Topgun
An American Story
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4.8 • 5 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
A NATIONAL BESTSELLER
On the 50th anniversary of the creation of the "Topgun" Navy Fighter School, its founder shares the remarkable inside story of how he and eight other risk-takers revolutionized the art of aerial combat.
"A noble, thrillingly realized combat aviation memoir from one of America's finest." -Kirkus Reviews
When American fighter jets were being downed at an unprecedented rate during the Vietnam War, the U.S. Navy turned to a young lieutenant commander, Dan Pedersen, to figure out a way to reverse their dark fortune. On a shoestring budget and with little support, Pedersen picked eight of the finest pilots to help train a new generation to bend jets like the F-4 Phantom to their will and learn how to dogfight all over again.
What resulted was nothing short of a revolution—one that took young American pilots from the crucible of combat training in the California desert to the blistering skies of Vietnam, in the process raising America's Navy combat kill ratio from two enemy planes downed for every American plane lost to more than 22 to 1. Topgun emerged not only as an icon of America's military dominance immortalized by Hollywood, but as a vital institution that would shape the nation's military strategy for generations to come.
Pedersen takes readers on a colorful and thrilling ride, from Miramar to Area 51 to the decks of aircraft carriers in war and peace, through a historic moment in air warfare. He helped establish a legacy that was built by him and his "Original Eight"—the best of the best—and carried on for six decades by some of America's greatest leaders.
Topgun is a heartfelt and personal testimony to patriotism, sacrifice, and American innovation and daring.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
The name Topgun makes many of us think of Tom Cruise in aviators—but even Maverick himself has nothing on Dan Pedersen. The mind behind the US Navy’s Topgun fighter pilot training program details one of the most impactful military careers in history in his illuminating memoir. Having witnessed firsthand the troubling ineffectiveness of US aerial-combat strategy in Vietnam, Pedersen was allowed to start a training program in California that ultimately restored American air superiority. The exploits of the instructors who ran that program (known as the Original Bros) had us absolutely riveted. Pedersen is a fascinating man who isn’t afraid to take aim at bureaucratic nonsense—or at himself, for letting his service impact his personal life. If the movies left you even a little bit curious about the real Topgun school, this blistering listen will not disappoint.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this fast-paced memoir, Dan "Yank" Pedersen, who cofounded the U.S. Navy Fighter Weapons School (widely known by its nickname "Topgun") in 1969, looks back at his 29-year Navy aviation career. Pedersen and the men who worked for and with him in Topgun developed innovative aerial combat tactics and techniques that significantly increased the effectiveness of American jet fighter pilots in the Vietnam War. Full of reflection and blow-by-blow accounts of wartime air combat action, the book is a paean to the "brotherhood" of "committed, driven,... crisp, smart, quick, deadly and confident" Topgun Navy fighter jet pilots. Pedersen includes a sharp critique of how the Johnson administration managed the air war in Vietnam, blasting LBJ and Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara for micromanaging and for imposing stifling rules of engagement, and a word of praise for Tom Skerritt's character in the movie Topgun, who "captured the character of Topgun leadership." He also includes details of his two broken marriages and the large chunks of time he spent away from his three children the "one regret" of his military career. This remembrance of aerial derring-do is sure to appeal to military aviators and fans of the world of fighter pilots, past and present.)
Customer Reviews
Top Gun - The True Story
An action packed account of the history of the Top Gun navy flight combat training approach as told by a participant. Contains much information on fighter jet aircraft and the men who flew them. Covers many years of time and is a very worthwhile read.