Designed to form the backbone of Strategic Air Command’s nuclear deterrent, the B-52 force was brought to higher states of readiness whenever crisis threatened the USA, most notably when Kennedy and Khruschev went eyeball-to-eyeball over Cuba. Soon afterwards, B-52s formed the backbone of the USAF’s bombing campaign in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. This book follows the story of the B-52 from its genesis to its first combat missions in June 1965 and through to the briefly sustained but bloodily fought Linebacker II offensive in late 1972. Even after the withdrawal of US forces in 1973, B-52s remained in-theatre, flying training missions mainly from Guam.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Great source of information but...:
There are numerous typographical and historical errors (mostly typos) in this book that make it difficult to read. There is an Errata page provided by the author with the book that clears up the largest errors but there are still so many errors that I wonder how the editor and publisher of this book are still in business. I did enjoy reading it, however, and reccomend it to any SAC fan who can get past the typos.
You must get this book...:
Wow the mighty b-52 has a great history indeed.I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a b-52 buff like myself.The Vietnam war stories are just awesome to read.I really learned so much from this book.Osprey publishing has some great books i go get this book right now!
Outstanding book:
This is another fine book from Osprey Publishing.
As promised by the title, the focus is on combat operations involving the B-52. There is an overview of the development of the aircraft and its Cold War deterrence mission, but that is cursory and serves to set the stage for the employment of the B-52 in Vietnam. The text is well-written and contains plenty of detail. The color plates are outstanding, as is the accompanying text.
The military aviation enthusiast, this would be an excellent choice.
