Where I Stand -- Mike O'Callaghan: USAF spells winners

Mike O'Callaghan is the Las Vegas Sun executive editor.

TOM CLANCY'S "Every Man A Tiger," written with USAF Gen. Chuck Horner (Ret.), should be read by every Nevadan and especially those at Nellis Air Force Base. This exciting book about the Gulf War is loaded with places, experiences and people known to Southern Nevadans. The book is presented in the clear and interesting style of all Clancy works. Horner's participation gives it the creditable touch that so often is missing in books about how wars are won or lost. Horner has been there and done that as a fighter pilot all the way from Iowa to Vietnam to the Middle East.

Clancy describes a fighter pilot as "a warrior, a person who puts himself in harm's way, and does it all by himself." Quoting another fighter pilot, Clancy refers to Horner as a "fighter pilot's fighter pilot" who has proven himself in combat during two tours of combat flying in Vietnam. He's also one of the men who saved the Air Force in the 1970s and helped rebuild it in the 1980s. Then he led it in an outstanding performance during Desert Shield and Desert Storm.

Along the road to the top, Horner tells of his experiences at Nellis and about the men he served with there and in combat. Among them are two of my friends, Gen. Bill Chairsell and the late Gen. Zack Taylor. Taylor and Chairsell settled down as highly respected and popular Las Vegans.

Horner first met Chairsell when he was Chuck's commander flying over Vietnam as Wild Weasels seeking out and destroying enemy SAMs (surface-to-air missiles). It was Chairsell's leadership that turned a high-loss rate into successful missions that made a difference.

In 1967 Horner returned to the Nellis Combat Crew Training Wing. Later he joined the new Fighter Weapons Center run by then-Brig. Gen. Zack Taylor, the father of the Center. Clancy refers to Taylor as "a soft-spoken but tough-as-nails Virginia gentleman who'd been an ace in World War II." The author adds that Zack was a "man of conspicuous integrity."

When the budget axe in Washington was threatening the very existence of Nellis AFB, then-Maj. Gen. Taylor used Horner in developing new money-saving methods and more effective training plans. Later he sent Maj. Horner to represent Nellis in a study of what bases to eliminate. Clancy writes, "Before Horner left, Taylor gave him some very simple but important advice, 'Don't defend Nellis' he told him. 'Do what is best for the nation and the Air Force.' " When the smoke cleared the Nellis Fighter Center was one of two centers to remain active. Although Clancy doesn't mention it, Taylor always gave much credit for this success to Nevada's Sen. Howard W. Cannon, a distinguished combat pilot during World War II.

One whole chapter is dedicated to "The Vision of Bill Creech" and the turning of the Air Force into an effective combat organization which paved the way for success in the Gulf War. Creech, a former leader of the Thunderbirds, is described by Clancy as "a consummately skilled and precise fighter pilot." The author sees Creech as a tireless man reaching for excellence and "as demanding of himself as he was of others." Creech had also proven himself in air combat several times and was one of the early fighters to turn the tide against the North Koreans and Chinese during the Korean War.

A longtime resident of Henderson and now an author, Creech retired as a four-star general. So what did he do to turn the Air Force into winners when taking over as commander of Tactical Air Command in 1978? Horner writes, "what Creech did, what we did, was learn how to be an air force all over again." Horner goes on to say, "What you saw in Desert Storm was the legacy of Bill Creech. When F-16 squadrons of usually 24 aircraft flew over a hundred sorties in a single day, that was because his liberation of maintenance crews from idiotic rules created an environment where individual initiative counted. ... We had pride, productivity, purpose, and a sense of professional dedication."

Clancy and Horner have written an exciting book from cover to cover. Chapter 10, "Lost and Found," tells of successful and unsuccessful attempts to recover pilots shot down over Iraq. The feelings of the pilots are expressed in true Clancy style. The same style relates combat flights and recoveries in Vietnam.

"Every Man A Tiger" should be read by decision makers at all levels of military and governmental leadership. At the same time it gives readers like me the thrill of being there when history was made. The book is a mixture of great history given with the excitement of all of Clancy's works. For me it brought back memories of a visit with Taylor, Creech and Horner after the Gulf War had been won. Listening to Horner describe to two professional fighter pilots what had happened was interesting, but Clancy wasn't there to give it the excitement readers get from "Every Man A Tiger."

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