Michel III., Marshall L./Tooby, Adam (Illustr.) Operation Linebacker I 1972. The first high-tech air War

Fully illustrated with stunning full color artwork, this is the fascinating story of arguably the world's first "modern" air campaign. Following the failure of "Rolling Thunder" U.S. aircraft were now armed with new technologies such as new laser-guided bombs and electronic warfare capabilities. The Air Force now had the fearsome AC-130 gunship and a new generation of "Wild Weasel" anti-radar aircraft, and the U.S. Navy aviators now had much better dogfighting training thanks to the new "Top Gun" fighter school. As the Paris peace talks floundered in early 1972 and the U.S. began to disengage from Vietnam, it was clear that the North Vietnamese were conducting a major build up for an attack into South Vietnam. Screened by bad weather and heavy air defenses in the north, the attack advanced quickly but the U.S. quickly pushed back with an air campaign named Operation "Linebacker". Their objective: defeat the invasion, preserve the government of South Vietnam, and bring the North Vietnamese back to the Paris peace talks.

When the Paris Peace Talks began in 1972 and the US withdrew from the Vietnam War, it was clear that the North Vietnamese would undertake a major troop build-up for an attack on South Vietnam. The North Vietnamese attack was shielded by bad weather and strong air defences, but the US responded with a massive air operation called "Linebacker 2". The aim: to crush the invasion, preserve the South Vietnamese government and bring the North Vietnamese back to the Paris peace talks.