A Special Thanks to the Apache Book

[btaft]

I have always pretty much avoided using rockets when piloting the BS (and most other sims for that matter). The main reason is that I am not very good with them.....I lay down a lot of fire power but get very little return. I recently read the Apache book by Ed Macys and decided to put that method to use.....basically finding the target with the optical senser then piloting the piper to overlay the optical designation. I just finished trying that and managed several hits and stil lhad plenty of rockets left over. I still prefer the cannon and vikhr but at least I know I can do some damage when I run out of those options. Now if I could just have that off-aspect cannon and the co-pilot to pick the target sout for me.

[leafer]

I was just at his site and several paragraphs through the first chapter I thought, this sucks. Is this like Sniper One where people raved about it but it's average at best? It made me think the bit printed on the back about how the military tried to stop Sniper One from going to the press was a hype campaign.

[nemises]

sniper 1 was terrible, and even Apache Dawn (IMHO) was not particularly good...Ed Macy's Apache however, really goes into quite a bit of detail about in-cockpit ops, and honestly is the best military book I've read about modern ops

[joey45]

sniper One was a good book and Apache even better... This is coming from an ex squadie who has been thaere, done that and got the T-shirts...

[connos]

The book is really amazing!!! Really enjoyed it!!! It describes a lot, in great detail and following some of the advices that are in the book, i become better in BS.

Edited July 6, 2009 by connos

[Panzertard]

Noone really tells us *why* its good? Or average?

What is good - and why is it, how come?

 

Interesting stories about combat operations? Great detailed description on how to conduct operations?

Hawt pictures of blonde female pilots? Nekkid??

[fox_111]

I read A LOT of military books.

 

Sniper one was good IMO, but like most military books, it has too much of the How we got there, and how the chain of comand works bullshit. When I pick a book about a perticular unit or historical engament, I'm looking forward to read about what they did in combat and it was like to be there. I don't want to read about how they got in the army and how the army work... If so, I want to be done reading about it in less than 5 or 10 pages at most. Since the combat side of the story would only last a mear 100 pages, they lace the book with uninteresting crap to make it ticker. It does not add to the story and it get boring.

 

BUT... Sniper One is one of those books that does not have a lot of this boring filler. Just enough to give the feeling of the weight and complexity of the military machine.

 

BUY IT and see by yourself.

 

Ed Macy Apache is great. As it does not have a lot of side filler. Just enough to orient the reader. The book is mostly about the pilot whereabouts.

 

If you are looking about a great military book, let me give you a few:

 

Shooter, by Gunny Sgt. Jack Coughlin, USMC 9/10

Afghan Guerrilla Warfare, by Ali Ahmad Jalali and Lester W. Grau 9/10

(This one is about Mujahadeen and Russian tactics in the 1980 afghan war and before... VERY interesting and well made!)

House to house, by David Bellavia, with John R. Bruning 8/10

Trigger men, by Hans Halberstadt 8/10

 

There are so much more good books, but these are the few I think about for the moment and that I have here.

[btaft]

The things I liked about the book were the technical/operational discussions....in particular when things would get to the tactical level and the author would discuss how the helicopters to would interact/support one another and interact with the ground troops. Also talking about physically piloting (i.e. what he was doing....pushing the cyclic forwards...etc) the helicopter were good and helped immerse you into the cockpit. Then the story itself in reference to the rescue effort at Jugroom Fort. His explanation on how the apache pilots make a rocket run actually helped me be better at making them myself.

[L4key]

 

If you are looking about a great military book, let me give you a few:

 

Shooter, by Gunny Sgt. Jack Coughlin, USMC 9/10

Afghan Guerrilla Warfare, by Ali Ahmad Jalali and Lester W. Grau 9/10

(This one is about Mujahadeen and Russian tactics in the 1980 afghan war and before... VERY interesting and well made!)

House to house, by David Bellavia, with John R. Bruning 8/10

Trigger men, by Hans Halberstadt 8/10

 

There are so much more good books, but these are the few I think about for the moment and that I have here.

 

 

Can't believe Chickenhawk didn't get a mention on a heli forum! Best book ever. :thumbup:

[C. Patrick]

Guys, I see two Ed Macy Apache offerings. "Apache (The Man, The Machine, The Mission)," and "Apache: Inside the Cockpit of the World's Most Deadly Fighting Machine"

 

I assume that you're speaking of the later. I'd like to order a copy. Please advise, if I'm ordering the wrong book.

 

Thanks!

[L4key]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Apache-Ed-Macy

 

Wasn't aware it was called anything other than just 'Apache?' May be different in the States. Look for that cover though.

 

Actually - I think they're both the same...

Edited July 6, 2009 by L4key

[fox_111]

I got that one

http://www.amazon.ca/Apache-ed-Macy/dp/0007288182/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1246909001&sr=1-1

 

But the one linked above is a later version and you should get it. I wonder what is added though to warrent re-printing the book for a 3rd version.

 

Damned amazon.ca... I just pre-ordered ArmA2.... They always have something I badly want.

Edited July 6, 2009 by fox_111

[Zakk]

I read A LOT of military books.

 

If you are looking about a great military book, let me give you a few:

 

Shooter, by Gunny Sgt. Jack Coughlin, USMC 9/10

 

This book isn't so great according to this Marine:

 

By B. Lincoln - See all my reviews

 

I have been in the Marine Corps for 9 years, 6 as a scout/sniper. This book made me sick. Scout/Sniper's do not act like this, there is no top-ranked marine sniper--we have no awards. We no longer collect confirmed kills. To see someone make money off of lies like this is heart-breaking. The public will read this a think it is true and pass this fish story along. If it was sold as fiction its just another story but to claim these events happened this way is unjust to the real scout/snipers in combat. Read NO True Glory if you want fact. You can read about what real Marines do.

[C. Patrick]

Thanks for the quick response L4Key/fox_111!

 

After further research, the U.S. version of the Ed Macy book you've described is, "Apache: Inside the Cockpit of the World's Most Deadly Fighting Machine."

 

http://www.amazon.com/Apache-Inside-Cockpit-Fighting-Machine/dp/0802118941/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1246915852&sr=1-2

 

Thanks for the help!

[fox_111]

This book isn't so great according to this Marine:

 

By B. Lincoln - See all my reviews

 

I have been in the Marine Corps for 9 years, 6 as a scout/sniper. This book made me sick. Scout/Sniper's do not act like this, there is no top-ranked marine sniper--we have no awards. We no longer collect confirmed kills. To see someone make money off of lies like this is heart-breaking. The public will read this a think it is true and pass this fish story along. If it was sold as fiction its just another story but to claim these events happened this way is unjust to the real scout/snipers in combat. Read NO True Glory if you want fact. You can read about what real Marines do.

 

He's right. The autor sound like a proud guy that want to shine above the others. But what he described on his tour in Iraq, the trainning he did and the overall tactics he "developped" sounded nice and refreshing.

 

I read No True Glory, and it is a more grim picture of the fighting. I guess it depend on the mood the autor want to set for his book.

 

Some books are umbarably all too patriotics. Make me sick reading them. Other are just down to earth with cold dry facts. I like a little mix of both.

 

Like The Circuit, by Bob Shepherd.

[leafer]

I bought Sniper One because I'm fascinated by snipers. How they went about doing their thing. I want to read about the hunt. The skills. The insurgents and the juba they killed. I am well aware that the majority of military personals came from poor background, and that it takes special kind of human to get into an elite unit. Instead of letting me in on how a sniper would manage a head shot when the vic was hiding inside a car with tinted windows all around, I learned that Pikey was a tough gypsy -- really, really tough and so do all of his men.

 

I understand that most of these books were written by ghost writers and that is why most of these first-hand account books ended up lacking soul. These books are expensive in Thailand and I'm pissed I got ripped because there were hardly any sniping in SNIPER One.

 

If you guys haven't read Pak Six then get it because that book was brimming with soul. You just know that it was written by someone who drove F-105 for a living.

Edited July 7, 2009 by leafer

[Shaman]

I bought Apache as a gift to my Significant Other, for our anniversary and to motivate her better since she's taking military copter pilot course ATM. It was worth it! Book is great, and Ed Macy was so kind to even personalize the book for her :> I don't know the other books you guys mention here, but I can recommend Apache - it is great read - even if you "just fly" Ka-50 @ home :) Trust me, grab it!

[joey45]

snipers just don't snipe. If you think all that snipers do is kill at 800+ metres then you're wrong.

[fox_111]

snipers just don't snipe. If you think all that snipers do is kill at 800+ metres then you're wrong.

 

Snipers mostly observe and report. If they are attached to a fire team, then well yeah, they will shoot often. But true sniper in a recon mission don't shoot often.

 

I wonder why people are so facinated by snipers. I play airsoft as a dedicated sniper. I give the qualitication class to use higher fps rifles (Canada's airsoft rules). I've been sniping for more than 5 years and I've seen a lot of people dishing out a lot of money on upgraded rifles, only to sell them to buy another AEG because they hate the low amount of kills they get + the amount of pain just to get overgunned.

 

The sniper has the worst job of all infentry. I like it only because it's hard and it require you to be batient and enduring.

[joey45]

the thing is the snipers weren't there as snipers, they weren't even gonna take their snipers rifles with them. If you want to know about sniper your best bet is to by a book on snipers [not novals] Like 'SNIPER by Mark Spicer'.

[Zulu]

A good book I can recommend is something most people around probaly have never heard of but is very interesting "Buffalo Soldiors" the story of South Africas 32 Battlion through the eyes of its founding commander.

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Buffalo-Soldiers-Africa-Battalion-1975-1993/dp/191985407X/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1246982586&sr=1-6

[fox_111]

A good book I can recommend is something most people around probaly have never heard of but is very interesting "Buffalo Soldiors" the story of South Africas 32 Battlion through the eyes of its founding commander.

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Buffalo-Soldiers-Africa-Battalion-1975-1993/dp/191985407X/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1246982586&sr=1-6

 

You picked by curiosity and I will buy it for my next batch of books.

[Rhino4]

I play airsoft as a dedicated sniper. I give the qualitication class to use higher fps rifles (Canada's airsoft rules).

Just out of curiosity...What's the range on an airsoft "sniper rifle"?

[Zulu]

You picked by curiosity and I will buy it for my next batch of books.

 

If you do decide to buy it I would also recommend reading up a bit on the South African Military so that you have a understanding of the differant equipment used and units etc.

[leafer]

Like I said, I want to read about the 'hunt' not how tough they are and I'm aware it's 80-90% recon, stalking, boredom etc. I guess I find sniping fascinating because I know very little about the trade.