Overview

Dr. Mark Clod Clodfelter is an internationally recognized scholar and valued faculty member at the National Defense University. His case study analysis of how B-52 crewmembers in Vietnam dealt with friction--uncertainty, chance, danger, and stress--relies in large measure on responses received from those members via a survey that he created, and thus his account makes a substantial contribution to the historical record of the air wars over Vietnam. Equally significant, his work reveals that political and military leaders alike directly affect the amount of friction faced by those on the pointy tip of the spear, and thus those leaders must tailor their decision-making accordingly. This resource could be invaluable to future air operations and with service education or military science coursework to address elements of friction that may enable surprise conditions during future wartime efforts. Additionally, military leaders, strategists, and analysts, training professors, and active duty military personnel may have operational interest in the historical accounts during the Vietnam War as represented within this text. Related products: Vietnam War resources collection is avaialble here: https: //bookstore.gpo.gov/catalog/us-military-history/battles-wars/vietnam-war Defense & National Security collection is available here: https: //bookstore.gpo.gov/catalog/security-defense-law-enforcement/defense-national-security Other products produced by the United States Army, National Defense University (NDU) can be found here: https: //bookstore.gpo.gov/agency/1078

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9780160934803

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Travel for Aircraft Blog https: //travelforaircraft.wordpress.com/2016/09/26/50-write/ 26 September 2016 Clodelter's study is thorough, on point, and conciser as it addresses the B-52 bomber crews who flew the arc Light and both Linebacker missions. Their story has not been told in this comprehensive, intimate, and naked way --neither has SACs leadership as well as management failures. It is a testament to the capability and courage of aircrews and the ground crews. It is a valiation of their training and professionalism. ... Clodfelter's case study is a refreshing bucket of cold water onto the faces of management folks who have the opinion they can color the sky. Fifty Shades of Friction is also the nuts and bolts of what may be the last of the classic heavy bomber raids over heavily defended and contested airspace.

Author Information

Dr. Mark Clodfelter joined the National War College at the National Defense University in July 1997. He is a former Air Force officer who was a ground radar officer by trade. After serving radar tours at Myrtle Beach and South Korea, he spent the remainder of his career in military academia. That service has included two teaching tours in the History Department at the Air Force Academy, one at the Air Force's School of Advanced Air and Space Studies at Maxwell Air Force Base, and one as Air Force ROTC Professor of Aerospace Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He holds a bachelor's degree from the Air Force Academy, a master's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and a Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is the author of The Limits of Air Power: The American Bombing of North Vietnam (Free Press, 1989), Beneficial Bombing: The Progressive Foundations of American Air Power, 1917-1945 (University of Nebraska Press, 2010), and numerous articles and book chapters dealing with the American military experience. His area of expertise is American military history, with a special emphasis on airpower and the Vietnam War.

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