Soviet Naval Aviation 1946–1991

Yefim Gordon and Dmitriy Komissarov. 368 pp. (Hikoki Publications for SpecialtyPress, North Branch, MN, 2013) $56.95.

Since the demise of the Soviet Union an increasing number of books about the secretive society, especially its military, have been seeing publication in the West. Opening the doors to what appears to be a convoluted jumble of designations and names (compounded by NATO identifications) is greatly welcomed by aviation enthusiasts. But where does one start?

In the sub-genre of Soviet Naval Aviation—the AVMF—this book is most definitely a solid jumping off point. Where most books on Soviet aviation are rough translations of previously published Russian and former Eastern Bloc origin or by Western authors without detailed access, this is the work of long-time Russian aviation enthusiasts and a professional translator. The text shows no indication of stilted translation, what one reads is exactly what the authors meant.

In the West, naval aviation means fixed-wing-capable aircraft carriers. Certainly rotary-wing and land based patrol craft are important, but carriers are the centerpieces. For the Soviets in the early years of the Cold War, land based fixed-wing planes and ship based helicopters were the expedient to countering Western advances. Soviet naval air did not employ carriers until the early 1960s, and at that could only accommodate helicopters for antisubmarine warfare work. They acquired carriers capable of fixed-wing operations only a decade later.

This book documents that history well. Fully the first 250 pages of the 368-page work cover all operations before the introduction of carriers. The closing chapter focuses on the AVMF’s principal weapons and aircraft. Particularly impressive is the authors’ attention to details. That U.S. aircraft are identified by precise designation and bureau numbers would indicate a similar attention to detail of the Soviet aircraft. This impression adds to the book’s veracity.

The authors have provided a wealth of visual information to buttress their text. There are more than 600 large, detailed photographs, many in color, along with numerous color profile drawings. For instance, of the Beriev Be-12 Chayka (Seagull)—NATO’s Mail—there are 13 black-and-white and 11 color photos as well as four profiles.

The only disconcerting point in the book is the authors’ attempt to help with pronunciation. While it is another point demonstrating their consideration for the reader, its fails in execution. The bold type of emphasized syllables is far too pronounced. The thin monotype italics of the Russian words are not all that different from the body text, yet the emboldened syllables are. It is a shame that such a good and valuable work is marred by a simple choice of typefaces.

In all other cases, however, this book is a must-have for anyone interested in Soviet aviation and especially naval aviation.

This book may be ordered from Specialty Press at 1-800-895-4585 or www.specialtypress.com. Shipping and handling is $6.95.

 

Reviewed October 2013

 

Wings of the Navy

by Captain Eric Brown

338 pp.

(Hikoki Publications for SpecialtyPress, North Branch, MN, 2013)

$56.95.

 

For those who appreciate Royal Navy Captain Eric “Winkle” Brown’s literary abilities in communicating the intricacies of flying various aircraft, his long out-of-print Wings of the Navy has been comprehensively updated. Since it was first published in 1980, this book has been a benchmark by which similarly themed books have been judged. And many have been found wanting. This version raises the bar.

Last published by the U.S. Naval Institute in 1987, this version published by Kikoki Publications is virtually double the size covering 30 aircraft compared to the earlier version’s 16. Rather than issuing a Wings of the Navy II, Brown chose to update the original text while adding the new aircraft chapters. For instance, the chapter dedicated to Grumman’s F4F Wildcat has been expanded by a full page over its original dozen. If you own any previous version, you will want to add this to your collection as well. It is that new an animal.

What are unchanged are Winkle’s writing and communication abilities. His insight into the foibles of the aircraft is razor sharp and descriptions will inform the neophyte and entertain the cognoscente. He delivers a solid, dependable work and his credentials are impeccable. He is the Fleet Air Arm’s most decorated pilot and has in his 31-year career flown a record 490 basic types of aircraft and made a world record 2,407 carrier landings in fixed-wing aircraft. He is the only non-American inducted into the U.S. Navy’s Test Pilot Hall of Honor. The book’s focus, as one would expect, is on British and British versions of U.S. types, but this makes it of no less value. Indeed, the insight of a foreign observer helps put U.S. aircraft in perspective.

The raison d’être for this book is its expansion. As noted, the number of aircraft covered has virtually doubled, but also included are three not insignificant chapters on design requirements for naval aircraft, the “delicate art” of deck landing, and test flying at the U.S. Naval Air Test Center. Of the additional 14 aircraft, all but three are jet-powered where all of the original were of World War II vintage or derivation. In total, the book has grown from 176 to 338 pages.

Of the 16 aircraft covered in the first editions, 10 are of solely British origin and use, the remainder are of U.S. construction that were flown by the United Kingdom. The 30 in the current edition split evenly at 15 apiece. To compare the books, below is a spot look at two chapters, one of each nation’s manufacture, with the older edition figures first.

Fairey Swordfish: 13 pages vs. 16 pages; 21 photos vs. 25 (including one in color) of which only 4 are duplicated from the original; both editions have a two-page and one-page cutaway drawings and a ¼-page 3-view drawing. The new edition includes one color profile.

Grumman Hellcat: 10 pages vs. 12 pages; 16 photos (10 U.S. versions) vs. 10 (3 U.S. versions) of which only 2 are repeated; both have the same sized and number drawings as the Swordfish, including the color profile.

The earlier editions were edited by well-known aviation author William Green and they retained the look and feel of his Famous Bombers/Fighters of the Second World War series. Indeed, his version of Wings of the Navy could easily be one of the series. While this version retains the drawings of the earlier, the choice of paper from the original’s glossy clay-coated stock to a matt finish removes any connection with Green.

That is where the caveats come in. The paper choice still allows for excellent photo reproduction, however, the images lack the sparkle of the originals. I also question some photo selections and adjustments to contrast and density to match the paper. But these are technical quibbles.

More significant is the reproduction of the two-page cutaways. All the cutaways have the hallmarks of second-generation images. Although they are slightly smaller than the originals (about 90 to 95 percent)—which should increase apparent sharpness—these do not have that appearance. Also, they lose the fine detail that was held in the originals. Further, all are printed on a light blue background, which does nothing to enhance their contrast.

These points do not in any way diminish the value of this book. If you know Eric Brown’s work, you owe it to yourself to add this to your collection. And, if you’ve never heard of the good captain, this is the prime way to be introduced.

This book may be ordered from Specialty Press at 1-800-895-4585 or www.specialtypress.com. Shipping and handling is $6.95.

 

Reviewed October 2013

U.S. Naval Air Superiority: Delevelopment of Shipborne Jet Fighters — 1943–1962

by Tommy H. Thomason

Specialty Press

2008

This book is a worthwhile investment not only of your money but also your time in reading it.

This book isn’t exactly for the novice reader of naval air material. It presupposes that you bring something to the table in terms of basic knowledge and perhaps some aerodynamics. But that shouldn’t preclude an absolute beginner from picking up this book.

Just looking at the photos (which are excellent) and reading the captions will provide a decent grounding in naval air for the period covered. If that novice should delve into the text, so much the better for there is a wealth of detail that true aeroaficionados will love.

The only disappointing aspect of this book is its illustrations (not the photographs). The drawings of aircraft profiles are amateurist, misleading, and definitely not in keeping with the tenor of this book, which is high-class and informative. But that pales in comparison to what is otherwise available between the covers. You will enjoy this book.

Reviewed September 2008.

Sailors to the End

by Gregory A. Freeman

William Morrow & Co., Inc.

2002

 

 

 

The men—the heroes—of the USS Forrestal deserve better.

Sailors to the End: The Deadly Fire on the USS Forrestal and the Heroes Who Fought It by Gregory A. Freeman (July 2002, William Morrow, $25.95) is, for those unaware or only superficially aware of the events depicted, an engaging, heartbreaking, and powerful read.

It will make the basis for a good 2000-ish special effects movie.

Freeman—an “award-wining journalist”—however, misplaced his journalistic tools when writing this book.

Forty-one years ago, on Saturday, July 29, 1967, the Virginia-born and based USS Forrestal, the first of the super-carriers, was racked by fires and explosions while on Yankee Station off the North Vietnamese coast. It started when a rocket accidentally fired from an F-4 Phantom II fighter hit the fuel tank of a bomb-laden A-4 Skyhawk. One hundred thirty-four sailors and airmen died, hundreds more were wounded, many horribly. Forrestal was but one unlucky explosion from the sea bottom.

Sailors to the End attempts to relate the story in the human terms of the crew who lived the horror of that day.

When the minutia that puts the stamp of veracity onto a subject known by a reader isn’t there or—worse—is wrong, it paints the whole work. Such is the case with this book. Freeman should have hired a competent editor who knows something about the Navy and aircraft carriers. Plus he should have interviewed at least a few of the principals he quoted. Some of the minutia: His description of the catapult launching mechanism more accurately describes that in use today, not the method Forrestal used 41 years ago. An illustration showing the placement of aircraft on deck at the time of the fire is inaccurate and uses F-16—a current Air Force model—outlines and a generic outline to illustrate four different types of aircraft. He uses the term “aviation groups” when making reference to the two fighter squadrons aboard Forrestal. The “head knock” in an A-4 was generally called the “head knocker.”

We learn not only that “the Midway-class ships . . . had played such important roles in World War II” (What were those roles if the first, Midway, was commissioned eight days after the Japanese surrender?) but also that oxygen is the “quintessential fuel for any fire.” That’s not aviation or Navy; it’s bad science, sloppy editing, and poor journalism.

These alone do not make for a bad book, not even for what qualifies as history in today’s pop writings. What does make a bad book is an obvious deliberate omission.

From various citations, the reader can tell Freeman read in part and relied to some degree on the definitive government report on the fire: the Basic Final Investigative Report Concerning the Fire on Board the USS Forrestal (CVA-59). Indeed, it is listed in his bibliography.

Throughout the book, one of the central characters is Lieutenant Commander John S. McCain III, now the senior senator from Arizona. Freeman cites—as do many other sources including the senator—that it was McCain’s Skyhawk that was struck by the Zuni rocket.

However, the first sentence of the Investigative Report at the behest of Rear Admiral Forsyth Massey, Commander in Chief U.S. Atlantic Fleet, states that “A review of the voluminous material contained in the Report of Investigation establishes the central fact that a ZUNI rocket was inadvertently fired from an F-4 aircraft (#110) and struck the external fuel tank of an A-4 aircraft (#405) . . . ”

McCain’s aircraft number was 416.

This is not to imply that McCain is engaging in deceit and others are perpetuating a myth. Quite the contrary; it is in the literal heat of such an occurrence that observation and recollection have their limits. This is simply a matter of written fact as determined by a duly appointed and highly technical investigative body.

Nowhere in the book is the statement of fact as found by the investigative body noted. A good journalist would note the statement of fact no matter what his beliefs. Freeman did not.

What is worse is that the pilot of #405, Lieutenant Commander Fred D. White, is not mentioned anywhere in the book with the sole exception under the list of dead. His rank and pilot status are not mentioned.

White was one of only three pilots killed that day. The others are named as is a description of the occurrence of their deaths. On the previously cited drawing, of the five aircraft involved in the center of the conflagration, all have the pilot’s names beside them, except one. The one in the center. White’s #405.

This is so obvious, it makes one wonder why—if you knew about White in the first place. Reading Sailors to the End, how would one ever know of Fred White?

#405 and Lieutenant Commander White throw a monkey wrench into an otherwise good structure. Maybe this review shouldn’t have mentioned them either.

The final insult to the memory of those who fought for their ship and died so bravely is that many of them aren’t given their due. One would hope that the intention was to spare family members additional grief. It doesn’t read that way.

More than a few can be easily identified by anyone with access to the Investigative Report. They are not. The more fortunate ones get first names or nicknames. One of the dead so named, however, was not on the deceased list.

Then there are questions concerning the principals.

More than a full page is devoted to Captain—then Lieutenant (j.g.)—Dave Dollarhide’s experiences. Dollarhide was never interviewed by Freeman. Dollarhide told me so when I interviewed him. McCain’s Skyhawk was between that of Dollarhide on the left and White’s on the right. Freeman has Dollarhide escaping by going over the nose of the aircraft, when with fire all around the right of his A-4, Dollarhide jumped over the left sill. Freeman also misidentified his rescuer.

Senator McCain’s actions were described including that “he heard two loud clanks.” “I never said that. I don’t know where he got that,” the senator told this reviewer. The author never interviewed McCain according to the senator. I did.

Admittedly, there is a little sniping in this review. All the shots, however, are warranted. Many of the proud crew of Forrestal will look to this book as their story. Rightly so. It is, but, there are crucial points, which make it significantly less than what it could and should have been.

The definitive book on the gallant men and their ship has yet to be written.

 

Reviewed September 2008.