Product Description

This book explores the role of the US Navy Hornet units in the northern Iraqi campaign. These units were the first Navy Reserve unit to be mobilized since the Korean War, and their attacks were launched from carriers off the coast of Turkey. The conflict for these squadrons was very different from the campaign fought in southern Iraq: they worked almost exclusively with clandestine Special Forces teams from the US Army, Marine Corps, Navy SEALs, British and Australian SAS and Kurdish guerrillas. First-hand accounts accompany the indispensable role these units had in the battle to liberate Iraq.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #535834 in Books
• Brand: Osprey Publishing
• Published on: 2005-11-10
• Released on: 2005-11-10
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 96 pages

Review
"Tony Holmes does an excellent job covering a complex subject and making it accessible to readers. The reliance on eye-witnesses is an inspired choice which, combined with the excellent photo-coverage, makes this a very useful reference for historians and modellers alike." -Rowan Baylis, AeroScale

From the Publisher
Osprey's Combat series combines the best archival photography available with specially commissioned artworks and first hand accounts, making these books favourites amongst historians, modellers and aviation enthusiasts everywhere.

About the Author
Osprey Aviation Editor since 1989, Tony Holmes is a native of Fremantle, Western Australia. Responsible for devising the Aircraft of the Aces, Combat Aircraft and Aviation Elite Units series, Tony has also written more than 20 books for Osprey in the past 17 years. He was the only foreign journalist granted access to returning Operation Iraqi Freedom Hornet and Tomcat crews in the aftermath of the campaign.

Customer Reviews

Hornets over Iraq - The Saga Continues!
Tony Holmes scores another direct hit with this account of Navy Hornet drivers in combat over northern Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The Hornet's air war over northern Iraq was totally different in nature than that waged by F/A-18 units committed in the south. These Hornet units supported Special Operations Forces and Kurdish units tasked with pinning down Iraq divisions heading south to aid their comrades. Close air support was the name of the game for the Hornet units deploying from carriers Harry Truman and Theodore Roosevelt.

As with part one of this set, Holmes' text benefits from the unparalled access he had to Hornet pilots who flew over Iraq. The book is chock full of combat stories that put you right in the cockpit.

The text is complemented by dozens of photos, most in color, and five pages of F/A-18 side-views by Chris Davey.

If you enjoy fast movers in action, you'll want to get this book - and the others in the series.