By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the eighth in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar, author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) A telephone call in early March 1974 from one of my consulting customers in the Navy Department alerted me to a
By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the seventh in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar, author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) While in high school I became interested in the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. As I
By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the sixth in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar, author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) As mentioned in previous blogs, in the early 1960s I was befriended by then-Captain F.J. (Fritz) Harlfinger and then-Commander Dominic Paolucci.
By Norman Polmar and Robert S. Norris, Naval Institute Press, 2009. Reviewed by Captain James B. Bryant. U.S. Navy (Retired) This is more than a well-written and researched reference book, but also an examination by experts of the evolution of nuclear weapons policy. When you absolutely need to know everything about how, why and where
By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the fifth in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar, author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) Admiral Arleigh A. Burke was a top destroyer commander and then chief of staff for the Fast Carrier Force during World
By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the fourth in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar, author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) In the spring of 1970 I was working at my desk when the phone rang. I was an employee of the
By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar, author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) Long before the massive FBI building was erected on Ninth Street in northwest Washington, the few blocks between F Street and
By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the second in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar, author, analyst, and consultant in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) Soon after I went to work for Navy Times in late 1959, the editor-in-chief, John Slinkman, came over to my desk and
By Norman Polmar (Editor’s Note: We are pleased to present the first in a series of regular stories written by Norman Polmar, who is a longtime NHF member and supporter. Mr. Polmar is an analyst, author, and consultant specializing in naval, aviation, and intelligence issues. He has written or coauthored 50 published books in these
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the conflict in Southeast Asia, the Naval Historical Foundation and the Naval History and Heritage Command are cosponsoring a series of monographs entitled The U.S. Navy and the Vietnam War. Soon to be published in that series is a lavishly illustrated work on the Navy’s “in-country war” entitled Combat
By Thomas Wildenberg and Norman Polmar. Naval Institute Press, (2010). Reviewed by Captain James B. Bryant, U.S. Navy (Retired) This is not a coffee table book. I thought I knew a lot about torpedoes, but this book proved me wrong. I was a Weapons Officer for two years and had experience in several generations of
U.S. Fast Battleships 1936-47: The North Carolina and South Dakota Classes U.S. Fast Battleships 1938-1991: The Iowa Class By Lawrence Burr, Osprey Publishing, Leeds (UK) (2010). Reviewed by Norman Polmar With hundreds of books having been written about battleships, the question must be asked: Can these two slim monographs make a contribution to the
by Norman Polmar and Michael White. Naval Institute Press, 2010. 173 pp. Reviewed by Captain James B. Bryant, U.S. Navy (Retired) The year 1968 was bad for submarines. In January the Israelis and the French lost their diesel-electric powered submarines Dakar and Minerve at sea with all hands and a submerged grounding badly damaged the
