ARTICLES
Pearl Harbor – A Tragedy Revisited Part II
In December 1939, the U.S. War Department directed the Hawaiian Department, the senior Army command in Hawaii, to establish a capability to detect and track aircraft in the vicinity of the islands. Plans for an Aircraft Warning Service (AWS) were...
Pearl Harbor – a Tragedy Revisited
What more could be said about the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii in December 1941 that has not already been said? At first I thought about Lieutenant Kermit Tyler and his “Well, don’t worry about it” or “Forget it” comment in response to...
The Last Mission of Lieutenant Noriyuki Saito
This article focuses on one pilot’s story—Lt. Noriyuki Saito, a Japanese fighter pilot who flew missions over Burma during WWII. Through his experience, we gain rare perspective and insight into the other side of the Burma air war. His story sheds...
Bennie Schriever and the Revolution in Military Technology and Procurement
Few figures loom as large in the transformation of American military technology as Bernard (Bennie) Schriever. More engineer than warrior, Schriever nonetheless helped reshape the U.S. Air Force's strategic posture during the Cold War—not through...
Lockheed P-38 Lightning – Icon of the Pacific Air War Part II
With January 1944’s campaign in full swing, P‑38J and H Lightnings—freed from their early teething troubles—joined Corsairs, Hellcats, and Kittyhawks in high‑altitude escorts and fighter sweeps from Bougainville to Rabaul’s Gazelle Peninsula. Yet...
Ultra-Long Range Reconnaissance/Attack Operations in early 1942
On February 5, 1942, a routine Japanese administrative order was issued: “13 Experimental large model Flying Boat is adopted and designated Type 2 large Flying Boat, model 11.” Administrative Ordnance Order (Naireihei) No. 8-42. The Shi 13...
XB-17 History – Reflections on Strategic Contracting & Bureaucracy
The XB-17 holds a significant place in aviation history, representing a turning point in military procurement and the evolution of strategic bombing. Its development was shaped by a complex web of government contracts, Army Air Corps policies, and...
The Mystery Japanese Twin-Engine Fighters in World War II
Many publications use Allied code names for Japanese twin-engine aircraft in ways that suggest that Allied pilots as well as the author knew what the aircraft was and correctly identified it. Authors have used code names for time periods when the...
Grumman Hellcat – Scourge of the Pacific
The superlatives about the Grumman Hellcat abound. The F6F was credited with over 5,000 victories in air combat. It was said to dominate the Japanese navy’s Zero fighter a key opponent. Some of its claims for success are amazing. The Hellcat...
Lockheed P-38 Lightning – Icon of the Pacific Air War
Next up in the How Great series is the P-38. “P-38 Lightning Might Have Been the Best Fighter of World War II” and “P-38 Lightning WWII’s twin engine wonder” or even “Unsung Hero of WW II” read headlines of articles on my computer homepage....
The Hankow Warhawks – Japanese Exploitation of Captured Aircraft
The story of captured Allied aircraft in Japanese hands offers a fascinating glimpse into the improvisation and ingenuity necessitated by wartime constraints. Among these tales, the saga of the Hankow Warhawks—a squadron of P-40Ks abandoned on a...
The B-24 Liberator in Chinese Skies – Summer 1943
Survived the Hankow raid 8/24/43The B-24 Liberator in China played a pivotal role in shaping the air campaigns of World War II, particularly during the summer of 1943. As one of the most versatile and far-reaching bombers in the Allied arsenal, the...
Additional Publications
- Tuluvu’s Air War (Cape Gloucester)
- Masao Yoshihara’s Story: May 14th-25th, 1943
- Error Oft Repeated – The Anabuki Hoax
- Murakami: September 11th, 1942 – The Rest of the Story
- First Kamikaze? Attack on HMAS Australia — October 21st, 1944
- 248th Hiko Sentai: A Japanese “Hard luck” Fighter Unit
University of New Hampshire Magazine
Book Reviews
- Ki-43 Hayabusa aces of World War 2 (via Wayback Machine)
- P-40 Warhawk vs. Ki-43 Oscar (via Wayback Machine)
- Jimmy Doolittle, Hap Arnold, and the Battle of Britain: The 100-Octane Story (2020)
- Uncertain Wings: Curtiss Hawk 75 in China (2008)
- Illusive Target: Bombing Japan from China (2006)
- Chennault and the Flying Tigers – Heroes but were they legal? (2005)
- Double Lucky? The Campaigns of the 77th Hiko Sentai (2005)
- Japanese aircraft code-names in perspective (2005)
- Curtiss-Wright CW-21 (2005)
- Vultee P-66 in Chinese Service (2005)
- Zero Model 21: Unraveling the performance data (2004)
- Republic P-43 and China’s Air War (2004)
- Nakajima Type 1 Model 1 Army Fighter (Ki-43-I) Armament — A Reassessment (2002, 2004)
Selected Legal Publications
Air Force Law Review
- “The Agency Defense in Sale of Drugs Cases” Volume 16 (1974)
- “Aspects of Malingering” Volume 17 (1975).
- “Military Pleading” Volume 17 (1975)
- “Air‑Sea Rescue Operations in Europe During World War II: Historical Perspective on a Footnote in International Law” Volume 21 (1979)
American Business Law Journal
- “Keeping Secrets in the Campus Lab”, Volume 39 (2002) [Outstanding article award, Volume 39; cited in a brief to the U.S. Supreme Court]
Naval Postgraduate School Acquisition Research
- “Contractors in the 21st Century ‘Combat Zone’ (2005)
- “Contractors Supporting Military Operations” (2006)
- “Injecting New Ideas and New Approaches in Defense Systems: Are ‘Other Transactions’ an Answer?” (2009)
- “Contractors on The Battlefield: Resolving the Remaining Policy Issues” (2010)
- [PDFs available at NPS Acquisition Research Program repository]
The Air and Space Lawyer
- “Contractual Mechanisms in Support of Commercial Space Activities” Volume 1 (1984)
Additional legal articles with popular rather than primarily academic style have appeared in publications such as Aerospace America, Contract Management Magazine, Government Executive, Nash & Cibinic Report, and National Defense Magazine. Podcasts and other articles are available at strategicinstitute.org.
The Government Contractor
- “Feature Comment: Appropriate Contractual Instruments for R&D,” 59 GC ¶202 (2017)
- “Feature Comment: DOD Other Transactions Guide—A Breath of Fresh Air,” 60 GC ¶362 (2018)
- “Feature Comment: Thirty Years of Other Transactions,” 61 GC ¶ 347 (2019)
- “Feature Comment: New Administration: New Acquisition System?” 62 GC ¶ 344 (2020)
- “Feature Comment: Space Development Agency: Why Was Using an OT the Second Choice?” 63 GC ¶ 366 (2021)
- “Feature Comment: New Life and a New Number for Research Other Transactions,” 64 GC ¶ 63 (2022)
- “Feature Comment: New DOD Other Transactions Guide: Retreating from Innovation,” 65 GC ¶ 202 (2023)
[TGC is a subscription publication addressing legal aspects of government contracting aimed primarily at law firms, government legal offices and government contractors. In addition to lead articles cited above, TGC also contains several of my Practitioner’s Comments. Some of these articles are available at strategicinstitute.org]
Thompson Reuters Briefing Papers, Second Series
- “Uses of Other Transactions” (2023)
[see comments applicable to TGC above]