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Summary and Reviews of Every Man A Tiger by Tom Clancy

Every Man A Tiger by Tom Clancy, General Chuck Horner

Every Man A Tiger

by Tom Clancy, General Chuck Horner
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  • May 2000, 576 pages
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Book Summary

A ground-breaking exploration of the art of war - a look deep into modern air power, as seen through the eyes of one of its most outstanding commanders.

Every Man a Tiger is a ground-breaking exploration of the art of war -- a look deep into modern air power, as seen through the eyes of one of its most outstanding commanders.

Tom Clancy's Into the Storm, written with armor and infantry General Fred Franks, Jr., won unanimous praise for its masterful blend of military history, biography, you-are-there narrative, insights into the practice of leadership, and plain old-fashioned storytelling. Every Man a Tiger is even better, a book that, like its subject, soars into the sky.

General Chuck Horner was the right man in the right place at the right time. Combining a broad experience of all aspects of aerial warfare with a deep respect for and knowledge of Arab culture, Horner commanded the U.S. and allied air assets during Desert Shield and Desert Storm -- the forces of a dozen nations -- and was responsible for the design and execution of one of the most devastating air campaigns in history. Never before have the Gulf air war and its planning, a process filled with controversy and stormy personalities, been revealed in such rich, provocative detail.

Beyond that, however, Every Man a Tiger is the story of two revolutions: of how a service damaged by Vietnam reinvented itself through vision, determination, and brutally hard work -- in Horner's words, "We had to learn how to be an Air Force all over again" -- and of how war changed fundamentally in the last decade of the century, not only in the new dominance of air power, but in all its aspects. It is a story of speed, accuracy, efficiency, information, and initiative, as well as of smoke, fear, courage, and blood. It is a front-row seat to a man, an institution, a war, and a way of war that together make this an instant classic of military history.

Prologue: 3 August 1990

On Friday morning of the August week in 1990 when Iraq invaded Kuwait, Lieutenant General Chuck Horner was at 27,000 feet, cruising at .9 Mach (540 knots), and nearing the North Carolina coast. He was headed out to sea in the Lady Ashley, a recent-model Block 25 F-16C, tail number 216, that had been named after the daughter of his crew chief, Technical Sergeant José Santos. Horner's aide, Lieutenant Colonel Jim Hartinger, Jr., known as "Little Grr," was on Horner's left side, a mile out, slightly high. Horner and Hartinger were en route to a mock combat with a pair of F-15Cs out of the 1st Tactical Fighter Wing (TFW) at Langley Air Force Base in Tidewater Hampton, Virginia: a winner-take-all contest that would match wits and flying skills. After that, they were all scheduled to form up and return to Langley AFB as a flight of four aircraft.

It was a bright, clear day-a good day to be in the air. Horner felt the joy he always did when ...

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Reviews

Media Reviews

Kirkus Reviews
An absorbing, detailed, and useful study of soldiers under stress and deadly events that tested their courage, determination and efficiency.

Library Journal
Given that Clancy is the best-selling writer of such novels as The Hunt for Red October and Red Storm Rising, one would expect lucidity of prose and a logical presentation of topics, and that's just what [we get].

Publishers Weekly
Clancy's second study in high command of the U.S. armed forces (after Into the Storm, written with Army general Fred Franks) focuses on Air Force general Chuck Horner, the fighter pilot who was overall air commander for Desert Shield/Desert Storm. This book is less about the Gulf War than about the making of a modern fighter general and the remaking of a modern air force.....The implication is clear: to succeed in an unpredictable international environment, America's armed forces will need tigers at their head. Tigers are dangerous. They challenge each other. They take issue with higher wisdom and higher authority. And, according to the authors, they can be replaced by safely neutered house cats only at the country's peril.

Reader Reviews

dave

this book rocks
d brown

I love the audio book...had me spell bound...gret for rush hour traffic...ty Gen horner for sharing with us Your story
Anonymous
From Norman I. Lee, III
An excellent book especially, for the student of Military History and Airpower. I have one comment; however, some of the charts from Jack Ryan Enterprises take away from the book's technical accuracy. For example, the chart ...   Read More

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Read-Alikes

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