Red Eagles
豆瓣
America's Secret MiGs
Davies, Steve
简介
From the late 1960s until the end of the Cold War, the United States Air Force acquired and flew Russian-made MiG jets, culminating in a secret squadron dedicated to exposing American fighter pilots to enemy technology and tactics.
Red Eagles tells the story of this squadron from the first tests of MiGs following the Vietnam War when the USAF had been woefully under-prepared in aerial combat. These initial flights would develop into the "black" or classified program known internally as Constant Peg.
At a secret air base in Nevada, ace American fighter pilots were presented with a range of differnet MiG jets with a simple remit: to expose "the threat" to as many of their brethern as possible. Maintaining and flying these "assets" without without spare parts or manuals was an almost impossible task, putting those flying the MiGs in mortal danger on every flight.
Despite these challenges, in all more than 5,900 American aircrews would train against America's secret MiGs, giving them the eskills they needed to face the enemy in real combat situations.
For the first time, this book tells the story of Constant Peg and the 4477th Red Eagles Squadron in the words of the men who made it possible.
contents
Acknowledgments 7
Foreword 10
Introduction 12
Acquiring The Assets 15
Have MiGs 196869 16
A Genesis for the Red Eagles 197277 21
Laying the Ground Work 49
Constant Peg and Tonopah 197779 50
Exposing the TAF 1983 193
The Air Force is Coming 1984 221
From Black to Gray 1985 256
The Final Years 198688 275
Increasing Blue Air Exposures 1986 276
Red Country 1987 293
Arrival Shows 1988 318
Postscript 327
更多
The Red Eagles First Days and the Early MiGs 78
The Flogger Arrives 1980 126
Gold Wings 1981 138
Expanded Exposures and Red Flag 198285 155
The Fatalists 1982 156
Postais Crash 176
Endnotes 330
Appendices