Reviewer: Michael Keith
Title: Vietnam’s Final Air Campaign: Operation Linebacker I & II May-December 1972
Author: Stephen Emerson
Total Number of Pages: 128
Rating Scale (1: Very Poor, 10: Excellent): 8½
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The American air operations known collectively as Linebacker I and II occurred in 1972, during the Vietnam War and were an 11-day-long aerial bombing campaign intended to force the North Vietnamese to seriously-negotiate a formal peace settlement between the United States of America and North Vietnam and so bring to an end the aforementioned war. In that it was successful, and the machinations and military activities which occurred immediately-prior-to and during the operations, form the subject of this very readable volume.
The book opens with the expected Contents page which, in addition to the usual chapter headings etc., also contains a list of the Maps the book contains; a Chart (U.S. Troop Levels 1964-1973), a Diagram (Typical Linebacker Force Composition) and a Table (U.S. Air Losses for Linebacker II, December 18-28, 1972). It is an ‘Admirable’ inclusion and saves a lot of time in respect of searching. A two-page Glossary follows. This clarifies the military terminology used throughout the book and is in turn followed by an Acknowledgements section within which the author, while thanking those who helped with information, also pays tribute to ‘…All the men who flew in or supported Operation Linebacker I and II in 1972’; it is a nice touch. The seven Sections (analogous to Chapters, but not named as such) follow. Of these, Sections One to Five provide the necessary background to what is detailed in Chapter Six (Unleashing the Dogs of War), and as such portend and explain what is to come; the activities outlined in Chapter Six being the ultimate focus of the volume Where relevant to the narrative, while equally stories in their own right, sections of text have been placed within boxed areas within the larger ‘chapter’ With Chapter 6 having been the focus of the narrative, an analysis becomes necessary. This is provided by the volume’s last section (Number 7 and titled Post Mortem), the title being self-explanatory. Within each Section, Subsections are used to provide additional information, and, where necessary, Endnotes are used to indicate the existence of additional reference material. The latter are sequential, Section-specific, and numeric in format; the individual citations appearing in a designated Notes section placed after Chapter 7. A Bibliography follows that section and is in turn followed by the volume’s Index; the book’s last section. The narrative is accompanied by numerous monochrome Images from a variety of sources; some acknowledged, many not. A selection of coloured Images also appears, and is placed in an eight-page section in the centre of the volume.The Images are informatively captioned, but neither the Contents nor Index sections contain reference to their existence. As previously-noted Charts, Diagrams, Tables and Maps appear within the volume and are valuable aide memoirs to the narrative.
While this is an excellent tale and both well-told and written, for this reviewer, it was let down by the ‘little things’; the ‘details’ if you will. Of these the Index was the most problematic, with several randomly-sought locations being denied an Index entry despite being deemed worthy of a mention within the larger narrative. Although others were also found, Mu Gia Pass (page 24) and the Thai Nguyen rail complex (page 108) will suffice as examples. The appearance of several Quotes without citations was also noted, as were a small number of spelling mistakes and grammatical errors.
As previously-noted this is a well-written and well-told volume and, despite the previously-referenced ‘little things’, begs fair to become a Standard Reference Work on its subject. As such it may be of interest to aviation and military historians, while readers seeking clarification as to what who did what and why during the latter days of the Vietnam War, may also find it informative. Due to the large number of aviation-related images military-aviation enthusiasts and aero modellers may also find this book useful in their researches.
On a Rating Scale where 1: Very Poor, 10: Excellent, I have given this volume an 8½.
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