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Bloody Sixteen: The USS Oriskany and Air Wing 16 during the Vietnam War
Strategy and reality collide in Peter Fey’s gripping history of aircraft carrier USS Oriskany’s three deployments to Vietnam with Carrier Air Wing 16 (CVW-16). Its tours coincided with the most dangerous phases of Operation Rolling Thunder, the ill-fated bombing campaign against North Vietnam, and accounted for a quarter of all the naval aircraft lost during Rolling Thunder—the highest loss rate of any carrier air wing during Vietnam.
The Johnson administration’s policy of gradually applied force meant that Oriskany arrived on station just as previous restrictions were lifted and bombing raids increased. As a result CVW-16 pilots paid a heavy price as they ventured into areas previously designated off-limits by Washington, DC. Named after one of the bloodiest battles of the Revolutionary War, the Oriskany lived up to its name. After two years of suffering heavy losses, the ship caught fire—a devastating blow given the limited number of carriers deployed. With only three months allotted for repairs, Oriskany deployed a third and final time and ultimately lost more than half of its aircraft and more than a third of its pilots.
The valor and battle accomplishments displayed by Oriskany’s aviators are legendary, but the story of their service has been lost in the disastrous fray of the war itself. Fey portrays the Oriskany and its heroes in an indelible memorial to the fallen of CVW-16 in hopes that the lessons learned from such strategic disasters are not forgotten in today’s sphere of war-bent politics.
The Johnson administration’s policy of gradually applied force meant that Oriskany arrived on station just as previous restrictions were lifted and bombing raids increased. As a result CVW-16 pilots paid a heavy price as they ventured into areas previously designated off-limits by Washington, DC. Named after one of the bloodiest battles of the Revolutionary War, the Oriskany lived up to its name. After two years of suffering heavy losses, the ship caught fire—a devastating blow given the limited number of carriers deployed. With only three months allotted for repairs, Oriskany deployed a third and final time and ultimately lost more than half of its aircraft and more than a third of its pilots.
The valor and battle accomplishments displayed by Oriskany’s aviators are legendary, but the story of their service has been lost in the disastrous fray of the war itself. Fey portrays the Oriskany and its heroes in an indelible memorial to the fallen of CVW-16 in hopes that the lessons learned from such strategic disasters are not forgotten in today’s sphere of war-bent politics.
438 pages, Paperback
Published May 1, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
May 16, 2021
I wasn’t sure what to expect with this one. I was just hoping it wouldn’t be a dry, textbook-like history of the air war over Vietnam and it certainly was not.
It chronicles carrier air wing sixteens life and work aboard USS Oriskany during the Vietnam war from Feb 1965 through Nov 1968 during operation Rolling Thunder.
Those brave men suffered more casualties than air wings from any other carrier that served in Vietnam, hence the name.
I hadn’t read anything about the air war over North Vietnam until this book.
Excellent research, very easy to read. Action packed with a human touch.
It chronicles carrier air wing sixteens life and work aboard USS Oriskany during the Vietnam war from Feb 1965 through Nov 1968 during operation Rolling Thunder.
Those brave men suffered more casualties than air wings from any other carrier that served in Vietnam, hence the name.
I hadn’t read anything about the air war over North Vietnam until this book.
Excellent research, very easy to read. Action packed with a human touch.
May 7, 2018
Definitely one of the best books on military history you will read this year. Author Peter Fey has spent years researching the Rolling Thunder years of Carrier Air Group 16. This now-defunct air wing had the misfortune to arrive on station in Viet Nam on several occasions just when the rules of engagement were gradually lifted and when the monsoon season ended. Additionally, they had the honor of being led by aggressive leaders such as then Commander James Stockdale. Consequently, they suffered more casualties than any carrier air wing in Viet Nam.
Through numerous interviews with the surviving members of “Bloody 16,” this retired Naval Flight Officer has turned his thesis for the War College into this masterful book. The first few chapters do an excellent job describing Naval Aviation, the missions, the so-called national strategy, threats, and the restrictions the aviators were constrained by.
The remained of the book describes the men themselves (officers and enlisted) and their stories in chronological order. As the story unfolds, Fey relates what is also going on in Washington D.C. and the rest of America. Accessible for those unfamiliar with the war or military aviation while still insightful to military history buffs. Gripping reading, highly relevant today.
Through numerous interviews with the surviving members of “Bloody 16,” this retired Naval Flight Officer has turned his thesis for the War College into this masterful book. The first few chapters do an excellent job describing Naval Aviation, the missions, the so-called national strategy, threats, and the restrictions the aviators were constrained by.
The remained of the book describes the men themselves (officers and enlisted) and their stories in chronological order. As the story unfolds, Fey relates what is also going on in Washington D.C. and the rest of America. Accessible for those unfamiliar with the war or military aviation while still insightful to military history buffs. Gripping reading, highly relevant today.
February 17, 2019
While this book brings no new data or analysis as such for this well-covered topic, it shows very well how things on the battlefield, in Washington and elsewhere were inter-linked and influencing each other. This makes this book a valuable addition to the “Should-read” list about the Vietnam War.
January 17, 2021
Peter Fey's Book "Bloody Sixteen" does a masterful job of tying in the impact of decisions by our nation's policymakers-in this case, the administration of Lyndon Johnson on those sworn to defend our country. The tragedy of Vietnam is so fully laid out in the unwavering service and sacrifice of the men of Air Wing 16 and the USS ORISKANY, though one knows what the eventual outcome is, you find yourself cheering and will these men on to success. If one wants to understand-to put faces and names to the impact of what policy decisions do, this book is an excellent example. This book will always have a place in my collection. Highly recommend to anyone wanting to gain knowledge and insight into the Vietnam war, policy decisions, Naval aviation and aerial warfare.
May 29, 2019
The "Bloody Sixteenth" was my air wing (CVW-16) onboard the carrier USS Oriskany. My squadron was VFP-63 or Photo Reconnaissance Squadron-63. Now, thanks to retired naval aviator, Commander Peter Fey, I have a totally new understanding of that of which I was a part... and a newfound respect for the officers and pilots I rubbed shoulders with on a daily basis. I had no idea Operation Rolling Thunder and CVW-16 on CVA-34 were so historically significant - maybe no one at the time actually did. Maybe 50 years had to expire before military historians, such as Fey, could look back and see the big picture without the 'fog of war' obstructing the view.
Fey recalls that many of the pilots, same as many of the enlisted ranks, didn't talk much to others about their Vietnam experience once they rejoined civilian life. Older Americans of the mid-twentieth-century -- those that had hailed victories in Europe and the Western Pacific during World War II -- did not want to admit our nation could be defeated anywhere on the world stage.. but it was. To his credit author Peter Fey is quick to point out that our losses in Vietnam were due to no weakness of the men and women fighting the war; their strength and resolve remained true to the bitter end.
I thank you, Mister Fey, sir, for allowing me a privileged seat today on the tower of history. Up here, I can better see the entire sprawling vista. Because of Bloody Sixteen this old guy, who was a 20-year-old Petty Officer 3rd Class in 1967, has been allowed an eagle's eye view to events that influenced my entire life after Vietnam; and greatly influenced our nation's future decisions based on what we learned in the Vietnam War.
I think I first heard this bromide in a Filipino bar while chugging San Miguel beers with a shipmate... it goes like this: "The old war veterans talk about the glory of it. The politicians talk about the necessity of it. But, the soldiers and sailors living it... they just want to go home."
At 72, I now qualify as an old veteran but I still see very little glory in that war. I kept a daily diary throughout my 1967-68 cruise to Yankee Station, Gulf of Tonkin because I wanted to remember not only the glory... but all the disappointments too. And there's even more of that than I thought. Peter Fey details the sloppy mismanagement of the war by high-level military leaders; even more so by US President Lyndon Johnson, Secretary McNamara and the other "whiz kids" left over from JFK's administration. They met every Tuesday noon for lunch at the White House where strategy and targets were determined for the upcoming week without any Pentagon officers present. LBJ wanted to run the war without generals and admirals getting in the way.
Primary focus of Bloody Sixteen is on Commissioned Flight Officers of the US Navy, an elite brotherhood of aviation professionals. The book is a tactical analysis of their missions in the Vietnam War, individually and overall. The non-commissioned and enlisted men are generally relegated to their subservient status. As for the North Vietnamese, during the three years of Operation Rolling Thunder, it is estimated non-combatants (men, women, children) were killed at a rate of 1,000 per month. These human beings, mostly farmers, were generally seen as statistical consequences of war - 'collateral damage' in military parlance. To me that seems coldhearted. But then again, war is not about hugs and warm fuzzies.
In this story, passion, empathy, sympathy and tugs of the heart are reserved for naval aviators, their missions, their downings by AAA or SAM's, their status as KIA, MIA or POW and their US Naval Aviation legacies. If that's what you want in a book, then this is the book you want. Better than any video game, kids, this is war in the raw.
Bloody Sixteen is destined to become one of the best military histories of the Vietnam War. I wholeheartedly agree with naval aviator and best-selling author Stephen Coonts when he called Peter Fey's work, "Magnificent, superbly researched."
Fey recalls that many of the pilots, same as many of the enlisted ranks, didn't talk much to others about their Vietnam experience once they rejoined civilian life. Older Americans of the mid-twentieth-century -- those that had hailed victories in Europe and the Western Pacific during World War II -- did not want to admit our nation could be defeated anywhere on the world stage.. but it was. To his credit author Peter Fey is quick to point out that our losses in Vietnam were due to no weakness of the men and women fighting the war; their strength and resolve remained true to the bitter end.
I thank you, Mister Fey, sir, for allowing me a privileged seat today on the tower of history. Up here, I can better see the entire sprawling vista. Because of Bloody Sixteen this old guy, who was a 20-year-old Petty Officer 3rd Class in 1967, has been allowed an eagle's eye view to events that influenced my entire life after Vietnam; and greatly influenced our nation's future decisions based on what we learned in the Vietnam War.
I think I first heard this bromide in a Filipino bar while chugging San Miguel beers with a shipmate... it goes like this: "The old war veterans talk about the glory of it. The politicians talk about the necessity of it. But, the soldiers and sailors living it... they just want to go home."
At 72, I now qualify as an old veteran but I still see very little glory in that war. I kept a daily diary throughout my 1967-68 cruise to Yankee Station, Gulf of Tonkin because I wanted to remember not only the glory... but all the disappointments too. And there's even more of that than I thought. Peter Fey details the sloppy mismanagement of the war by high-level military leaders; even more so by US President Lyndon Johnson, Secretary McNamara and the other "whiz kids" left over from JFK's administration. They met every Tuesday noon for lunch at the White House where strategy and targets were determined for the upcoming week without any Pentagon officers present. LBJ wanted to run the war without generals and admirals getting in the way.
Primary focus of Bloody Sixteen is on Commissioned Flight Officers of the US Navy, an elite brotherhood of aviation professionals. The book is a tactical analysis of their missions in the Vietnam War, individually and overall. The non-commissioned and enlisted men are generally relegated to their subservient status. As for the North Vietnamese, during the three years of Operation Rolling Thunder, it is estimated non-combatants (men, women, children) were killed at a rate of 1,000 per month. These human beings, mostly farmers, were generally seen as statistical consequences of war - 'collateral damage' in military parlance. To me that seems coldhearted. But then again, war is not about hugs and warm fuzzies.
In this story, passion, empathy, sympathy and tugs of the heart are reserved for naval aviators, their missions, their downings by AAA or SAM's, their status as KIA, MIA or POW and their US Naval Aviation legacies. If that's what you want in a book, then this is the book you want. Better than any video game, kids, this is war in the raw.
Bloody Sixteen is destined to become one of the best military histories of the Vietnam War. I wholeheartedly agree with naval aviator and best-selling author Stephen Coonts when he called Peter Fey's work, "Magnificent, superbly researched."
August 29, 2020
Written by a career naval aviator largely for naval aviators, this is the best single work on the carrier war in Vietnam that I've read. Part of the problem in writing about the operational in air warfare, in general, is that it tends to devolve into "one damn thing after another" unless there is tight control. Fey keeps his control by never forgetting that there are multiple levels of analysis (tactical, operational, strategic, and political) and keeps these levels in proper relation to each other.
I also appreciate that there is no after-the-fact effort to try and claim that victory was thrown away. Fey seems most influenced by H.R. McMaster's "Dereliction of Duty" and the Johnson Administration's failure to unleash air power in an efficient fashion makes his blood boil, as it wasted blood and treasure, assuming it was even worth intervening in Vietnam. Since Fey began his naval career in 1996 I'm reading between the lines that the strategic follies of the post-9/11 period also weigh on him.
About the only thing that I can mark this work down for is that since this is a very pilot-centered narrative there is little input from the perspective of the enlisted man or the non-commissioned officer.
I also appreciate that there is no after-the-fact effort to try and claim that victory was thrown away. Fey seems most influenced by H.R. McMaster's "Dereliction of Duty" and the Johnson Administration's failure to unleash air power in an efficient fashion makes his blood boil, as it wasted blood and treasure, assuming it was even worth intervening in Vietnam. Since Fey began his naval career in 1996 I'm reading between the lines that the strategic follies of the post-9/11 period also weigh on him.
About the only thing that I can mark this work down for is that since this is a very pilot-centered narrative there is little input from the perspective of the enlisted man or the non-commissioned officer.
December 8, 2020
A superb history. The author captured the intensity and frustration of the naval air war war over North Vietnam so well that I had to put it down and give myself a break. The author well describes what happens when the USA goes to war against an enemy it doesn’t understand and how the resulting flawed strategy impacts our fighting force.
December 9, 2019
The research done for this book is amazing.
October 29, 2023
Very well researched book on the USS Oriskany, obviously focuses on the Air Wing but also talks about the other sailors and life aboard ship. Also does a good job describing the infamous fire.
Although it contains a large number of personal stories and quotes it is not a memoir but does a great job combing components of a memoir with a history
Although it contains a large number of personal stories and quotes it is not a memoir but does a great job combing components of a memoir with a history
January 31, 2025
Enjoyable read. Fey tells a good story that acts as a micro-history of the Vietnam War. I only wish that there was more of a perspective from Hanoi in these pages (at times) and that he expanded upon things like training and the state of the Navy leading up to 1965.
May 7, 2022
Well written accurate accounts of some of the most difficult times for Naval Aviation in the early years of Vietnam. These accounts were just before my time, I entered active duty in 1969, but I can well identify with the times. It made it much more real to read accounts of a number of men that I served with later during our careers on carriers. Excellent and exhaustive research.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews