Airpower Advantage: Planning the Gulf War Air Campaign, 1989-1991Air Force History and Museums Program, United States Air Force, 2004 - Government publications - 481 pages American air power is a dominant force in today's world. Its ascendancy, evolving in the half century since the end of World War II, became evident during the first Gulf War. Although a great deal has been written about military operations in Desert Shield and Desert Storm, this deeply researched volume by Dr. Diane Putney probes the little-known story of how the Gulf War air campaign plan came to fruition. Based on archival documentation and interviews with USAF planners, this work takes the reader into the planning cells where the difficult work of building an air campaign plan was accomplished on an around-the-clock basis. The tension among air planners is palpable as Dr. Putney traces the incremental progress and friction along the way. The author places the complexities of the planning process within the context of coalition objectives. All the major players are here: President George H. W. Bush, General H. Norman Schwarzkopf, General Colin Powell, General Chuck Horner, and Secretary of Defense Richard Cheney. The air planning process generated much debate and friction, but resulted in great success-a 43-day conflict with minimum casualties. Dr. Putney's rendering of this behind-the-scenes evolution of the planning process, in its complexity and even suspense, provides a fascinating window into how wars are planned and fought today and what might be the implications for the future. C. R. Anderegg Director of Air Force History |
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AFHRA AFHSO air defense Air Force air power Air Staff aircraft AirLand Battle attack attrition August Baghdad Blackburn bomb Brfg slides briefing Capt CENTAF CENTAF staff CENTCOM Center Checkmate Cheney Christon CINCCENT Coalition Colonel combat commander Corps Crigger Deptula Deptula notes Desert Shield Desert Storm Diane Drft intvw trnscrpt execution folder Gehri and Reynolds Glock Glosson ground forces GWAPS Harvey notes Horner Ibid imagery Instant Thunder intelligence Intvw tape Iraq Iraqi army Jamieson JFACC Joint Kuwait Mann military missiles mission Navy officers operations OPLAN OPORD Persian Gulf Persian Gulf War Phase planners Powell Putney quote radar Republican Guard Riyadh Saddam Hussein Saudi Arabia Schwarzkopf Scud sorties Special Planning Group strategic air campaign strikes subj Tactical tanker target list theater troops USAF USCENTAF Warden Warden III weapons