In 2018, one year prior to the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of TOPGUN, Pedersen was honored at Palm Springs Air Museum Gala. [16] This is the extraordinary, thrilling story of how TOPGUN saw America reclaim the skies, by the man who created it. Michel III, Marshall (1997). Clashes; Air Combat Over North Vietnam 1965–1972. Naval Institute Press. p.181. ISBN 1-59114-519-8. Primarily a biography rather than a deep dive into Topgun, but still an enjoyable read for a number of reasons. Pedersen conveys personal experiences well. Pedersen begins with ripping former Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara up one side and down the other for clueless micromanagement of the air war in Vietnam, and also for McNamara’s using his political and corporate connections to make choices of building contractors, rather than making decisions on the basis of what would be best for the people actually using the military equipment. Pedersen really slams the connections between military contractors, politicians and administration officials and top brass in the military who retire and take cushy jobs with the contractors. With this kind of setup, he argues, decisions about what to fund are corrupt and not in the best interests of the armed forces and US readiness. He gives a number of examples, but in particular he argues that stealth technology and too many electronic bells and whistles make the costs of today’s aircraft way too high and that not enough attention is paid to simply making fighter aircraft that pilots will be able to deploy effectively.

Cast: Jennifer Connelly, Tom Cruise, Ed Harris, Val Kilmer, Miles Teller, Jon Hamm, Glen Powell, Lewis Pullman, Charles Parnell, Bashir Salahuddin, Monica Barbaro, Jay Ellis, Danny Ramirez, Greg Tarzan Davis It was quite technical (which to me made it even better) but Pedersen put some his aviator comparisons into the perspective that a civilian would maybe (if you were familiar with cars) understand.Trerice v. Pedersen". United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. F2d (769): 1398. 28 August 1985. I will always love this book and decided as it was a short book, that I would spend a few days rereading it.

Archive photo of the Navy Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN) founding instructors. (Photo: via Dan Pedersen/Hatchette Books) Top Gun: The New Book by Navy's Program Founder Is a Rare Aviation Literary Gem". The Aviationist. 2019-04-30 . Retrieved 2020-12-31. Officially, the programme he set up was called the US Navy Fighter Weapons School. To everyone else it was known simply as TOPGUN. Greer, Ann. "Story from Palm Springs Air Museum: Naval Top Gun Founder To Be Honored at Palm Springs Air Museum Gala". The Desert Sun . Retrieved 2020-12-31.Top Gun is filled with minor, technical inaccuracies and violation of protocol that weren't called out by other characters. Also, Top Gun's dogfights and flying sequences have been criticized for having the jets fly too close to each other, which wouldn't have happened. However, these scenes were shot this way for cinematic effect, which is likely the explanation for other inaccuracies. It was then moved again to July 2021, before finally setting on May 25, 2022 (in the UK) – so it is fair to say it’s been a long time coming. The last chapter, as well as other parts of the book, felt like they were an outlet for Pedersen’s frustration with the government, specifically Secretary McNamara. It was interesting to read about what is happening with naval aviation in modern times and read about Pedersen’s perspective, but he was definitely dissing on people in the book. Dan Pedersen takes us through his time in the US Navy, from aspiring pilot to naval aviator, and his progress through the ranks over a 30 year career. From the start, the cheerleading for the flyers is tempered by the criticism of senior leadership. Pedersen joined the Navy in 1953 as an enlisted mechanic. [1] In 1955, he was accepted into the Naval Aviation Cadet Program. [2] :10 After completing flight training on 1 March 1957, he was assigned to VF(AW)-3 flying the Douglas F4D Skyray. [2] :22

The Real Military Program That Inspired 'Top Gun' Just Turned 50. Here's How Being a Navy Pilot Has Changed Since Then". Time. 5 March 2019 . Retrieved 2020-12-31. The author does trash talk the Air Force, though there is a bit of truth behind it. The Air Force is rigid in their tactics and any push to change would have been stamped out. The Air Force thinks they are better dogfighters, but their adherence to unwavering tactics ensures their weaknesses will be found. The service’s internal politics is such that they want aircraft that can dogfight, but the real threat is SAMs. On March 3, 1969, the United States Navy established an elite school for the top one percent of its pilots. Its purpose was to teach the lost art of aerial combat and to ensure that the handful of men who graduated were the best fighter pilots in the world. They succeeded. Today, the Navy calls it Fighter Weapons School. The flyers call it: TOP GUN." An excellent dive into the messed up the execution of the Vietnam War is _Dereliction of Duty_ by H. R. McMaster) The founder of the "Topgun" Navy Fighter School shares the remarkable inside story of how he and eight other risk-takers revolutionized the art of aerial combat.As a Top Gun fanboy, I enjoyed this book immensely. If you liked books like The Right Stuff or Sled Driver: Flying the World's Fastest Jet, there is a good chance that you too would enjoy it. There were a couple of things that I didn’t quite like though. When I bought this book, I was expecting to read about the founding of Topgun and how it’s been shaped through the years. While that was in the book, it didn’t seem like the main focus of the book. While it was marketed that way, it was more a memoir, where Topgun was just a part of that. It was a little disappointing that it wasn’t as marketed, but the entire story overall was so good that I don’t care much.