American MiG Pilot: Inside the Top Secret USAF "Red Eagles" MiG Squadron
Autor Rob Zettelen Limba Engleză Hardback – 12 feb 2026
After being outflown over Vietnam, the US launched a top secret operation to acquire Soviet aircraft, train pilots to fly them, and pitch them against American planes in training scenarios.
Get inside the head of one of America's most experienced MiG pilots, Lt Col Zettel, as he tells the thrilling tale of Constant Peg, a top secret US operation that wouldn't feel out of place in the plot of Top Gun.
At the height of the Cold War, America illicitly obtained Russian Fighters, transported them to the Tonopah Test Range, and pitted them against star US fighter pilots in simulated combat exercises. With controls labelled in Russian and the only spare parts being the ones they could salvage, the pilots who climbed into the MiGs accepted all of the risks associated with operating these aircraft. Vivid accounts of training engagements put the reader right there in the cockpit, flying alongside the "Red Eagles" as they trained the best pilots America had to offer. Historical photographs help paint the picture of an operation that took the US Air Force from its dismal performance in the Vietnam War to an unprecedented air-to-air kill ratio in Operation Desert Storm.
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Specificații
ISBN-13: 9781472808554
ISBN-10: 147280855X
Pagini: 368
Ilustrații: 16 pages of colour plate section
Dimensiuni: 162 x 236 x 38 mm
Greutate: 0.61 kg
Editura: Bloomsbury Publishing
Colecția Osprey Publishing
Locul publicării:London, United Kingdom
ISBN-10: 147280855X
Pagini: 368
Ilustrații: 16 pages of colour plate section
Dimensiuni: 162 x 236 x 38 mm
Greutate: 0.61 kg
Editura: Bloomsbury Publishing
Colecția Osprey Publishing
Locul publicării:London, United Kingdom
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Descriere
Get inside the head of one of America's most experienced MiG pilots as he tells the thrilling tale of the top-secret US operation that wouldn't feel out of place in 'Top Gun'.
After finding themselves outflown over Vietnam, the American military launched top-secret Operation Constant Peg, using illicitly obtained Russian Fighters pitted against star US fighter pilots in simulated combat exercises. With controls labelled in Russian and the only spare parts being the ones they could salvage, the pilots who climbed into the MiGs - the Red Eagles - accepted all of the risks associated with operating these aircraft.
This book describes what it was like to be there day in and day out at one of the most access-restricted airfields in the entire USAF, flying MiGs alongside some of the very best fighter pilots hand-picked from the ranks of the USAF, US Navy and US Marine Corps. Rob "Z-Man" Zettel tells the Red Eagles story for the first time through the experiences of a pilot who flew these aircraft to their maximum performance in simulated combat engagements, often several times a day, against frontline fighter pilots of the three US sister services.
Vivid accounts of training engagements put the reader right in the cockpit, while historical photographs help paint the picture of an operation that took the US Air Force from its disappointing performance in the Vietnam War to unprecedented success in Operation Desert Storm.
After finding themselves outflown over Vietnam, the American military launched top-secret Operation Constant Peg, using illicitly obtained Russian Fighters pitted against star US fighter pilots in simulated combat exercises. With controls labelled in Russian and the only spare parts being the ones they could salvage, the pilots who climbed into the MiGs - the Red Eagles - accepted all of the risks associated with operating these aircraft.
This book describes what it was like to be there day in and day out at one of the most access-restricted airfields in the entire USAF, flying MiGs alongside some of the very best fighter pilots hand-picked from the ranks of the USAF, US Navy and US Marine Corps. Rob "Z-Man" Zettel tells the Red Eagles story for the first time through the experiences of a pilot who flew these aircraft to their maximum performance in simulated combat engagements, often several times a day, against frontline fighter pilots of the three US sister services.
Vivid accounts of training engagements put the reader right in the cockpit, while historical photographs help paint the picture of an operation that took the US Air Force from its disappointing performance in the Vietnam War to unprecedented success in Operation Desert Storm.
Cuprins
Prologue
1. Like Ice Skating
2. A Distant Memory
3. Improbable Odds
4. Tweets and Talons
5. F-4 Phantom II - The Beast
6. A Vector
7. The Fork in the Road
8. Sharpening the Edge
9. Inherent Risks and Cheating Death
10. Right Place, Right Time
11. "How'd You Get this Assignment?"
12. Going Up North
13. The Assets
14. Light the Rocket
15. "I'm Not Him"
16. Behind the "Black Curtain"
17. "Stink Bugs"
18. The Aggressors
19. The Crapper
20. "You're Grounded!"
21. TOPGUN
22. Coincidence or a Prelude to History?
23. MiG-21 vs F-15
24. "Sir, Can He Do That?"
25. "Flogger!"
26. "Knock It Off!"
27. "We Lost One"
28. Pushing the Envelope
29. The Final Push
30. Going Back
Epilogue
1. Like Ice Skating
2. A Distant Memory
3. Improbable Odds
4. Tweets and Talons
5. F-4 Phantom II - The Beast
6. A Vector
7. The Fork in the Road
8. Sharpening the Edge
9. Inherent Risks and Cheating Death
10. Right Place, Right Time
11. "How'd You Get this Assignment?"
12. Going Up North
13. The Assets
14. Light the Rocket
15. "I'm Not Him"
16. Behind the "Black Curtain"
17. "Stink Bugs"
18. The Aggressors
19. The Crapper
20. "You're Grounded!"
21. TOPGUN
22. Coincidence or a Prelude to History?
23. MiG-21 vs F-15
24. "Sir, Can He Do That?"
25. "Flogger!"
26. "Knock It Off!"
27. "We Lost One"
28. Pushing the Envelope
29. The Final Push
30. Going Back
Epilogue
Recenzii
Life in the 'Red Eagles' was unique. Imagine a group of young captains, a few majors and lieutenant commanders, and a couple of lieutenant colonels, living and working in secrecy, flying airplanes no one admitted we had. The stories practically write themselves. Rob 'Z-Man' Zettel has brilliantly captured the spirit, challenges, and camaraderie of life in our secret MiG squadron.
This is a thoroughly good read, being as it is well-written, entertaining and full of insight.
Informative, entertaining and well-written, it's an excellent insider view of this remarkable unit.
This is a thoroughly good read, being as it is well-written, entertaining and full of insight.
Informative, entertaining and well-written, it's an excellent insider view of this remarkable unit.
Notă biografică
Lt. Col. Rob "Z-Man" Zettel, USAF (ret.) is a three-year Red Eagles veteran of the 4477th Test & Evaluation Squadron (TES). Flying both MiG-21 and MiG-23 fighters as an Instructor Pilot (IP) and Functional Check Flight (FCF) pilot from September 1983 to December 1986, he was an integral member of the squadron during its most prolific years. During this time "Z-man" completed hundreds of sorties engaging USAF, US Navy and US Marine Corps frontline fighter pilots in his MiG aircraft, demonstrating the Soviet jets' capabilities in simulated air-to-air combat training missions. Additionally, USAF Fighter Weapons School and US Navy Topgun students would routinely be paired against Lt. Col. Zettel to see for themselves how a first-rate pilot could employ these aircraft in close in air-to-air combat engagements. In his 42-year flying career he has flown extensively worldwide, logging more than 20,000 flight hours in everything from Stearman biplanes to frontline fighters in the USAF and, more recently, at the controls of both Boeing and Airbus' most advanced airliners.