Fort Apache

HOGS: First Gulf War Air Combat #3

by Jim DeFelice

Desperate to get back into the war before it ends, Hog jockey Lieutenant William “BJ” Dixon volunteers to do something useful – act as a ground forward air controller, coordinating attack targets with the bomber pilots. Easy, right? Wrong, as he realizes while shivering in an unpressurized cargo hold, ready to plunge into enemy territory on a nighttime airdrop. As a newbie, he’s barely tolerated by the well-oiled team of commandos who are tasked with building an allied airstrip within spitting distance of Baghdad – code name Fort Apache. BJ soon learns that ground war requires a whole different skill set — from humping 60 pounds of bulky equipment over rocky terrain to backing out of a minefield — and offers an uncomfortable ringside view of death. After stumbling onto a secret Iraqi chemical weapons depot, Dixon and his team are caught in an ambush of Iraqi soldiers. With equipment destroyed, a rescue helicopter down, and their commander wounded, Dixon is forced to lead the team as the highest ranking remaining officer. Can he guide Hog Aces Doberman and A-Bomb to the target without getting his team and himself blown up in the explosive aftermath?

Hogs #3: FORT APACHE is the third of six novels in the HOGS First Gulf War series, focusing on a colorful group of brave pilots flying A-10As during the First Gulf War in 1991. #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Jim DeFelice (American Sniper), writing under the pen name of James Ferro, based this dramatic, historical action series on actual events. Filled with blistering action and gritty authenticity, this is a powerful and exciting tribute to the men and women who flew these hard-working, air-to-ground fighter-bombers.

291 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 15, 2013

About the author

My latest book, CODE NAME: JOHNNY WALKER was hailed by Kirkus Review as a “fiery, insightful memoir from the former Iraqi translator who fought alongside U.S. Special Forces during the recent war in Iraq.” They also “a harrowing personal journey of courageous self-empowerment during wartime.” called it an “invaluable insider’s perspective of Iraq.

I wrote it with the real "Johnny Walker," who was born and raised in Iraq. His dream of building a better country after the ouster of Sadaam Hussein was dashed by religious and sectarian violence. He risked his own life to help US military track down religious terrorists who targeted innocent Iraqi civilians and American military installations. I first heard about him from Navy SEAL Chris Kyle (who I wrote AMERICAN SNIPER with, who credited Johnny with saving many American and Iraqi lives. Chris noted that Johnny had an uncanny knack for defusing volatile situations, uncovering the right perpetrators who might be hiding in plain sight, and saving several American team member’s lives under fire. With the help of concerned SEALs, Johnny and his family were safely relocated to the U.S., where they are now, as Johnny likes to say, “living the dream.”