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A Vision So Noble: John Boyd, the OODA Loop, and America's War on Terror

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Dan Ford, after exhaustive study of all the available sources on Boyd's thought has written a very useful and concise summary of his major theories. Having read everything written about John Boyd, I found Ford's treatment perhaps the best treatment of his thought for those not interested or unable to invest the time in the very dense work of Osinga or the more breezy account by Coram. Ford's treatment of the OODA loop is particularly helpful and may be the best explication available. If this short work is your first introduction to John Boyd, it will surely whet your appetite for more. As others have said, for a concentration on the theories, see Hammond; for more on the personal life, read Coram. If you're willing to be challenged intellectually, spend time with Osinga. Well done, Mr. Ford!

Short, but an interesting read. I'm not sure if this would be the best introduction to Boyd's work, but it fills some gaps and provides some clarity around Boyd's ideas. Coram is a good place to start if you're interested in the person; Hammond if you're more interested in his ideas or Osinga if you're an academic. If you've already read the above, you should read this, too.

A Vision So Noble is available both in paperback and in Kindle e-book editions. It's loosely based on my thesis in War Studies for King's College London, which a while ago I published as an e-book under the title "Let the Americans Live in the Village" (no longer available). I also incorporated two other academic papers on the same general topic, one of which is also available for the Kindle: When Sun-tzu met Clausewitz: the OODA Loop and the invasion of Iraq.

What fascinated me about John Boyd was the elegant way in which his OODA Loop--the notion that all human competition is a cycle of observation > orientation > decision > action, until one of the competitors goes down in defeat--provided an escape from Clausewitz's very rigid triad of planning > strategy > tactics. It's not all top-down, as later German military doctrine preached. Military operations must also be bottom-up, with the "strategic corporal" making decisions (calling in an air strike on a village) that can affect the reputation of a nation.

John Boyd died before America became fully engaged in the war on terror. Had he lived a bit longer, he would certainly have addressed the question I raise here: how to battle a terrorist enemy? There's a clue in his call for "a vision rooted in human nature so noble, so attractive that it not only attracts the uncommitted and magnifies the spirit and strength of its adherents, but also undermines the dedication and determination of any competitors or adversaries...." Blue skies! -- Dan Ford

This book provides an accurate and concise description of the ideas and thinking of Colonel John Boyd (USAF ret. 1927-1997). Ford uses his understanding of Boyd's ideas to somewhat gingerly explore what sort strategy Boyd might have advised for the misnamed Global War on Terror. However the chief value of this book is its brief, but well thought out examination of Boyd's tactical, operational and strategic thinking. As such the book makes an excellent introduction to the more detailed and in depth study of Colonel Boyd by Frans P.B. Osinga, "Science, Strategy, and War: The strategic theory of John Boyd" (2007 Routledge). Boyd's ideas resonate as much today as they did in the 20th Century.

This book is a worthy addition to the literature on Colonel John Boyd (1927-1997).

Colonel Boyd of the USAF has also had a significant influence within the RAAF, and the Australian military in general.

Boyd's forthright character and career are as interesting as his thinking on military strategy and his OODA loop (for observe, orient, decide and act).

See John Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War, by Robert Coram, for Boyd's life and career.

[ASIN:0316796883 Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War]