HAVE you ever wondered what would have happened in Black Hawk Down if the US Forces had got the Abrams tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles they so desperately wanted? If so, read Thunder Run by David Zucchino.

Zucchino tells the story of the Spartan Brigade – 2nd Brigade 3rd Infantry Division – on the outskirts of Baghdad in April 2003.

At the beginning of the war, the US plan to take Baghdad was for the heavy divisions to surround Baghdad and let the light divisions clear it block by block.

Instead, on April 3, the Spartan Brigade launched the first of two Thunder Runs – armoured columns designed to drive into the very heart of Baghdad and show the Iraqi people and government that they were powerless to stop American forces.

The story is stunning. The ability of the Spartan Brigade to weather the sheer volume of fire showered on them on the first thunder run is something to be envied. Their ability to back up two days later and do it again, driving into the heart of Iraqi power and this time staying there, is one of the most amazing tales you will hear from Operation Iraqi Freedom.

If you wonder why the Australian Army is spending millions of dollars buying M1A1 tanks and upgrading M113 vehicles, then read this book. The book shows that well-protected combined arms teams comprising armour, infantry and engineers, supported by offensive fire from a variety of platforms, can dominate the urban battlefield.

The book exposes the frailties of existing logistic resupply. The vast amount of ammunition and fuel required to keep the Spartan Brigade in the fight required a logistic column to move forward and resupply them during battle.

The story of the fight to keep three highway overpasses – Larry, Curly and Moe – open for this column is a serious wake-up call for anyone who thinks that logistic vehicles and personnel don’t need crew-served weapons or ballistic protection from small arms.

This is essential reading for understanding how a hardened army can take the fight to the enemy in urban terrain. It’s a difficult book to put down once you begin.

– Major Tony Duus

EACH day we can read in the news how another suicide bomb has been used as the ultimate guided weapon system.

From Sri Lanka to Israel, they have often been regarded as a tool of religious fanatics, but Pape’s academic approach reveals that religion often has only a veneer role to play, if any role at all.

Dying to Win is a study that reveals how the role of every suicide campaign, from 1980 to 2003, has been to compel modern democracies to withdraw military forces from territory that terrorists view as their homeland.

Pape’s critical analysis of the suicide terrorist makes for interesting reading, but it falls down in two main areas. First, the study covers the period up to 2003, omitting the many recent attacks that have plagued the world.

Second, Pape’s recommendations to policy makers seem to be in line with the terrorist’s demands, that is, remove the Western troops from the regions of conflict.

Anyone contemplating reading this book should be aware that it is essentially an academic text, but for those who want to get into the mindset of the suicide terrorists, this book will give you a valuable insight into their frightening world.

– Corporal Cameron Jamieson

Extra Lemon outlines the sometimes-shameless history of the automotive industry’s “heroic failures”.

Tony Davis has dubbed these vehicles “lemons” for various reasons, such as terrifying flimsiness, catastrophic sales figures and being deathly dull.

Davis examines some of the well-known Australian-released lemons being the Holden Camira and the Chrysler Valiant. He also brings to the reader’s attention some of the more obscure vehicles many readers would not have heard of, such as the Ford Pinto.

Extra Lemon is a cynical and sometimes funny read for the car buff and the car novice.

– Private Andrew Hetherington

Air Force News has a copy of Extra Lemon to give away.
In 25 words tell us if you have owned a lemon and why it was one to you.
Entries to simone.heyer@defencenews.gov.au.

Book Clearance