [Scott W. Beidleman / 2003 / 98 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-149-X / AU Press Code: P-41] |
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Ideas, Concepts, Doctrine: Basic Thinking in the United States Air Force, 1907-1960, vol. I |
In this first of a two-volume study, Dr. Futrell presents a chronological survey of the development of Air Force doctrine and thinking from the beginnings of powered flight to the onset of the space age. He outlines the struggle of early aviation enthusiasts to gain acceptance of the airplane as a weapon and win combat-arm status for the Army Air Service (later the Army Air Corps and Army Air Force). He surveys the development of airpower doctrine during the 1930s and World War II and outlines the emergence of the autonomous US Air Force in the postwar period. Futrell brings this first volume to a close with discussions of the changes in Air Force thinking and doctrine necessitated by the emergence of the intercontinental missile, the beginnings of space exploration and weapon systems, and the growing threat of limited conflicts resulting from the Communist challenge of wars of liberation. [Robert Frank Futrell/1989/683 pages/ISBN 1-58566-029-9/$31/B-31] |
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Ideas, Concepts, Doctrine: Basic Thinking in the United States Air Force, 1961-1984, vol. II |
In this volume, the author traces the new directions that Air Force strategy, policies, and thinking took during the Kennedy administration, the Vietnam War, and the post-Vietnam period. Futrell outlines how the Air Force struggled with President Kennedy's redefinition of national security policy and Robert S. McNamara's managerial style as secretary of defense. He describes how the Air Force argued that airpower should be used during the war in Southeast Asia. He chronicles the evolution of doctrine and organization regarding strategic, tactical, and airlift capabilities and the impact that the aerospace environment and technology had on Air Force thinking and doctrine. [Robert Frank Futrell/1989/803 pages/ISBN 1-58566-030-2/$37/B-32 |
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Into the Unknown Together |
Colonel Erickson examines the use of space exploration as a tool to secure international prestige and national pride as part of the Cold War struggle with the Soviet Union during the Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson administrations. He looks at the creation of the National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA), the evolving NASA-DOD relationship, and the larger context in which this relationship was forged. He focuses on the human-spaceflight projects—Projects Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Dynasoar, and the Manned Orbiting Laboratory—by examining the geopolitical, domestic political, and bureaucratic environments in which decisions concerning these projects were made. By blending in the individuals involved, the obstacles that were overcome, and the achievements of the US space program, Erickson reveals a special transformation that took place during this chapter of Americana. [Mark Erickson, Lieutenant Colonel, USAF / 2005 / 665 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-140-6 / Cost: $50 / AU Press Code: B-98] |
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Joint Training for Night Air Warfare |
This book briefly examines the history of joint air operations and some night air operations from World War II through Operation Desert Storm. Colonel McLean focuses on the need for increased training for joint operations at night. He describes a hypothetical contingency in Korea to illustrate some of the challenges of conducting joint night operations. He offers recommendations for a building-block approach to improve training in our joint night air warfare capability. [Brian W. McLean / 1992 / 122 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-044-5 / Cost: $7.50 / AU Press Code: B-46] |
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Jungle Skippers: The 317th Troop Carrier Group in the Southwest Pacific and Their Legacy |
This study examines the 317th Troop Carrier Group’s experience in the southwest Pacific during World War II to identify its long-term effects. The work focuses on the 317th's role in two specific events, the Battle of Wau in January 1943, and the airborne assault at Nadzab the following September. Each event highlights the combat airlift dichotomy of airland and airdrop. In airland, troops are moved by aircraft and disembark from the aircraft on the ground. In airdrop, troops are moved by aircraft and landed using parachutes. [Maj John D. Poole, USAF/2017, 107 pages/ISBN: 9781585662708/P-115] |
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Land-Based Airpower in Third World Crises |
Dr. Mets examines the utility and limitations of land-based aircraft in third world crises over two decades. He offers several conclusions regarding the most effective use of airpower in crisis situations. [Dr. David R. Mets / 1986 / 171 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-000-0 / Cost: $5 / AU Press Code: B-1] |
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Lifeline from the Sky |
Major Brunhaver seeks to answer the question, what are the doctrinal imperatives of providing effective airlift support to enclaves? He states that doctrinal imperatives are those necessary and sufficient propositions that describe the optimal way to employ airlift forces in support of an enclave. This paper attempts to determine the best way to conduct airlift operations to support enclaves. Major Brunhaver’s primary conclusion is that four fundamental factors influence airlift operations: requirement to capability ratio, threat, support infrastructure, and weather. [John Steven Brunhaver / 2002 / 69 pages / ISBN: / AU Press Code: T-2] |
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Military Airpower |
The CADRE Digest of Airpower Opinions and Thoughts [Charles M. Westenhoff / 1990 / 224 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-034-5 / Cost: $0 / AU Press Code: B-36] |
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Military Aviation |
This book—the first English translation of Clément Ader's L'Aviation militaire—contains Ader's ideas about flight formed in the last decade of the nineteenth century, arranged in manuscript form by Ader in 1907, and published in 1909 in Paris by Berger-Levrault. The text is reproduced in its entirety, including notes added by Ader and explanatory notes and a bibliographical note by the editor and translator, Lee Kennett. Ader explains his ideas about the development of airplanes based on creatures in nature. He studied the bat and the bird, especially the vulture. Chapters detail the design of bases for aircraft, runway construction, naval airplanes, vertical artillery, air lanes, schools of aviation, and strategy for waging war in the air. [Clément Ader, ed. and tr. Lee Kennett / 2003 / 112 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-118-X / Cost: $10 / AU Press Code: B-11] |
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Mosquitoes to Wolves |
Dr. Lester traces the evolution of US close air support, with special emphasis on Korea and Vietnam. He discusses the differing views of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force at some length and compares close air support in these two conflicts. The author notes the need for close air support in the Gulf War and explores the future of close air support. He punctuates this history and analysis with dramatic experiences of those who made it happen. [Gary Robert Lester / 1997, 294 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-033-7 / Cost: $0 / AU Press Code: B-35] |
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On Celestial Wings |
The first Army Air Corps navigational class at Miami University graduated in November 1940. In this book, Colonel Whitcomb follows these first celestial navigators through their World War II trials. Twenty-five personal stories and a series of photographs paint the stories of these men as they fought—combining the ancient art of navigating by the stars with the equipment on their B-17s, became prisoners of war, lived through the Bataan Death March, escaped from Japanese captors, survived primitive conditions in the Philippines, died for their country, or later served the US as navigators on the aircraft of presidents and dignitaries. [Ed Whitcomb / 1995 / 227 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-003-5 / Cost: $14 / AU Press Code: B-4] |
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RPAs: Revolution or Retrogression? |
Remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) are in a way merely the continuation of the old human longing for methods of striking or observing one’s enemies while remaining safe. This essay explores the advantages and disadvantages of the systems, and briefly speculates about the future of unmanned systems. Precision-guided munitions, cruise missiles, and intercontinental ballistic missiles cannot be reused, and guidance and propulsion systems are consumed with each round. RPAs have had much in common in the development of the technology with those, but are intended for reuse of the power and guidance apparatus. [David R. Mets, PhD/2010/35 pages/P-78] |
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Self-Protective Measures to Enhance Airlift Operations in Hostile Environments |
Colonel Skorupa examines strategy, doctrine, forces, threat, and technological issues relating to airlift operations. He blends military art with industrial science. Colonel Skorupa explains threats to airlift and how electronic warfare and other technological applications would counter such threats. [John A. Skorupa / 1989 / 201 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-028-0 / Cost: $8.50 / AU Press Code: B-30] |
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Space Primer |
AU-18. The US National Space Policy released by the president in 2006 states that the US government should “develop space professionals.” As an integral part of that endeavor, AU-18, Space Primer, provides to the joint war fighter an unclassified resource for understanding the capabilities, organizations, and operations of space forces. [Air Command and Staff College / 2009 / 356 pages / ISBN: 978-1-58566-194-7 / AU Press Code: AU-18] |
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The Air Campaign |
In light of the age-old belief of Confucius that no idea is new, Dr. Mets examines the role of Col Warden in the Gulf War to determine if a revolution in military affairs had occurred. He relies on several twentieth-century antecedents to Warden, including Giulio Douhet, Hugh Trenchard, and Billy Mitchell to distill a pattern. Mets also addresses whether "the argument that antedated the Gulf War to the effect that such conflicts between states using conventional weapons and methods are a pressing phenomenon." The concluding chapter provides an overview of Mets's discussion. [David R. Mets / 1999 / 98 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-063-9 / Cost: $10 / AU Press Code: B-65] |
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The Air Force Role in Developing International Outer Space Law |
Colonel Terrill provides an in-depth examination of the historical evolution of Air Force thinking and action on the development of international law as it applies to outer space. He traces the Air Force's continual resistance to treaties and other conventions that would have defined the demarcation of the "boundary" between airspace and outer space. He shows that the Air Force position was grounded in the unwillingness to define outer space narrowly before the military had thoroughly researched and tested technological capabilities that could be employed in space. Terrill concludes by raising concerns about current issues that come into play on efforts to refine international law as it relates to outer space. These issues include technological advances and possible future international cooperation in space ventures. [Delbert R. Terrill Jr. / 1999 / 155 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-066-3 / Cost: $12 / AU Press Code: B-69] |
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The Air Force Role in Low-Intensity Conflict |
Colonel Dean examines the increasing importance of third world countries in global affairs. Their vital natural resources and geostrategic locations make them the object of intense competition between the superpowers and a ripe target for a new category of conflict. Because of the high probability of US involvement in third world conflicts, we must adapt our resources to acquire the flexibility demanded by low-intensity conflict. [David J. Dean / 1986 / 143 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-014-0 / Cost: $4 / AU Press Code: B-16] |
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The Army and Its Air Corps |
From the Armistice in 1918 to the late 1930s, there was continuous controversy over the place of aviation in the military establishment. This book details how airpower visionaries, with varying degrees of tact, often risked charges of insubordination in preaching the gospel of airpower. As aviation technology advanced and as Army leaders were "educated" in the capabilities of aircraft, they showed genuine interest in the potential of airpower. The author contends that their decisions often favored the Air Corps and that the Air arm received a lion's share of the Army budget during a period of extreme austerity. Dr. Tate states that the Air Corps, far from being a stepchild, had become a princess by the late 1930s. [James P. Tate / 1998 / 217 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-059-0 / Cost: $14 / AU Press Code: B-62] |
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The Development of Military Night Aviation to 1919 |
Major Fischer examines the development of military night aviation from its origins through the First World War. Emphasis is on the evolution of night flying in those countries that fought on the Western Front, namely France, Germany, Great Britain, and the United States. While night flying occurred in other theaters, the most intense air effort was clearly in the west. There, belligerents pressed aviation technology and tactics to the limits. To illustrate the rapid development of night military aviation during the First World War, the author surveys the state of night flying prior to August 1914. The author concludes that the Western Front belligerents failed to appreciate and conserve the lessons of night flying learned during the First World War. [William Edward Fischer Jr / 1998 / 172 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-064-7 / Cost: $11 / AU Press Code: B-66] |
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The Development of the B-52 and Jet Propulsion |
National security decision makers face an uncertain world where the accelerated growth of knowledge has changed the character of technological advance and destabilized long-standing relations within and among the military services. Dr Mandeles separates the principles that guide decision making from the proverbs through a case study of decision making in the early post-World War II period. This study examines the impact of organization on the invention and development of jet propulsion-in the form of the B-52-and illustrates both the organizational conditions conducive to developing new operational concepts and the organizational innovations necessary to implement new technology. This study also examines how the Air Force organized to learn and acquire new technology, how the Air Force conceived or identified problems, and how it organized to ensure management would respond to program failure or errors. Attention is devoted to the origins of the weapons system operational requirement, the initial concept of operation, the evolution of technology, organizational structure, and implementation. [Mark D. Mandeles / 1998 / 208 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-036-1 / Cost: $13 / AU Press Code: B-38] |
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The Eagle's Talons |
This volume surveys the American experience in war with emphasis on the complex interactions between political and military affairs. Colonel Drew and Dr. Snow provide a key to understanding how and why the United States might employ its military power in the future. [Dennis M. Drew and Donald M. Snow / 1988 / 445 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-025-6 / Cost: $16 / AU Press Code: B-27] |
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The Foundations of US Air Doctrine |
This study analyzes airpower doctrine from the viewpoint of Clausewitzian friction. The study concludes that American airpower doctrine has changed very little since the 1930s and that it is fundamentally flawed. [Barry D. Watts / 1984 / 159 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-007-8 / Cost: $0 / AU Press Code: B-8] |
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The Influence of Politics, Technology, and Asia on the Future of US Missile Defense |
This work presents an overview of ballistic missile defense (BMD) initiatives and their attendant technologies with a careful analysis of their existing capabilities and potentialities to make recommendations as to the BMD initiatives that are most likely to provide realistic expectations of useful defense capabilities in the near to mid-term. There is also an extended discussion of the implications of BMD in the relationships of the United States and the nations of Asia, particularly Russia, China, India, Pakistan, Iran, North Korea, and Japan. [Lt Col Jeffrey T. Butler, USAF / 2007 / 86 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-167-8 / AU Press Code: P-46] |
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The Paths of Heaven |
The Paths of Heaven counterbalances the Air Force’s tendency to emphasize operational concerns at the expense of theory. Most of the fifteen essays are contributed by current or former faculty of the School of Advanced Airpower Studies at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama. Collectively, the authors trace the development of airpower theory from its origins with Giulio Douhet, through the formulation of airpower doctrine during the interwar years at the Air Corps Tactical School, to current efforts to codify a cogent theory of space power. In the words of retired chief of staff Gen Ronald R. Fogleman, “The Paths of Heaven is a valuable means of increasing our expertise in the employment of airpower.” [Phillip S. Meilinger / 1997 / 680 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-027-2 / Cost: $39 / AU Press Code: B-29] |
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The Quest for Relevant Air Power |
Christian Anrig examines the responses of France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden to the challenges of air power in the last two decades, His examination is both instructive and disheartening. Anyone who is detailed to work alongside these air forces will benefit considerably from understanding how and why they do what they do. Sadly, the author has only too clearly identified the national features which, with one or two exceptions, are likely to inhibit the creation of European air power in the foreseeable future. The author brings deep scholarship to his study, reinforced by his national objectivity. It is a unique and indispensable contribution to international awareness of twenty-first-century air power. [Christian F. Anrig, PhD / 2011 / 425 pages / ISBN: 978-1-58566-216-6 / Cost: $56 / AU Press Code: B-125] |
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The Rise of Air Mobility and Its Generals |
During the rise of fighter generals to preeminence in the Air Force, mobility operations played a significant yet secondary role in airpower strategy. Since the end of the Cold War, however, airlift, air-refueling, and aeromedical-evacuation missions have become an indispensable and direct aspect of US grand strategy. The author examines a shift toward myriad, complex operations demanding mobility aircraft. She also shows that as the number and importance of mobility-centric operations have increased, so has the number of generals with mobility expertise, especially at the most senior levels of the Air Force—a phenomenon that reflects the Air Force’s adaptation to the changing geopolitical environment. [Lt Col Laura L. Lenderman, USAF / 2008 / 110 pages ISBN: 978-1-58566-175-6 / AU Press Code: P-53] |
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The United States Strategic Bombing Surveys |
This volume contains reprints of the Summary Reports—30 September 1945 (European War) and 1 July 1946 (Pacific War)—of the strategic bombing surveys conducted as World War II was coming to a close. Reprint. [Truman Spangrud / 1984 / 127 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-018-3 / Cost: $7.50 / AU Press Code: B-20] |
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The US Response to China’s ASAT Test |
Nearly three years have passed since China’s successful antisatellite (ASAT) test ushered in a new era of space competition. China still offers no answers to one of the most troubling strategic space questions of the twenty-first century: why is China building space weapons? Fundamental changes in the way the United States approaches national security space are long overdue. Poorly implemented policies and futile strategies have hitherto failed to ignite any sense of urgency or rationality in Washington. China’s test must serve to demark the end of failed American assumptions vis-à-vis its future competitive edge in space. Colonel Mastalir suggests that the best response for the United States is to prepare for a very different future in space, not with weapons in kind, but with enduring solutions to preserve the utility of space exploitation for all nations. He recommends that the United States take action to properly align the US instruments of national power to produce an enduring, coherent, multilateral approach toward space power. [Lt Col Anthony J. Mastalir, USAF / 2009 / 149 pages / ISBN: 978-1-58566-197-8 / AU Press Code: P-71] |
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The War in the Air : 1914 - 1994 |
This book contains the proceedings of a conference held by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) in Canberra in 1994. Since its publication by the RAAF’s Air Power Studies Centre in that year, the book has become a widely used reference at universities, military academies, and other educational institutions around the world. This American edition is a somewhat shortened version with minor editorial changes. The contributors discuss the evolution of airpower from World War I to the near future. Essay subjects include World War I; doctrinal development in the interwar period; strategic bombing and support of surface forces in World War II; and airpower in the Korean War, Vietnam War, Arab-Israeli Wars, Falklands War, and Persian Gulf War; plus coverage of airpower in such peripheral conflicts as Operation El Dorado Canyon, the Malayan Emergency, and the Israeli raid on the Osirak nuclear reactor. [Alan Stephens / 2000 / 438 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-087-6 / Cost: $36 / AU Press Code: B-78] |
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The World Wide Military Command and Control System |
In this comprehensive analysis of the worldwide military command and control system (WWMCCS), the author examines how organization, technology, and ideology contributed to the development of WWMCCS. He explains how and why WWMCCS developed the way it did. An interview with the chief technical officer of the system that replaced WWMCCS brings a contemporary flavor to the study. [David E. Pearson / 2000 / 414 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-078-7 / Cost: $37 / AU Press Code: B-76] |
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Understanding Airpower: Bonfire of the Fallacies |
The general purpose of this monograph is to help prevent or reduce error in debates over all aspects of airpower. Since we humans, our institutions and procedures, and our behavior are friction prone and apt to err, it is sensible to try to diminish the pile of assumptions, beliefs, attitudes, and opinions that are plainly wrong. Much of the eternal debate on defense issues cannot usefully be approached with a view to locating error. But, large swathes of frequently contested debating terrain can be cleared definitively. As a scholar it is my duty to “recognize and eliminate the weeds” of falsehood to which Clausewitz referred in one of the epigraphs to this text. This study examines and exposes nine fallacies. [Colin S. Gray/2009/39 pages/P-66] |
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War from above the Clouds |
Dr. Head examines B-52 operations in Vietnam and how the air war affected airpower doctrine and theory. He examines the evolution of this awesome manned strategic weapon in Vietnam to see how the structure of the B-52's originally intended mission altered--if at all--the theories of airpower first put forward by Giulio Douhet and William "Billy" Mitchell. Dr. Head analyzes how this same operational alteration affected official USAF doctrine first formulated by Army Air Corps and Army Air Forces leaders before and during World War II, later modified in the 1950s after the US Air Force became a separate service. Dr. Head contends that the lack of a definitive test for the theory that airpower decisively affects the outcome of war continued during the Vietnam or Second Indochina War. [William P. Head / 2002 / 146 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-107-4 / AU Press Code: P-23] |
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What Happened to Battlefield Air Interdiction? |
Colonel McCaffrey traces air-ground doctrine and operational practices relative to battlefield interdiction from World War I to Operation Desert Storm and suggests at one point that even the flank support for General Patton was, in effect, battlefield air interdiction (BAI). He carries the discussion through the decade after Desert Storm and shows how the issue is too important to be dropped by the Air Force and Army, even as technology provides new weapons for both services. Colonel McCaffrey concludes that there is still need for a BAI-type mission. Both services are searching for an answer to the doctrinal void. [Terrance J. McCaffrey III / 2004 / 144 pages / ISBN: 1-58566-129-5 / AU Press Code: P-33] |
