Books about Airlift from Amazon.com

The masterfully told story of the unlikely men who came together to make the Berlin Airlift one of the great military and humanitarian successes of American history.

On the sixtieth anniversary of the Berlin Airlift, Andrei Cherny tells a remarkable story with profound implications for the world today. In the tradition of the best narrative storytellers, he brings together newly unclassified documents, unpublished letters and diaries, and fresh primary interviews to tell the story of the ill-assorted group of castoffs and second-stringers who not only saved millions of desperate people from a dire threat but changed how the world viewed the United States, and set in motion the chain of events that would ultimately lead to the dismantling of the Berlin Wall and to America’s victory in the Cold War.

On June 24, 1948, intent on furthering its domination of Europe, the Soviet Union cut off all access to West Berlin, prepared to starve the city into submission unless the Americans abandoned it. Soviet forces hugely outnumbered the Allies’, and most of America’s top officials considered the situation hopeless. But not all of them.

Harry Truman, an accidental president, derided by his own party; Lucius Clay, a frustrated general, denied a combat command and relegated to the home front; Bill Tunner, a logistics expert downsized to a desk job in a corner of the Pentagon; James Forrestal, a secretary of defense beginning to mentally unravel; Hal Halvorsen, a lovesick pilot who had served far from the conflict, flying transport missions in the backwater of a global war—together these unlikely men improvised and stumbled their way into a uniquely American combination of military and moral force unprecedented in its time.

This is the forgotten foundation tale of America in the modern world, the story of when Americans learned, for the first time, how to act at the summit of world power—a masterful and exciting work of historical narrative, and one with strong resonance for our time..
Price: $15.90 [Notify me when price goes down.]

With its fleet of large transport aircraft, the United States military can put personnel and equipment anywhere on the globe within hours. In the Iraq and Afghanistan wars in particular, virtually every soldier, every bullet, every pint of blood, and every bite of food have arrived in the war zone by airlift. Transport aircrews have accompanied the troops from the beginning, flying them in, supplying them, bringing them out for medical treatment or rotations home, and in the most heart-breaking missions, carrying them on their final journey back to grieving relatives.

This book tells the story of one Air National Guard airlift wing as related by its members. The 167th Airlift Wing of the West Virginia Air National Guard consisted of a squadron of 12 C-130 cargo planes, their crews, and all the supporting sections--in all, more than 1,200 people. The author, a former Associated Press reporter turned aviator, flew as an active member of that unit and interviewed nearly 70 servicemen and women for this book. Their stories include C-130 aircrews who dodged heat-seeking missiles, mechanics who made combat repairs, flight nurses who treated and transported the wounded, even two motor pool truck drivers struck by a roadside bomb. The interviewees vividly describe their day-to-day work in the war zone, revealing the inner workings of a part of the military not usually well covered by the news media..
Price: $33.25 [Notify me when price goes down.]

In February 1967, Air Force Lieutenant Vaughan arrived at Ching Chuan Kang Air Base in Taiwan to begin 14 months as a C-130 Hercules pilot, airlifting supplies and troops throughout southeast Asia. Feeling well suited, Vaughan had volunteered for the duty, but little had he realized the pressure associated with flying the heavy cargo plane under combat conditions and taking off and landing on the short runways that dotted the Vietnamese countryside. Among his most harrowing duties was the aerial resupply of the Marine base at Khe Sanh during the most intense action of the Tet Offensive. This is the story of an Air Force pilot's progression from inexperienced flyer to veteran crew member and how he came of age under combat conditions..
Price: $35.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Edwin Gere's The Unheralded: Men and Women of the Berlin Blockade and Airlift tells the story of the greatest humanitarian effort in modern history With the ground and water routes to West Berlin blockaded by the Soviet Union, the extraordinary Berlin airlift flew coal, food, medicine, and everything needed for survival to 2.24 million West Berliners for 462 days until traditional supply routes were restored in September 1949.

Through personal memoirs, The Unheralded salutes the thousands of ground forces, enlisted soldiers, sailors, and airmen (men and women both), noncommissioned air crew, and German civilians whose valiant efforts made the airlift a success. The Unheralded includes over 30 photographs and gives a concise, insightful history of the Soviet blockade and Berlin airlift. The Unheralded also presents, for the first time, both the biographical detail and accounts of the American, British and Commonwealth subjects, and Germans who lost their lives in airlift-related accidents..
Price: $23.95 [Notify me when price goes down.]

In The Two O'Clock War Walter J. Boyne chronicles with intense detail the brief but furious October 1973 invasion of Israel by Egypt and Syria, an episode also known as the Yom Kippur War. Boyne alternates his attention between actual battlefield descriptions and the equally frantic maneuvering by diplomats and statesmen of the combatant countries, their allies. and, most ominously, Russia and the United States, which refused to stop rattling their sabers at each other. At least twice, the region--and by implication the greater world--came perilously close to suffering the ultimate nightmare: nuclear war. Boyne's language is often blunt but he is generally fair-minded: his showers of blame and praise fall on individuals on both sides of the conflict. Running through the book is his premise, convincingly presented, that a massive American airlift--Operation Nickel Grass--was the decisive factor in Israel's fending off defeat. The book--especially its military sections--demands a reader's full attention. --H. O'Billovich.
Price: $11.70 [Notify me when price goes down.]

1948: The Crossroads Year by James F. Nagle is a fascinating exploration of how 1948 forever changed America-and why. The turning point in the struggle between Western democracy and Eastern absolutism as symbolized by the Soviet Union, 1948 changed the way the world worked and the way America thought. As the nation grappled with a post war environment, its people began to question their role in this new society and the path on which America now seemed headed. There was a huge migration of black people from the South. Easterners set their sights on the sunnier climes of California. Suddenly, apartment dwelling gave rise to a new phenomenon of suburbia. This was also the year that Israel was created and the first Arab-Israeli war was fought. From the Truman Doctrine to the popularization of television, Nagle investigates how one unique year has impacted our society right into our present day. Written in sparkling prose, Nagle brings a you-are-there perspective as he explores how and why Americans decided which bridges to build in their new lives-and which ones they should burn. A perfect book for history aficionados or baby boomers, 1948: The Crossroads Year is a portrait of the way we were-and how we became who we are..
Price: $18.99 [Notify me when price goes down.]

A detailed description of the Douglas C-133 Cargomaster by an author who served as navigator in the Cargomaster during the last two years of its 15-year AF service A brief history of strategic airlift precedes an account of USAF proof-of-concept testing of turboprop propulsion. C-133 design, development and flight testing provide the foundation for development of air and ground crew and worldwide airlift routes. Topical chapters cover technical information, C-133 employment, support to NASA and the strategic missile force and its employment in the Vietnam War and on special missions of all kinds. Of 50 built, ten C-133s were lost in accidents. The crashes chapter gives complete details of the accidents and the most comprehensive analysis available of the reasons for the losses. Three squadrons flew the C-133 and are detailed in their own chapter, as are histories of each of the fifty airplanes built. The book concludes with a chapter on the never-built Douglas C-132, which would have been the worlds largest turboprop aircraft. More than 330 photos and illustrations show the airplanes and people. The index lists over 970 persons as well as other topics and there is an extensive bibliography. The16-page color section shows aircraft interiors and operational activities. Eight fold-out sheets contain large Douglas factory drawings and one large C-133 photograph..
Price: $34.95 [Notify me when price goes down.]

This history of the Berlin airlift presents the inspiring story that marked the climax of the first Cold War crisis. The United States and its Allies mobilized an airlift of tons of supplies each day that helped residents of Berlin survive a 11-month siege of their city. Precise facts regarding everything from tonnage to unit deployment support an in-depth analysis of the logistics of the endeavor. Included is a list of RAF units involved, a chronology, and documents detailing the partition of Berlin and Germany. Framed within the transition from World War II to the Cold War, Berlin Airlift explores how this massive movement of supplies transformed the world of aviation.

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Price: $12.47 [Notify me when price goes down.]

The Nigerian Civil War broke out in 1967 after the country's Eastern Region declared itself the independent state of Biafra. The war lasted three years, pitting the Nigerian Air Force against the ill-equipped Biafran Air Force in one of the most intense conflicts ever to occur on African soil. The Biafran Air Force was armed with a motley mix of antiquated and modem aircraft, whereas the Nigerian Air Force was made up of mostly mercenary-crewed MiG 17s, Il 28s and L-29 Delfins. Biafra was not only overshadowed and outclassed by Nigeria, but it was also landlocked for most of the conflict. However, despite the many setbacks, the Biafran Air Force held out, supporting an amazing airlift of food and arms, second only to the Berlin Airlift of 1948. Fusing firsthand accounts and much original documentation, Shadows is the story of the largest civilian relief airlift ever mounted. Shadows was officially launched at the House of Commons in London on January 12, 2000, the 30th anniversary of the end of the Nigerian Civil War. It has already been named the book of the month of April by Aeroplane Monthly and other special features are to appear in Flypast Magazine..
Price: $71.75 [Notify me when price goes down.]