Viper Pilot: A Memoir of Air Combat

Dan Hampton

Oct 2012 · Sold by Harper Collins

About this ebook

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING MEMOIR OF 21ST-CENTURY AIR COMBAT, BY "ONE OF THE MOST DECORATED PILOTS IN AIR FORCE HISTORY" (NEW YORK POST)

151 combat missions
21 hard kills on surface -to -air missile sites
4 Distinguished Flying Crosses with Valor
1 Purple Heart

First into a war zone, flying behind enemy lines to purposely draw fire, the wild weasels are elite fighter squadrons with the most dangerous job in the Air Force

One of the greatest aviation memoirs ever written, Viper Pilot is an Air Force legend's thrilling eyewitness account of modern air warfare. For twenty years, Lieutenant Colonel Dan Hampton was a leading member of the Wild Weasels, logging 608 combat hours in the world's most iconic fighter jet: the F-16 "Fighting Falcon," or "Viper." He spearheaded the 2003 invasion of Iraq, leading the first flight of fighters over the border en route to strike Baghdad. Earlier, on 9/11, Hampton's father was inside the Pentagon when it was attacked; with his dad's fate unknown, Hampton was scrambled into American skies and given the unprecedented orders to shoot down any unidentified aircraft. Viper Pilot is an unforgettable look into the closed world of fighter pilots and modern air combat.

Ratings and reviews

Possibly the best account of modern war flying from a vastly successful decorated veteran. Some political rants that don't seem to fit, and a massive ego that grates on occasion but firmly recommended.

Great book, but don't read it if you're French I guess. This guy hates the French with a passion for some reason and won't go a chapter without talking down to them and their history completely unprompted. Maybe it's a joke but it's strange

This book has allot of technical jargon rendering it somewhat hard to read. I wish I'd known there was a glossary in the back. All in all not too bad.

About the author

Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Dan Hampton flew 151 combat missions during his twenty years (1986–2006) in the United States Air Force. For his service in the Iraq War, Kosovo conflict, and first Gulf War, Col. Hampton received four Distinguished Flying Crosses with Valor, a Purple Heart, eight Air Medals with Valor, five Meritorious Service medals, and numerous other citations. He is a graduate of the USAF Fighter Weapons School, USN Top Gun School (TOGS), and USAF Special Operations School. A frequent guest analyst on CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC discussing foreign affairs, military, aviation, and intelligence issues, he has published in Aviation History, the Journal of Electronic Defense, Air Force Magazine, Vietnam magazine, and Airpower magazine, and written several classified tactical works for the USAF Weapons Review. He is the author of the national bestsellers Viper Pilot and Lords of the Sky, as well as a novel, The Mercenary.