Leeham News and Analysis
There's more to real news than a news release.
There's more to real news than a news release.
Leeham News and Analysis
- How Trump tariffs affected, and could affect, Airbus, Boeing and Embraer December 6, 2024
- Start-up hybrid plane OEM MAEVE teams with MHIRJ for sales, more December 5, 2024
- Production increase delays hurt Airbus costs December 2, 2024
- Books to consider for Christmas November 29, 2024
- Slow, methodical process to restore Boeing’s trust, efficiencies November 28, 2024
Books to consider for Christmas
By Scott Hamilton
Nov. 29, 2024, © Leeham News: In America, it’s the day after Thanksgiving and this means the official start of Christmas shopping season.
Air Wars
- Air Wars, The Global Combat Between Airbus and Boeing, by…me. Sorry, I can’t help putting my
own book at the top of the list. Published in September 2021 while Boeing was still dealing with the grounded 737 MAX and the whole industry with the COVID-19 pandemic, Air Wars covers 33 years to September 2021 of the product and marketing strategies between Airbus and Boeing. There is special focus on Airbus’ super-salesman, John Leahy. But there is plenty of on-the-record input from Boeing executives like Scott Carson, Jim Albaugh and Ray Conner (all retired CEOs of Boeing Commercial Airplanes), Boeing and Airbus salesmen, and customers. The book tells the story about Boeing squandering its dominance and of mistakes by both companies. The book was rated Number 1 buys in the aviation sector by Amazon for a time, and on the recommended Buy lists of the year by the Royal Aeronautical Society and the Puget Sound (Seattle) Business Journal. Available in the US, select Europe and Asian Amazon outlets.
Flying for Peanuts
- Flying for Peanuts, by Frank Lorenzo. I also had a hand in this book, collaborating with Lorenzo on
the project for a time. But this is not why I’m recommending it. This is Lorenzo’s memoirs. He was a key player in the US airline industry for 25 years and, yes, he left the industry in 1990. Lorenzo was among the first to recognize the opportunities and the threats US deregulation of 1978 represented to the airline industry. He owned the smallest “local service” airline and faced going out of business unless he grew Texas International exponentially and rapidly. Even before deregulation became law, he persuaded the regulator to grant him the ability to adopt very low, unrestricted, system-wide fares branded Peanut Fares (hence the name of the book). Traffic and profits exploded. He sought to grow by making tender offers for other airlines. He lost some and won some and, in the process, incurred the wrath of the labor unions who understood all too well that his business model would infect the other airlines. This is a great read and history of that era, which transformed US airlines and eventually spread to the rest of the world.
Masters of the Air
- Masters of the Air, by Donald L Miller. A history of the US Eighth Air Force in World War II. Great book, horrible multi-episode series adaptation on Apple +. Any military historian knows the horrible toll the bombing campaign took on the US Air Force and on the German occupied countries and the home country. This book personalizes many stories of this campaign: the pilots and crews, downed crewmen on enemy territory, how mistreated crewmen were in Switzerland after the wound up there through emergency landings or avoiding/escaping Germans, and more. A very good if sometimes a very tough and graphic read.
Ghosts of Honolulu
- The Ghosts of Honolulu, by Mark Harmon and Leon Carroll Jr. This is a history of the Japanese spying on Pearl Harbor in the pre-Dec. 7 era and into World War II. It tells the beginnings of the Naval Criminal Investigation Services (NCIS, Harmon’s long-running TV show that prompted several NCIS spin-offs) and how the Navy continued to use loyal Japanese Americans during the war for counter-intelligence even as thousands American citizens of Japanese descent were shipped to prison camps within the US for the duration merely because of their ancestry. It’s a story that I’d never seen before. The writing style is in the present tense, an annoyance, but don’t let this stop you.
For Crew and Country
- For Crew and Country: The Inspirational True Story of Bravery and Sacrifice Aboard the USS Samuel B. Roberts, By John Wukovitz. This is a World War II naval battle story that ranks as one of the greatest between American and Japanese forces. In my mind, this is also one of the most remarkable stories of bravery ever. While the book focuses on the tiny destroyer escort, Samuel B. Roberts, two other destroyers, also went down in the annals of bravery. This is the story of the Battle of Sumar in the Leyte Gulf as American forces recaptured the Philippines. It’s best known as a major blunder by four-star Admiral William “Bull” Halsey, although some historians dispute this interpretation. American forces comprised only of escort aircraft carriers, destroyers and destroyer escorts faced down a task force of Japanese cruisers and battleships while Haley’s BBs were chasing after another task force of Japanese decoy aircraft carriers and BBs. The American tin cans aggressively attacked the much larger cruisers and battleships to protect the vulnerable escort carriers. As the captain of the destroyer USS Johnson prepared to attack, he told his crew he did not expect his ship to survive. He was right. The Roberts, smaller than the Johnson, also sacrificed itself against the larger Japanese task force. Remarkably, this task force turned tail after a ferocious battle against the inferior American ships, having mistaken them for cruisers and fleet carriers. As the task force retreated, a sailor on one of the escort carriers shouted, “they are getting away.” Before the Japanese turned tail, a sailor on another carrier shouted that the ships were finally being drawn into the range of their 5-inch pop guns, the largest on the carriers.
No Higher Honor: Saving the USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf
- No Higher Honor: Saving the USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf, by Bradley Penniston. The story of the DE “Sammy B” ended in the South Pacific, but its bravery lived on in the modern Navy. A frigate was named for the brave ship. During the Iran-Iraq War, Iran mined the Persian Gulf. The US dispatched the navy to escort tankers and freighters of non-belligerents through the dangerous waters. One of the frigates was the namesake USS Samuel B Roberts. This Sammy B struck a mine. As sailors battled the incoming rush of water and fires, the Sammy B got lower and lower in the water. The captain eventually realized that the crew was sinking their own ship with all the fire fighting water. Controversially, he ordered the crew to stop fighting the fires, to the dismay of some of his officers and crew. But it was the right decision. Even as the fires burned out, the ship was saved. It’s a great story and a great sequel to the other Sammy B.
Excellent picks indeed! However, would recommend two more for the aviation buffs.
1. Airbus vs. Boeing: Strategy Wars, Tactical Dogfights, High-G Maneuvers and the Photo-finishes – 1970s to 2020 available on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/Airbus-vs-Boeing-Dogfights-Perspective-ebook/dp/B09RV5X4ZV
2. PowerPlay: Engine Wars in Commercial Aviation: GE Aviation, Pratt & Whitney, Rolls Royce, Safran https://www.amazon.com/PowerPlay-Engine-Commercial-Aviation-Whitney-ebook/dp/B0CC2ZHMQF
Happy Holidays!
For Crew and Country
For Crew and Country: The Inspirational True Story of Bravery and Sacrifice Aboard the USS Samuel B. Roberts, By John Wukovitz.
“Taffy 3”
Great story of heroism.
This was followed up with another Halsey misstep – Typhoon Cobra, in which he sailed his fleet into a typhoon, killing 790 sailors, sinking three destroyers and losing dozens of aircraft. Yes, Halsey was given incorrect info, but despite warnings, sailed the 3rd Fleet right into the heart of the storm.
In the words of Admiral Chester Nimitz, the typhoon’s impact “…represented a more crippling blow to the Third Fleet than it might be expected to suffer in anything less than a major action.”
Thx
While there have been acts of individual bravery, nothing I have ever read matches what the Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors did that day. They knew they stood no chance, they knew they were going to die and they did it anyway.
WWII has been an areas I have read everything I could get my hands on. Pacific history being a mainstay as my Dad served out there on gunboats during the war (he was with the Invasion fleet in Leyte Gulf).
My opinion is Halsey was mentally ill in that period. He actually ran his fleet into two Typhoons (one of my dads ships is shown washed up on Okinawa post one of the two).
One aspect not commented on though the battle reports reveal it. Halsey did strike the Central Fleet with a massive air attack.
There was no assigned attack air manager over the fleet (that was the norm by then). Rather than damage a lot of ships, they got obsessed with the Mushashi (18 inch BB Elder Sister to the Yamato) and ignored most of the other ships (which was why you had an attack commander to stop that behavior). Mushashi was sunk and few other ships were hit at all.
Halsey of all people would know attack claims were exaggerated. But accepting that allowed him to follow his obsession with a known to be depleted Japanese Carrier Aviators/Aviation branch (the Mariannes Turkey shoot showed they no longer were the Kido Butai of the early war.
One line of 4 fast US Battleships as the Central Force exited the San Bernardino Strait would have ended Central Force (or follow up monitoring of Central Force and more air attacks).
I do not accept Kurita thought he was engaging the main US Carriers. His orders were specific as to die in the attempt. Like the failure to follow up at Salvo Island, there was something missing in Japanese Navy Leaders. The Brits had it and the US had it when it counted.
We can be beyond grateful that Karita did turn around. Loss of the Invasion fleet and the massive casualties would have extended the war at least 6 months and probably longer.
Its worth noting that none of the Taffy Groups had anti ship weapons (torpedoes or Armor piercing bombs). They were a Close Air support to the Invasion and not equipped let alone trained for a fleet action.
What they attacked with was their close air support weapons and any navy commander would know the difference between Dive Bombers and Torpedo attack and what they were having thrown at them (including the Wildcats that were 2nd line Aircraft for a year at that point). Worked on the Jeep Carriers but not the Hellcat mainstay.
Another great read about the Battle off Samar is “The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors” by James D. Hornfischer. Many regard this battle as the finest two hours in the history of the United States Navy, and is also known as “The Battle of Bull’s Run”.
Sparky wrote……
Many regard this battle as the finest two hours in the history of the United States Navy,
So true. As the Sammy B sank, a Japanese Can passed by and her bridge crew saluted her…….
I would say it was the finest time of any USN action ever.
I don’t disagree that the Midway battle rose to that level on individual basis and particularly the torpedoes planes.
Frankly I would say it was as good or better than any Navy in history.
No dissing indivual ships and men (mostly) through Navy history.
But facing off against a Battle Fleet of all those Battleships, Cruisers let alone the destroyers with them?
A day when Courage was common (and that is a paraphrase of sorts).
I Mean To Go In Harms Way, he did and his men and the men of the rest of the Escorts went with him and faced down the unfaceable let lone winning.
Speaking of Harm’s Way, the movie In Harm’s Way was loosely based on the Battle of Samar.
I own (and still have somewhere packed away) the two tape VHS copy of that film, by Otto Preminger.
There was a little bit of personal drama in the film, but I found it touched on a variety of topics.
One of them was the anti-war sentiment still prevalent in the US at the time (John Wayne’s estranged son calls it “Roosevelt’s trumped up war” IIRC, at one point in the movie).
They don’t make movies like this, anymore….
Fate is the Hunter by Ernest Gann.
About the early days of commercial aviation.
Gann was a pilot before radar, when flying was risky and fate was always trying to seek you out.
He is an excellent writer and story teller and you feel you are right there with him in the plane as he is doing his job.
My favourite aviation book.
That has long been a family ref/term used. Often shortened to “The Hunter”.
We grew up on the cutting edge of modern Aviation. First jet ride (DC-8) out of Annette Island AK, talk about a shock. Off the ground and we are climbing like nothing possibly could.
Also of the era when a DC-6 ditched off Biorka Island (Sitka Sound) as specified with a runaway prop. Rare calm day, one broken ankle because the Coast Guard insisted on a transfer from the FAA vessel that got there first.
Yea, politics goes back a long long way.
Trip from Chicago to Milwaukee via DC-3. Engine is spouting oil and rivets popping on the wing. Called the Stewardess (yes female only in those days) and pointed it out (3 very knowledgeable boys). Oh, that is normal.
Ma’m, we know better! (we had been dropped off in Chicago by our escort so we were just 4 boys – have to guess around 7 for me.
The Hunter is always out there and we have seen far too much of it.
Thanks Scott! I’ll be picking up a few of them.
Another recommendation:
Operation Revenge by Dan Hampton. It’s about how US intelligence intercepted Japanese code and commenced to go after Admiral Yamamoto, the brains behind Pearl Harbor. They used P-38’s.
It’s excellent and a page turner.
Also the Brains behind Midway, serious thought that maybe he was best left in place!zz
But by far, the best aviation adventure story ever written is “The Sky Beyond” by Sir Gordon Taylor. He was an Australian aviator who writes one chapter about WWI but the rest of the book is about various exploring flights, such as flying the Tasman Sea in a 100-kt airplane, the first west-to-east crossing of the Pacific Ocean, the first aerial crossing of the Indian Ocean, North Atlantic during WWII, and many others. It’s written in an open, free-wheeling style, and most chapters end with a zinger that will surprise you. Outstanding read!
Alex Hailey’s Airport was written in the late 60s. Well-researched and written and then watch the movie adaption Airport where Joe Patroni starts his Hollywood aviation career.
The Battle of Sumar needs some framing for the US Side vs what they faced.
The USN as on several occasions got caught out and tens of thousand could have died and an invsation force left stranded as happened at Gudalecanal (as well as Savo Islan)
A very short version was that Halsey, the Fleet Carriers (tasked with Fleet Attack) hared off chasing the remnants to the Japanese Carriers (depleted of air arm, simply bait).
The US Battleship;s with Halsey were simply AA platforms. The Japanese Carriers were too fast for their BB to escort and the US BB had no place other than AA platform (and the Carriers job was to sink anything Japanese, not get US BB into Gun range).
Japanese Force was 4 Battleships, 6 Heavy Cruisers, 2 Light Cruisers and 11 Destroyers.
Vs:
3 US Destroyers and 4 Escort Ships (aka so called Destroyer Escort aka DE)
The DE were intended as Anti Submarine and AA, not the role of a full on Destroyers (note ALL 11 of the Japaneses were Full On Destroyers of the type that fought the US Cruisers and Destroyers to a standstill at Guadalcanal)
None of those US ships had any expectation of anything other than Anti Sub and AA (the Destroyers could be assigned fleet duties but the DE no, too slow though the ones at Sumar were the fastest of the type, slower than all the Japanese ships)
Only due to a mandatory requirement did the DE have Torpedoes and the Destroyers could well have left their behind sans the possible need to run independent ops or move over to fleet duties.
The odds were insanely lopsided.
In scope of the season and the attached sentiment:
“The Shepherd”, Frederick Forsyth.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shepherd