I resisted reading this book for sometime. I am not really sure why. Having read a great deal on naval history and operations, I did not think it had much to offer (“the acclaimed bestseller” tag be darned). Boy, do I regret it. This book not only describes one of the US Navy‘s most exceptional victories it does so with great power from the perspective of the most senior admiral to the humblest of sailors. If the US Army is to prosecute multi-domain operations, it will help to appreciate each of the five domains and their interplay in each dimension. This book helps do that for land-lubbers like me. My TOP take-aways: (1) The training base and the industrial base matter and potentially have a decisive role to play in any protracted war. Japanese pilots flew until they died or were “de-planed”. American pilots had a regular system of supply and training that rotated and shared experience. (2) Deception works until it doesn’t and you cannot count on ALL of it working. (3) Yes - all 5 domains (air, land, sea, space and cyber) and 3 dimensions (human, information and physical) all played a role in the outcome. My TOP quote: “A fighting force cannot be reduced to its order of battle any more than a ship’s value can be reduced to the number of guns she carries or the shaft horsepower her turbines generate. A vessel draws life from the spirit of her crew, which derives in large part from the leadership qualities of her chiefs and officers. Morale defies quantification and yet it ways significantly on the ultimate lethality of the tools of war.” U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) | The Army University | Army University Press | U.S. Army Combined Arms Center | U.S. Army Combined Arms Support Command | US Army TRADOC | U.S. Army Materiel Command | U.S. Naval War College | Marshall Scholars at the US Army School of Advanced Military Studies
Andy, "(1) The training base and the industrial base matter and potentially have a decisive role to play in any protracted war. Japanese pilots flew until they died or were “de-planed”. American pilots had a regular system of supply and training that rotated and shared experience." Interestingly, Japanese Naval Aviators were probably the most elite and specially selected warrior cohort in 1940-1942- the pre-war standard of admission to their flight training was almost like modern astronaut quality. But their exquisite, boutique capability could not be replicated and replaced fast enough under the duress of war, especially after Midway (sinking four IJN carriers was great, but splashing a significant percentage of their elite, pre-war trained pilots was really the dagger thrust). This was a HUGE issue with the Luftwaffe too. The Luftwaffe "Experten" flew until they died and flying against Western pilots (versus the Soviets) was more and more dangerous from early 1944 until the end. As the amount of fuel available was reduced month after month, the skills of their replacement pilots were less and less. It became a logarithmic spiral.
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Matt Kime
2mo
A good Navy book on leadership is the classic Run Silent Run Deep.
Joe M.
2mo
This was a book that my Dad had given to me a few years back and I put off reading for awhile. But similarly, I found it well worth the read once I picked it up. Thanks for framing the recommendation in such a way that new generations will also explore its story and its lessons.
Steve Leonard
2mo
I like this format, Andy. Just enough to whet the appetite, but not so much that you need a spoiler alert.
Awesome! Move on to his ‘Neptune’s Inferno’. It’s a classic as well, even as a Soldier I enjoyed it.
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2moI couldn't agree more, Andrew Morgado! One of my all-time favorites. It's hard to even begin to capture the scope and depth of this great work--but your post does a great job of doing so. To your take-aways I would add: A fighting force's (or a company's) effectiveness is the product of a large number of factors all working together--training, doctrine, materiel, logistics, training, leadership, and more. It is rarely if ever the product of one single factor or a single personality--and I believe this trend is strengthening and accelerating in our era. BZ!!