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F-8 Crusader Units of the Vietnam War Spiral-Bound | August 28, 1998

Peter Mersky, Tom Tullis (Illustrated by)

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Known as the last gunfighter for its 20-millimeter cannons, the F-8 Crusader was one of the most successful U.S. Navy fighters of the Vietnam War. During the "Rolling Thunder" campaign, F-8s downed 19 North Vietnamese MiGs and proved indispensible as "bomb trucks operating from ship-based Navy units and land-based Marine Corps units.

Complemented by a collection of rare photos from Navy arcives, the text includes several interviews with ex-Crusader pilots who explain tactics they used in bomber and fighter sorties. Thirty specially commissioned color drawings illustrate the 19 "MiG Killers" and the uniforms worn by F-8 pilots, and full appendices detail deployments, losses, and victories.

Osprey's study of the role played by F-8 Crusader Units in the Vietnam War (1955-1975). Known to its pilots as the 'last of the gunfighters' due to its quartet of Colt-Browning Mk 12 20 mm cannon, the F-8 Crusader was numerically the most populous fighter in the US Navy at the start of America's involvement in the Vietnam conflict in 1964 – some 482 F-8C/D/Es equipped 17 frontline units. It enjoyed great success against North Vietnamese Mig-17s and Mig-21s during the Rolling Thunder campaign of 1965-68, officially downing 18 jets, which represented 53 per cent of all Mig claims lodged by Navy squadrons during this period.

Contributor Bio(s)
Peter Mersky is a former US Navy commander who won the highest naval award for journalism following the publication of this book and Combat Aircraft 12: RF-8 Crusader Units over Korea and Vietnam. He was the assistant editor, then editor, of Approach, the Navy and Marine Corps aviation safety magazine, for 16 years, and he has also reviewed more than 400 books on military aviation. Peter has now retired from service and is a full time aviation writer.
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Publisher: Macmillan
Original Binding: Trade Paperback
Pages: 116 pages
ISBN-10: 1855327244
Item Weight: 0.7 lbs
Dimensions: 7.3 x 0.3 x 9.8 inches
Peter Mersky is a former US Navy commander who won the highest naval award for journalism following the publication of this book and Combat Aircraft 12: RF-8 Crusader Units over Korea and Vietnam. He was the assistant editor, then editor, of Approach, the Navy and Marine Corps aviation safety magazine, for 16 years, and he has also reviewed more than 400 books on military aviation. Peter has now retired from service and is a full time aviation writer.