The Bomber Mafia

1,481 Views | 5 Replies | Last: 2 yr ago by Smeghead4761
FTACo88-FDT24dad
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
Just curious if anyone has listened to or read Malcolm Gladwell's new piece called the Bomber Mafia. Dan Carlin has a really good podcast on it and speaks pretty highly of it.

TIA
AgRyan04
How long do you want to ignore this user?
I'm curious as well....it's on my list, but haven't picked it up yet
CanyonAg77
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
Read it, it's worth the read. Gladwell does good stuff.
txaggie_06
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
I second what Canyon said. It was a good read and I learned a lot of the details that I had just blown over in the past. I roped it into professional development reading.
I am reading Beyond Valor now by Jon Erwin and William Doyle right now. It's about Medal of Honor recipient SSG Henry E. "Red" Erwin. Bomber Mafia was great, bc all the names are still fresh in my head so it connects the dots so much more.
I think it is on sale at Barns and Noble.
dallasiteinsa02
How long do you want to ignore this user?
It is a little different than his other books and I am a huge fan of his. Entertaining but I didn't take that muck away from it.
BigJim49 AustinNowDallas
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
dallasiteinsa02 said:

It is a little different than his other books and I am a huge fan of his. Entertaining but I didn't take that muck away from it.
"much"?
Smeghead4761
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Without having read Gladwell's book, let me point ya'll to a very interesting Quora post by Trent Telenko. The post itself has a bunch of links to other stuff Telenko has written challenging the prevailing historical narratives concerning the American bombing campaign in Europe.

The Tl;Dr version:

- The Bomber Mafia failed to heed the lessons on the (un)feasibility of unescorted daylight bombing, starting with Chennault's rough handling of bomber attacks during exercises in the 1930s (which got Chennault purged), then the Battle of Britain, and the British attempts at daylight bombing

- The Bomber Mafia, in the person of Gen. Arnold, further compounded this mistake by barring the use of drop tanks on escort fighters, starting in 1939. This directive remained in force in Europe long after it was abandoned in the Pacific.

- Making things even worse was Gen. Eaker's insistence on close escort tactics for the escort fighters, which ceded the initiative to defending German fighters

- the "P-51 Narrative" came about largely to protect the reputations of the Bomber Mafia generals who led the push for an independent USAF.
Refresh
Page 1 of 1
 
×
subscribe Verify your student status
See Subscription Benefits
Trial only available to users who have never subscribed or participated in a previous trial.