Fall of the Flying Dragon
South Vietnamese Air Force 1973-75
Published on 19. October 2011
Book
Paperback/Softback
294 pages
978-0-9825539-7-8 (ISBN)
Description
Compiled with extensive help from previously unavailable documents that have emerged from official Vietnamese archives, and also with the assistance of narratives from dozens of participants and eyewitnesses, this volume reveals that air warfare over Vietnam did not end when the US pulled out of Southeast Asia.
On the contrary, in the wake of the US withdrawal, and following the ceasefire in early 1973, North Vietnam redoubled its effort to conquer the southern part of the country. The often disparaged and underestimated South Vietnamese Air Force (VNAF) - at the time claimed to have been the fourth largest air arm in the world - fought a series of ever larger and more mechanized air-land battles under circumstances for which it was neither equipped nor designed to operate.
This volume details these bitter battles and the final collapse of South Vietnam in unprecedented detail, and always in a dramatic and fascinating fashion. The book reveals the full details of the courage of the VNAF pilots and personnel, but also the sheer terror many of them had to endure.
On the contrary, in the wake of the US withdrawal, and following the ceasefire in early 1973, North Vietnam redoubled its effort to conquer the southern part of the country. The often disparaged and underestimated South Vietnamese Air Force (VNAF) - at the time claimed to have been the fourth largest air arm in the world - fought a series of ever larger and more mechanized air-land battles under circumstances for which it was neither equipped nor designed to operate.
This volume details these bitter battles and the final collapse of South Vietnam in unprecedented detail, and always in a dramatic and fascinating fashion. The book reveals the full details of the courage of the VNAF pilots and personnel, but also the sheer terror many of them had to endure.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Houston
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
with 294 b/w, 117 colour pictures, 1 map, and30 colour drawings
Dimensions
Height: 279 mm
Width: 210 mm
ISBN-13
978-0-9825539-7-8 (9780982553978)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Military historian and aviation-journalist, Albert Grandolini, was born in France and gained an MA in history from Paris I Sorbonne University. His primary research focus is on contemporary conflicts in general and particularly on the military history of Asia. Having spent his childhood in South Vietnam, the Vietnam War has been one of his main fields of research. He is the author of the books "The Fall of the Flying Dragon, South Vietnamese Air Force (1973-1975)" with Harpia Publishing and "Armor of the Vietnam War: the Asian Forces", Concord Publishing. He is also co-author of the two volumes on Libyan Air Wars with Helion in the Africa@War Series. He had also written numerous articles for various British, French and German magazines, such as "Air Enthusiast", "Flieger Revue Extra", "Fana de l'aviation", "Tank Zone" and "Batailles et Blindes". He has regularly contributed to the Air Combat Information Group (ACIG) and the Au Dela de la Colline military history French Website.