The erstwhile enemy of the USAF and US Navy during the nine years of American involvement in the Vietnam War, the Vietnamese Peoples' Air Force (VPAF) quickly grew from an ill-organised rabble of poorly trained pilots flying antiquated communist aircraft into a highly effective fighting force that more than held its own over the skies of North Vietnam. Flying Soviet fighters like the MiG-17, and -19, the VPAF produced over a dozen aces, whilst the Americans managed just two pilots and three navigators in the same period.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
The other side of the coin:
I picked this book up to expand my knowledge on the Vietnam Air War, primarily the Vietnamese MiG's they used. Dr. Toperczer's work gives us a relatively neutral view (Dr. Toperczer is a Hungarian flight surgeon who has access to the Vietnamese records on the war). In this work, Dr. Toperczer tells us about the growth of the Vietnamese Air Force from two private planes to their use of MiG 17's and MiG 19's. Each of the MiG's receives a chapter of their own (the MiG 19's chapter is fairly small since it saw... more info
Research Information:
This book is technically what the researcher needs for other activities. In this case I was reviewing possible paint schemes for a museum MiG-17. It served our purpose well with the many pictures.
Very Important piece of research:
An absolute wealth of information conerning the VPAF and MIG-17 (as well as MIG-19) units of the Vietnam war. Includes a very rare victory listing of VPAF pilots including which victories can be confirmed by US loss records.
A little light on the Russian contribution:
Some of the best aircraft views and paint schemes of PAVN aircraft are found in this book and they are perhaps its strongest feature. This material is seldom found in compiled form in Western publications. Where the book is weakest is in its examination of the tactical utilization of MiG 17 and 19 aircraft, "cross-cultural" comparisons with American aircraft and tactics, and the role of Russian pilots and intercept controllers. The author shows a familiarity with Soviet-bloc tactical air doctrine but does... more info
