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Summary: The Untold Story of American Support to Israel
Review: Walter Boyne has struck gold again! He has expertly re-told the largely forgotten tale of the American aerial epic that sustained Israel during its time of greatest peril. This book fills a very visible gap in addressing the history of conflict in the Middle East. Col. Boyne expertly weaves and recreates the battlefield situation, international politics, and internal Arab-Israeli politics to illustrate the difficulties in establishing the largest airborne airlift since the Berlin Blockade. He skillfully intertwines the efforts of the lone, heretofore, unknown hero's with the actions of such renown personalities as Henry Kissinger and Golda Meir into a concise story that shows how close Israel came to defeat and how the American airlift staved off total disaster. Col. Boyne's greatest contribution is pointing out how the efforts of a largely unknown USAF TALCE Commander established an efficient distribution system that eliminated chaos and increased efficiency. These actions ensured that ammunition and material supplies were offloaded from airlift aircraft and sent to the battlefield with minimum delay. Once again, Col. Boyne shows that it isn't necessarily the actions of the famous that ensures victory on the battlefield but it is usually the exploits of the unknown "little-people" that make the necessary sacrifices that determine the survival of nations. ...
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Summary: A Revealing View of Israel's Vulnerability
Review: When a surprise attack caught Israel off guard on the Jews' holiest day, their situation became so desperate that they strongly considered their nuclear option as their only chance. Their only other choice was fast and massive aid from the US. With only four days of ammo left the Israelis were saved by the most massive airlift in history, bigger than the Berlin airlift. Yet the Europeans, except for Portugal, refused to even let the US stop there to refuel- for fear of the Arab oil embargo, which they suffered anyway. This was Kissenger's high point as he faced this problem while Viet Nam was winding down and Nixon was psychologically deteriorating from the Watergate affair. Russia was pushing troop involvement in their Arab allies and Kissinger pushed the US to a Def Con III nuclear alert, forcing the Soviets to back off. Israeli leaders were bickering and finger pointing and lacked the cohesive focus that led them to such an overwhelming victory in 1967. Yet with the last minute support from the US the Israelis were able to commit their sparse remaining ammo and turn the impending defeat into another victory; even if it was a more humble success. The Arabs proved that Israel was not invincible and Sadat's leadership in the Arab world was established. This story clarifies how fragile Israel's existence is and how important the support of the US is to it's survival. Only 25 years after the holocaust the Europeans were perfectly willing to let Israel be annihilated to protect their precious oil flow. It also provides a rare view into international diplomacy and how poor communication can take us to the brink of global catastrophe. Boyne's narrative is clear and balanced. This is an excellent companion book to Michael Oren's wonderful "Six Days of War" about the 1967 Middle East war.
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