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NATO's Air War for Kosovo: A Strategic and Operational Assessment
Offers a thorough appraisal of Operation Allied Force from a military, political, and strategic perspective, calling attention to those issues that are likely to have the greatest bearing on future military policymaking.
- GenresHistoryMilitary Fiction
312 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 10, 2024
Air Power
I really like how the author packaged this topic. Well researched and a quick read full of information. Recommended for my strategist and military planner friends.
I really like how the author packaged this topic. Well researched and a quick read full of information. Recommended for my strategist and military planner friends.
November 24, 2024
Another solid book that analyzes a military conflict with a long-lens perspective. Often, during and immediately after an armed conflict, on the victor's side, things can be quite gushy. Lots of praise, honors, medals, and superlatives. Then, time passes, and the reviews and retrospectives become less emotional, more objective, and data keeps pouring in.
Benjamin tries to evaluate the NATO's 60-day campaign in Kosovo, looking at it from a political, strategic, tactical, and logistical perspectives. This makes for an engaging read, with some rather unexpected results and conclusions. For instance, the big, heavy strategic bombers, normally intended for a World War III nuclear conflict, which performed only with modest success during the Gulf War, were among the most reliable machines in this 100%-conventional conflict. The F-117A stealth fighter (bomber really) was good, but not as good as it ought to be. The bombing was frustrating, for many, many reasons, making the NATO look incompetent (often, the political decisions outweigh the pure technological merits of weapon platforms, which can make armies and their systems look much weaker than they actually are). Those are just two of the examples.
The book dives into details on every aspect of the campaign, including the cooperation among the nations, the mission scope creep, the strategic imperatives and the political overrides, the enemy's determination, morale and cunning - in contrast to the Gulf War - the availability of weapons, the flexibility of mission planning, the weather, and then some. Lots of useful facets, lots of useful data and facts.
If you're a military history buff, this is a good, engaging work. Worth reading.
Igor
Benjamin tries to evaluate the NATO's 60-day campaign in Kosovo, looking at it from a political, strategic, tactical, and logistical perspectives. This makes for an engaging read, with some rather unexpected results and conclusions. For instance, the big, heavy strategic bombers, normally intended for a World War III nuclear conflict, which performed only with modest success during the Gulf War, were among the most reliable machines in this 100%-conventional conflict. The F-117A stealth fighter (bomber really) was good, but not as good as it ought to be. The bombing was frustrating, for many, many reasons, making the NATO look incompetent (often, the political decisions outweigh the pure technological merits of weapon platforms, which can make armies and their systems look much weaker than they actually are). Those are just two of the examples.
The book dives into details on every aspect of the campaign, including the cooperation among the nations, the mission scope creep, the strategic imperatives and the political overrides, the enemy's determination, morale and cunning - in contrast to the Gulf War - the availability of weapons, the flexibility of mission planning, the weather, and then some. Lots of useful facets, lots of useful data and facts.
If you're a military history buff, this is a good, engaging work. Worth reading.
Igor
March 12, 2010
Dr. Ben Lambeth is considered one of the top scholars of current air force tactics and one of the most astute researchers at RAND and his book on the Kosovo conflict from an "air-war" view is everything you'd expect: a clear, detailed, and adept work on the one war more than any other that proves the importance of air power in contemporary armed conflict. If you like real-life stories of war with more emphasis on technology and actual warfighting than personal stories, this book is for you. While aimed at a professional readership, it's never overly technical or dry.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews