There are few books that can capture the excitement of aerial combat, the mind numbing boredom of “flying a desk,” and the strain that military life during war and peacetime place upon relationships. Fighter Pilot: The Memoirs of Legendary Ace Robin Olds is one of those books.
Robin’s memoirs cover three decades of military service. It begins with his time at West Point at the beginning of WWII through his time as Commandant of Cadets at the Air Force Academy from 1967-1971 followed by a short stint with the Office of the Inspector General.
He was an Ace in the P-38 and P-51 during WWII. He had an additional 4 shoot downs in Viet Nam while flying the F-4 but intentionally shooting down a 5th because he had heard he would be sent home and wanted to keep flying as commanding officer of the 8th Tactical Fighter wing. He also “fudged” his flight logs to keep from going over 100 “official” missions so he could keep flying. He would end his time in Viet Nam with 152 missions, 105 of which were over North Viet Nam.
Throughout the book you get to know Olds intimately as a guy who just wants to serve his country and fly fighters. He does everything he can to be in the air, including a stunt to get himself off the promotion list to General and shipped off to Southeast Asia, resulting in his time in F-4’s over Viet Nam.
He pulls no punches in describing those who are just trying to work their way up the ranks, but has great admiration and respect for those who are just there to serve and do the right thing. He also paints the often overlooked picture of the stresses and sacrifice of the families of those who serve.
His descriptions of dog fights in piston fighters during WWII and jets in Viet Nam are captivating. Drawn from his extensive logs, he describes the encounters in great detail. If there is one book you are going to pick up or listen to about flying and fighting in the air, this is the one.
