Winged Brothers
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€31.99
A01=Ernest M Snowden
A01=Ernest Snowden
Age Group_Uncategorized
Age Group_Uncategorized
American airpower development
Author_Ernest M Snowden
Author_Ernest Snowden
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Aviation mentorship
Battle of the Philippine sea
Brothers in uniform
Carrier aviation evolution
Category1=Non-Fiction
Category=BGH
Category=DNBH
Category=HBW
Category=NHW
Cold War naval aviation
Combat flying legacy
COP=United States
Delivery_Delivery within 10-20 working days
Early carrier operations
eq_bestseller
eq_biography-true-stories
eq_history
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
Fleet Problem exercises
Generational military service
jet age transformation
Language_English
Marianas Turkey Shoot
Military family legacy
naval aviation history
Naval aviation leadership
Naval aviation pioneers
Naval aviator biography
PA=Available
Price_€20 to €50
PS=Active
softlaunch
U.S. Naval Academy graduates
U.S. Navy pilot memoir
WWII
Product details
- ISBN 9781682472965
- Weight: 566g
- Dimensions: 152 x 228mm
- Publication Date: 27 Dec 2018
- Publisher: Naval Institute Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Hardback
- Language: English
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Winged Brothers recounts the service exploits of two brothers through more than forty years of naval aviation history in both peace and war. They were deeply committed to each other and to advancing their chosen profession, but due to the vast difference in their ages and the fourteen years between their respective graduations from the U.S. Naval Academy, they experienced carrier aviation from very different perspectives.
The older brother, Ernest, entered naval aviation in an era of open-cockpit biplanes when the Navy's operations from aircraft carriers were still taking form, when Fleet Problems were still the primary means of determining aviation's warfighting utility and proving its merits to the fleet. He would build on those early lessons to assume a pivotal role in World War II, leading first a squadron, then an air group to one of the most distinguished combat records in the Pacific theater.
Macon's story guides the reader through the Navy's transition from piston-engine aircraft to jets, inside the inter-service disputes at the start of the atomic age, from straight to angled flight decks, through the perils of flight testing high performance aircraft, and eventually to supersonic combat over the humid landscape of Vietnam. He returned from Vietnam to step into a contentious struggle inside the Washington beltway over the future of the Navy's next fighter, becoming a key player in the development of the F-14 Tomcat.
For the entirety of their time in uniform, the one constant was a close fraternal bond that saw Ernest as mentor and Macon as devoted admirer and protégé, only to see those roles recede as the younger brother's achievements transcended those of the older brother. Through personal letters, official reports, first-hand accounts, and first-person interviews, their symbiotic relationship is revealed to the reader. Their motivations to follow long and committed service in naval aviation are explored and laid bare: Ernie was propelled by equal parts patriotism, longing for risk and adventure, and yearning to leave the family farm; Mac was driven by the desire to serve, love of flying, and desire to emulate his older brother whom he lionized as father figure and role model.
The older brother, Ernest, entered naval aviation in an era of open-cockpit biplanes when the Navy's operations from aircraft carriers were still taking form, when Fleet Problems were still the primary means of determining aviation's warfighting utility and proving its merits to the fleet. He would build on those early lessons to assume a pivotal role in World War II, leading first a squadron, then an air group to one of the most distinguished combat records in the Pacific theater.
Macon's story guides the reader through the Navy's transition from piston-engine aircraft to jets, inside the inter-service disputes at the start of the atomic age, from straight to angled flight decks, through the perils of flight testing high performance aircraft, and eventually to supersonic combat over the humid landscape of Vietnam. He returned from Vietnam to step into a contentious struggle inside the Washington beltway over the future of the Navy's next fighter, becoming a key player in the development of the F-14 Tomcat.
For the entirety of their time in uniform, the one constant was a close fraternal bond that saw Ernest as mentor and Macon as devoted admirer and protégé, only to see those roles recede as the younger brother's achievements transcended those of the older brother. Through personal letters, official reports, first-hand accounts, and first-person interviews, their symbiotic relationship is revealed to the reader. Their motivations to follow long and committed service in naval aviation are explored and laid bare: Ernie was propelled by equal parts patriotism, longing for risk and adventure, and yearning to leave the family farm; Mac was driven by the desire to serve, love of flying, and desire to emulate his older brother whom he lionized as father figure and role model.
Ernest Snowden is the son of Macon Snowden and nephew of Ernest Snowden. The author is a 1970 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and a former naval aviator. After active duty, he continued in the Naval Reserve as an aeronautical engineering duty officer until his retirement in 2000. As a Navy civilian, he served as the business manager for the Maintenance Policy Division of the Naval Air Systems Command, followed by a tour as staff assistant to the Deputy Director for Research and Engineering in the Office of the Secretary of Defense.
