Ironclaw: A Navy Carrier Pilot's Gulf War Experience [Hardcover]

Sherman Baldwin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1996

Just ten days out of land-based flight training and on the eve of the Persian Gulf War, Lieutenant Junior Grade Sherman Baldwin was assigned to Air Wing Five's EA-6B Prowler squadron--call sign Ironclaw--aboard the U.S.S. Midway. Flying the Prowler attack aircraft, Baldwin, his crew of three flight officers, and the rest of their squadron were responsible for identifying, jamming and destroying enemy radar.

In Ironclaw, Baldwin gives a compelling, tension-filled account of modern carrier warfare. From the tactical mission planning room belowdecks to the cockpit of his Prowler launching from zero to 150 knots in two seconds, the reader is there. Midair refuelings, day and night landings on the pitching deck of the Midway (at the time, our country's smallest carrier), and Desert Storm combat missions are all here just as he lived them.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Baldwin was fresh out of pilot training as a lieutenant j.g. when, on Dec. 10, 1990, he was assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Midway in the Persian Gulf. A skilled aviator, the young "nugget"?a pilot on his first sea cruise?nevertheless had much to learn before becoming proficient at carrier operations. The process would be short and intense: Operation Desert Shield had begun months earlier, and Baldwin, along with his shipmates, knew that the U.S. could go to war against Iraq at any time. When Operation Desert Storm was launched in January 1991, Baldwin found himself in the thick of the action. By then, he had logged numerous hours on carrier launches, aerial refueling and landings performed at night on the pitching deck of "the smallest carrier in the fleet." As related here, these tasks are as terrifying as the later wartime missions. Baldwin's account of his attempt to hook up to a refueling tanker in the dark, while running out of gas and hampered by nervous jitters, is among the most vivid in aviation literature. His running tale of his long-distance courtship of his wife is less engaging, but it doesn't hamper the appeal of this gritty and visceral memoir.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

"The lowest jet in the stack was a F/A?18 Hornet at 6000 feet. At 2152 I heard, 'Drago 307, commencing, altimeter 30.10.' The Prowler's holding speed was 250 knots." Nearly 300 pages of such technical jargon comprise this work by Baldwin, a navy fighter pilot who came to the Gulf War within a few weeks of graduation from flight school. He describes his career from basic training to advanced pilot school, the courtship of his fiancee, and his arrival on the aircraft carrier Midway. One is impressed by the tremendous amount of training, stamina, and skill needed to become a modern combat pilot. Unfortunately, Baldwin is not as skillful a writer, and his text soon becomes very tiring. Only for the most dedicated aviation technical buffs.?Stanley Itkin, Hillside P.L., New Hyde Park, N.Y.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 265 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow & Co; 1st ed edition (September 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688143032
• ISBN-13: 978-0688143039
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,361,485 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Terrific look at America's best, November 23, 2001

By 

"smokey_joe" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ironclaw (Mass Market Paperback)

This is an extraordinarily well written first person account of life as a Naval Aviator. Have you ever wondered what kind of men we send into harm's way, what they're like and where they come from? Are they different from the rest of us? What's it like to fly and fight a Naval aircraft in a real shooting war? Sherman Baldwin has your answers. Rather than the bravado common to other first-person combat stories, Baldwin's account is told with a great deal of humanity. Certainly there are the accounts of combat and carrier operations that will have you on the edge of your seat. But this is really the story of a man (not a machine) in an extraordinary situation doing extraordinary things on behalf of his country. I know men like this. They are my heroes, and Sherman Baldwin captures their lives and experiences as well as his. If you want to feel proud about America, read this book.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing and fascinating yet not grandiloquent..., March 27, 1998

By 

Peter (LA, CA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ironclaw (Mass Market Paperback)

I recently read Sherman Baldwin's "Ironclaw : A Navy Carrier Pilot's War Experience" and I was completely at a loss for words on what a great book it is. This book was action-packed and was to the point, unlike many other fighter books I have read. It also has an uncompareable description of what life on the aircraft carrier the "Midway" was really like during Operation Desert Storm. When I read the first chapter, I really felt my head being thrown back into the seat as Sherman was catapulted off the deck of the old and worn aircraft carrier, and I felt the jolt of the Prowler slamming against the deck during landing. One word to describe the author's writing? Succinct. His writing was extremely clear and precise yet was not boring or grandiloquent. After reading Ironclaw, I felt a sense of pride for my country, and I have much greater respect for the men and women of today's armed services, especially the devoted people who risk their lives everyday for my protection and liberty. The chapters are rather short, alowing you to catch ten or so pages on a break or at school or anytime you have 15 minutes. Being only 15 years old, I still have a long way to go in my life, I hope. I am interested in fighter planes and this is above all the crème de la crème of fighter books, the best I have read so far. The plot is extremely riveting and action-filled. Please don't take my word for it: read it!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting but not Top Gun, September 29, 2002

By 

John G. Hilliard (Toronto Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ironclaw (Mass Market Paperback)

This book was not the literary version of Top Gun so if you are looking for seat of the pants air combat this is not really the book to read. The author was a navy EA-6 Prowler pilot during the Gulf War. He flew from the U.S.S. Midway. One of the more interesting parts of his story is that he was a new carrier pilot at the start of the conflict, therefore, he had to get accustomed to flying from a carrier during war conditions. The tensest passages in the book deal with his night landings and aerial refuelings. The actual job his aircraft performed in the war, although very valuable, was a bit dull. This was not air to air fighter pilot dogfights.

I was also a little disappointed with his descriptions of what life was like on a carrier during wartime. There were some descriptions, but not enough for me to get a good picture of his time out on the ship. Do not get me wrong, the book was enjoyable and the writing was good. The book did tell the story of the war that most of us would not get to hear given the author was not a fighter pilot glamour jockey. I just wanted a bit more overall details of his group's missions and life on the carrier and skip the love story.