Alexander P. de Seversky and the Quest for Air Power

by James K. Libbey

Today, air power is a vital component of the U.S. armed forces. James Libbey, in Alexander P. de Seversky and the Quest for Air Power , highlights the contributions of an aviation pioneer who made much of it possible. Graduating from the Imperial Russian Naval Academy at the start of World War I, de Seversky lost a leg in his first combat mission. He still shot down thirteen German planes and became the empire’s most decorated combat naval pilot. De Seversky elected to escape Soviet Russia after the Bolshevik Revolution. He served as a naval attaché in the United States in 1918 and offered his services as a pilot and consulting engineer to the U.S. War Department. He proved inventive both in the technology of advanced military aircraft and in the strategy of exercising air power. He worked for famed aviation advocate Gen. William “Billy” Mitchell, who encouraged the naturalized citizen to patent his inventions, such as an in-flight refueling system and a gyroscopically synchronized bombsight. His creative spirit then spurred him to design and manufacture advanced military aircraft. When World War II broke out in Europe, de Seversky became America’s best-known philosopher, prophet, and advocate for air power, even serving as an adviser to the chief of staff of the U.S. Air Force. The highlight of his life occurred in 1970 when the Aviation Hall of Fame enshrined de Seversky for “his achievements as a pilot, aeronautical engineer, inventor, industrialist, author, strategist, consultant, and scientific advances in aircraft design and aerospace technology.” This book will appeal to readers with a special interest in military history and to anyone who wants to learn more about one of the most important figures to promote American air power.

Genres: Military Fiction

368 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 2013

Reviews

[Shrike58 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Something of a renaissance man, Seversky had a long and high-profile career as an officer, aviator, businessman, inventor and public commentator. It was the last role that probably gave him his highest profile as, for a time, his 1942 polemic "Victory through Air Power" made him something of a household name. Apart from general background I did want to understand the feud between the man and General Hap Arnold, as I can remember back in the day an issue of "Wings/Airpower" magazine (ca. 2000 I believe) made the claim that Seversky selling warplanes to Japan facilitated the exit of Seversky from the firm that bore his name. Libbey doesn't offer any commentary on that allegation, but does remind the reader that Seversky never really owned the company and that when the board tired of his free-wheeling tactics Seversky became expendable. That said, Hap Arnold's efforts to either co-opt or contain Seversky do read as being somewhat amateurish; too many people respected Seversky (many of whom were in the USAAF) for a vendetta to work. Then again, Seversky was not enough of an organization man to be the model corporate CEO, and he never recognized that his failures in delivering aircraft on time and on budget did not endear him to the procurement staff of the USAAC; when it just so happened to be directed by Hap Arnold.

Originally written: July 2, 2018.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am probably related to the author, so I started reading the book to write a review for our genealogy newsletter. I was soon reading it in fascination for the data and stories supplied about real life people--some of whom my father worked with as a civilian researcher with the U.S. Air Force. There are a number of technical discussions, which are rendered fairly understandable even for "lay" people. The history of the developing Air Force from the Army Air Corps, and the switch of tactics from huge naval battleships to bombers with fighter escorts is pertinent even today. If you can command the air space over battling armies, you have a huge strategic advantage. If you can fly over the ships and armies to bomb inland targets, you will probably win any battle or war. Pilot and inventor de Seversky, and his contemporary Sikorsky, advanced the US' air power in many ways. Even if their inventions and "flying machines" were not mass-produced, the improvements they made to such things as bombsights, etc., were incorporated. If you like to know how institutional things come about from infancy and are interested in military issues, this is a good read!