Description

When the US president Harry S Truman declared the Truman Doctrine in March 1947 he could not have known that the resultant Cold War would persist for over forty years until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991 In addition to nuclear and conventional military friction between the Eastern and Western blocs the struggle for dominance involved a remarkable range of activities including the space race psychological efforts espionage even rivalry at sporting functions and technological events This diversity is reflected in the twenty chapters of Cold War Boys which opens with a vivid description from the author of survival procedures used by English Electric Lightning pilots in the event of nuclear war From there on various contributors share their original experiences on a range of fixedwing aircraft and rotorcraft across the world including tales from RAF Germany the Falklands and the Far East Each story demonstrates some of the intriguing circumstances faced by aircrew and ground crew whose tenacity and professionalism had to cope with miscellaneous situations of danger excitement risk pathos and humor This book serves as a reminder of what air forces faced during the Cold War years as the everpresent threat of nuclear war persisted A must for all aviation fans