Officers in flight suits : the story of American Air Force fighter pilots in the Korean War / John Darrell Sherwood.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Sherwood, John Darrell, 1966-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Korean War, 1950-1953--Aerial operations, American.

Korean War, 1950-1953.

Fighter pilots--United States.

Fighter pilots.

Fighter planes.

History.

United States.

United States. Air Force--History.

United States. Air Force.

Fighter planes--United States--History.

Physical Description:

xiii, 239 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : New York University Press, [1996]

Summary:

The United States Air Force fought as a truly independent service for the first time during the Korean War. As a result, the fighter pilots reigned supreme. Korea, then, is the perfect laboratory for studying the culture of fighter pilots, a culture based on self-confidence and risk-taking, one which has promoted what John Darrell Sherwood calls "flight suit attitude". In Officers in Flight Suits, Sherwood explores the flight suit officer's life, drawing on memoirs, diaries, letters, novels, unit records, and personal papers as well as interviews with over fifty veterans who served in the Air Force in Korea. The book provides an illuminating portrait of fighter pilot culture, demonstrating how this culture affected their performance in battle and their attitudes toward others, particularly women, in their off-duty activities.

Contents:

Introduction

An absence of ring-knockers : the social background and education of flight suit officers

Stick and rudder university : training and the creation of the flight suit officer

MiG alley : air-to-air combat in Korea

Headhunters and fighting cocks : the fighter-bomber in Korea

Thunderboxes and sabre dancers : base life and recreation in the Korean War

Life after Korea

Epilogue.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 221-227) and index.

ISBN:

0814780385

OCLC:

34517606