Böcker av Peter Mersky

At the A-7 Corsair II's peak in the mid-1980s, some 30 US Navy squadrons flew various versions of the aircraft, including six Naval Air Reserve units, and these many of these units saw action across the Middle East. By the time the jet saw combat in Operation Desert Storm (1991), there remained only two fleet squadrons - many fleet squadrons having either disestablished or transitioned to the F/A­18 Hornet - but both of these units (VA-46 and VA-72) played a major role in the campaign to free Kuwait. The book details the technological development and improvements that were introduced to the airframe post-Vietnam (the FLIR targeting pod from 1979 and AGM-88 HARM missile from 1983 being the most important), and how they shaped operational employment of the aircraft. The jet's combat experiences in conflicts during the 1970s (Cambodia), 1980s (Lebanon, Grenada, Libya and Iran), and 1990s (Iraq) are explained in detail, and Peter Mersky's expert analysis is supported by numerous first-hand accounts from naval aviators that saw action with the A-7 during these campaigns.

Revered by Naval Aviators as the 'last of the gunfighters' due to its quartet of Colt-Browning Mk 12 20 mm cannon, the F-8 Crusader enjoyed great success against VPAF MiG-17s during the Rolling Thunder campaign of 1966-68. This title deals with this aircraft.

Follows the service of the Crusader from its launch in 1957, throughout the Cuban missile crisis and the Vietnam War. The comprehensive text includes pilots explainng the tactics used in fighter, bomber and recce sorties and there are detailed spreads on uniforms worn by RF-8 pilots.

Seeing considerable combat in the nearly 50 years since its service introduction, the Skyhawk was involved in the Vietnam War (1955-1975) from the very beginning. Navy and Marine Corps A-4s quickly established a presence in Southeast Asia, flying from aircraft carriers and land bases in South Vietnam in thousands of sorties against the entrenched communist forces from Hanoi to the communist supply lines along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. This book includes details of missions including the siege of Khe Sanh, Lam Son and the contentious invasion of Laos and Cambodia in 1971 and gives a fascinating account of the variety of missions pilots were asked to perform. These operations were not without risk, and large numbers of A-4s were shot down and their pilots killed or, like Edward Alvarez, imprisoned as POWs for up to eight years in appalling conditions.Officially endorsed by the Skyhawk Association and including first-hand accounts from veteran pilots who flew one of the greatest attack aircraft ever, Peter Mersky provides an insightful account of some of the most thrilling aerial combat missions that took place during Vietnam and the pilots who flew them. The first book to focus on the A-4''s Vietnam service, this title is supported by previously unpublished colour and black and white photographs with 30 detailed colour profiles.

Arriving on station with the USS Ranger (CVA-61) in early December 1967, the first Corsair II squadron became operational immediately and sustained its first combat loss three weeks later. This text tells how the A-7 soon proved its worth supporting ground operations in South Vietnam.

Known by its pilots as the "last of the gunfighters" due to its four 20mm Colt cannons, the F-8 Crusader enjoyed much success against North Vietnamese MiG-17s and -21s in the late 1960s. This volume includes interviews with many F-8 pilots of this period.