FallCover1&4.qxp 8/2/2008 3:18 PM Page 1 FALL 2008 - Volume 55, Number 3 WWW.AFHISTORICALFOUNDATION.ORG FALL 2008 - Volume 55, Number 3 WWW.AFHISTORICALFOUNDATION.ORG Features Setting the Record Straight Regarding Lieutenants White and McCullin, Tuskegee Airmen Joseph D. Caver, Jerome A. Ennels, and Wesley Phillips Newton 4 The Air National Guard and the War on Drugs: Non-State Actors before 9/11 Alan D. Meyer and David P. Anderson 12 A Mission of Vengeance: Vichy French in Indochina in World War II Martin L. Mickelsen 30 Operation Vittles: A Name for the Berlin Airlift Roger G. Miller 46 Book Reviews Understanding Victory and Defeat in Contemporary War Ed. by Jan Angstrom and Isabelle Duyvesteyn Reviewed by Stéphane Lefebvre 56 War Bird Ace: The Great War Exploits of Capt. Field E. Kindley By Jack Stokes Ballard Reviewed by Herman Reinhold 57 Vulcan Test Pilot: My Experiences in the Cockpit of a Cold War Icon. By Tony Blackman. Reviewed by Stetson M. Siler 57 Supersonic Thunder: A Novel of the Jet Age By Walter J. Boyne Reviewed by Joe McCue 57 The Luftwaffe over Germany: Defense of the Reich By Donald Caldwell and Richard Muller Reviewed by David J. Schepp 58 Flight of the Intruder By Stephen Coonts Reviewed by Herman Reinhold 58 Sinking the Rising Sun: Dog Fighting & Dive Bombing in World War II: A Navy Fighter Pilot’s Story By William E. Davis Reviewed by Phil Webb 59 Barbarossa and the Retreat to Moscow: Recollections of Fighter Pilots on the Eastern Front By Artem Drabkin Reviewed by Daniel J. Simonsen 59 In the Shadow of the Moon: A Challenging Journey to Tranquility, 1965-1969. By Francis French and Colin Burgess. Reviewed by Grant T. Weller 60 Racing the Enemy: Stalin, Truman, and the Surrender of Japan By Tsuyoshi Hasegawa Reviewed by Scott A. Willey 60 War on Two Fronts: An Infantry Commander’s War in Iraq and the Pentagon By Christopher Hughes Reviewed by Brett Morris 61 Talking to the Enemy: Track Two Diplomacy in the Middle East and South Asia. By Dalia Dassa Kaye Reviewed by Brett Morris 62 The War Managers: Thirtieth Anniversary Edition By Douglas Kinnard. Reviewed by Curtis H. O’Sullivan 62 So Others May Live: Saving Lives, Defying Death with the Coast Guard’s Rescue Swimmers By Martha J. LaGuardia-Kotite Reviewed by Darrel Whitcomb 63 Uplink-Downlink: A History of the Deep Space Network 1957-1997 By Douglas Mudgway. Reviewed by James Schier 63 The Effectiveness of Airpower in the 20th Century: Part One (1914-1939) By Captain John F. O’Connell and The Effectiveness of Airpower in the 20th Century: Part Two (1939-1945) 64 By Captain John F. O’Connell Reviewed by Scott A. Willey Les Materials de l’Armee de L’Aire #4: P–47 Thunderbolt Francais By Guilleman Sébastien Reviewed by Daniel J. Simonsen 64 The Battle of Ap Bac: They did Everything But Learn from It By David M. Toczek Reviewed by John L. Cirafici 65 Departments Books Received and The President’s Message 66 Reader’s Note: John L. Martin and David V. Miller 71 Letters, News, Reunions, & In Memoriam 72 History Mystery 76 COVER: The painting “9-11” by Gil Cohen depicts an Air National Guard fighter providing combat air patrol over the nation’s capital. (Image used with permission of the National Guard Bureau.) The Air Force Historical Foundation The Journal of the Air Force Historical Foundation Fall 2008 Volume 55 Number 3 Publisher Alfred F. Hurley Editor Jacob Neufeld Technical Editor Robert F. Dorr Air Force Historical Foundation Book Review Editor P.O. Box 790 Scott A. Willey Layout and Typesetting Clinton, MD 20735-0790 Richard I. Wolf (301) 736-1959 Fax (301) 981-3574 Advertising Tom Bradley E-mail: [email protected] Circulation On the Web at http://www.afhistoricalfoundation.org Tom Bradley Officers, 2007-2008 Board of Directors, 2007-2008 President/Chairman of the Board and Col Kenneth J. Alnwick, USAF (Ret) Air Power History (ISSN 1044-016X) Chair, Executive Committee Lt Gen Richard E. Brown III, USAF (Ret) is produced in March, June, September, Lt Gen Michael A. Nelson, USAF (Ret) Lt Gen Russell C. Davis, USAF (Ret) and December by the Air Force Historical 1st Vice Chairman CMSgt Rick Dean, USAF (Ret) Foundation. Gen John A. Shaud, USAF (Ret) Lt Gen Marvin R. Esmond, USAF (Ret) Prospective contributors should consult the 2nd Vice Chairman and Chair, Gen Ronald R. Fogleman, USAF (Ret) GUIDELINES FOR CONTRIBUTORS at Development Committee Brig Gen Alfred F. Hurley, USAF (Ret) the back of this journal. Unsolicited manu- Maj Gen Silas R. Johnson, Jr., USAF (Ret) Maj Gen Silas R. Johnson, Jr., USAF (Ret) scripts will be returned only on specific Treasurer and Chair, Lt Gen Timothy A. Kinnan, USAF (Ret) request. The Editor cannot accept responsi- Finance Committee Mr John F. Kreis bility for any damage to or loss of the man- Lt Gen Richard E. Brown III, USAF (Ret) Maj Gen Charles D. Link, USAF (Ret) uscript. The Editor reserves the right to Chair, Membership Committee Lt Gen Michael A. Nelson, USAF (Ret) edit manuscripts and letters. Maj Gen Charles D. Link, USAF (Ret) Mr Jacob Neufeld Address Letters to the Editor to: Chair, Services Committee Gen John A. Shaud, USAF (Ret) Maj Willard Strandberg, Jr., USAF (Ret) Lt Col Lawrence Spinetta, USAF Air Power History Chair, Technology Committee Maj Willard Strandberg, Jr., USAF (Ret) 11908 Gainsborough Rd. Vacant Col Jere Wallace, USAF (Ret) Potomac, MD 20854 Publisher Col Darrel Whitcomb, USAF (Ret) e-mail: [email protected] Brig Gen Alfred F. Hurley, USAF (Ret) Secretary and Executive Director Correspondence regarding missed issues or changes of address should be addressed Col Tom Bradley, USAF (Ret) to the Circulation Office: CORPORATE SPONSORS, 2008 Contributing Members, 2008 Air Power History Platinum Level ($20,000 or more) P.O. Box 790 Clinton, MD 20735-0790 The individuals and companies listed are con- Lockheed Martin Corporation Telephone: (301) 736-1959 tributing members of the Air Force Historical Fax: (301) 981-3574 Foundation. The Foundation Directors and Gold Level ($10,000 or more) e-mail: [email protected] members are grateful for their support and EADS North America contributions to preserving, perpetuating, Rolls-Royce North America Advertising and publishing the history and traditions of American aviation. Silver Level ($5,000 or more) Tom Bradley Pratt & Whitney P.O. Box 790 Clinton, MD 20735-0790 Col Kenneth J. Alnwick, USAF (Ret.) Booz Allen Hamilton (301) 736-1959; fax (301) 981-3574 Anonymous L-3 Communications e-mail: [email protected] CMSgt Rick Dean, USAF (Ret.) Brig Gen Alfred F. Hurley, USAF (Ret.) Bronze Level ($1,500 or more) Copyright © 2008 by the Air Force Maj Gen Charles D. Link, USAF (Ret.) Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation Historical Foundation. All rights reserved. Mr and Mrs Malcolm Muir, Jr. Rockwell Collins Periodicals postage paid at Hanover, PA Mr and Mrs Jacob Neufeld 17331 and additional mailing offices. Col Helen E. O’Day, USAF (Ret.) Postmaster: Please send change of address to the Circulation Office. 2 AIR POWER History / FALL 2008 From the Editor On July 2, 1943, forty-eight P–40Warhawks, of the 99th Fighter Squadron, escorted a dozen B–25 Mitchells en route to bomb a Luftwaffe air base in Sicily. The mission suc- ceeded as the bombers got through to their targets and Lt. Charles Hall became the first Tuskegee Airman to shoot down a German plane. But the day was spoiled when the 99th also learned they had lost two of its fighter pilots. A postwar account of the event record- ed that the two pilots, Lieutenants White and McCullin, had crashed on takeoff. This report went unchallenged for more than sixty years. In the lead article historians Joseph Caver, Jerome Ennels, and Wesley Newton have dug into the historical record to set the story straight. In the second article, Air National Guard historians Alan Meyer and David Anderson seek precedents for the “9/11” 2001 terrorist attack against the United States. They focus on four case studies in the U.S. war on drugs involving non-state actors. Meyer and Anderson conclude that the past can indeed inform the future—provided we find the right places to look. It is well known that when the “Japanese Octopus” conquered the Far East in World War II, French Indo-China emerged as an important target of Allied air power. Less well known is the role of the colonial governor-general there. Appointed by France’s Vichy gov- ernment, Vice Admiral Jean Decoux became a willing collaborator. Professor Martin Mickelsen holds Decoux responsible for the torture and death of many Allied airmen he turned over to the Japanese. The fourth article, written by Roger Miller, an expert on the Berlin airlift and a fre- quent contributor to Air Power History, traces the origin and rationale of the name “Operation Vittles.” A superb and tenacious researcher, Miller demonstrates the value sometime inherent in answering a seemingly trivial question. Don’t miss the “Readers’ Note—Section 4 Officers” [page 71] by Generals Martin and Miller. Note that a great percentage of the advanced flight officers in the Class of 41B attained general officer rank. Lt. Gen. Michael A. Nelson, President of the Air Force Historical Foundation, provides the latest news concerning the Foundation and announces the Annual Awards Banquet scheduled for October 6, 2008. For details, see pages 68 and following to find out about the event and the names of the award winners. Interested in the latest literature on air power history? See the book review section beginning on page 56 and the books received list on page 66.