The History of Big Safari

by Bill Grimes

For more than half a century, Big Safari-modified aircraft have performed dangerous and essential missions to collect intelligence, conduct surveillance and reconnaissance, and engage in special operations missions around the globe in the interest of national security. These state-of-the-art aircraft have been flown, operated, and maintained by men and women whose dedication and commitment have made the world a safer place. In The History of Big Safari, author Colonel Bill Grimes, a retired US Air Force officer, presents a history of this program, which has been in existence for more than sixty years. Born as a special acquisition program in 1952, Big Safari has been in a unique position to save lives by rapidly fielding essential systems with a quick-reaction capability to ensure decision makers on the battlefield and at the Pentagon have timely intelligence to plan and execute operations. Grimes shows how, without a special acquisition program such as Big Safari, the nation's ability to react to evolving dangers and threats would be mired in bureaucracy when timely responses are critical. With detailed cutaway illustrations revealing aircraft modifications and mission equipment, The History of Big Safari also includes photographs, sidebars, and anecdotes. It goes behind the scenes with the men and women who participated in the challenging projects and daring missions. It shares the development of cutting-edge technology and special mission aircraft, as well as the global events that necessitated these once-classified programs. Finally, it provides insight into long-veiled projects, operations, and missions that comprise the world under the purview of Big Safari.

Genres: History

484 pages, Paperback

First published January 30, 2014

Reviews

[Chris Dietzel · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is useful as a reference book but is not good at all in terms of being interesting. Grimes presents a comprehensive look at the classified program, complete with photos, diagrams, and significant dates. What he doesn't provide, however, is any kind of narrative or linked story. This could have been excellent if written by Annie Jacobsen or Mark Bowden. As it is, only recommended if you knew someone who worked on the program, and even then only if you want a reference book on the topic.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like books on airplanes and especially stories about secret US planes. I had learned about Big Safari in another book, one that focused on DARPA. Big Safari is an amazing program, like DARPA, that cuts away the paperwork in order to quickly turn around plane modifications that operate on the edge of the secret world. While detailed about each plane & code word project, there is not a thread of a story that links them together. The book is more of the style of a reference for the projects.

Some of the early projects are interesting in that they were designed to be hiding in plain sight. Controls hidden behind cabinets & false bulkheads in true spy thriller fashion. 240-inch focal length cameras with 9x18 inch negatives: super impressive imagery even when mounted on a prop plane.

Some of the real neat modifications were done with C-130’s of various types. The airframe is quite versatile and was adapted to a number of different secret mission configurations. I will be giving my dad the book to look through, as he worked on a lot of C-130’s while in the Air Force.

While there are tidbits of stories within each project entry, a larger story isn’t truly told. This is a book where a reader can pick up and open to just about any page and read an entry. While I know the missions were classified, I was hoping to learn more of the stories that can be told.

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story of an Air Force program, called "BIG SAFARI", which performed rapid modifications, mostly on airplanes conducting reconnaissance and surveillance. It begins after WWII and into the present, 2014 publication date. The purpose of the program was to shorten acquisition times so that the USA could react to changes in opposition (largely Soviet) systems. Thus, the story is about those systems and accurately describes the ones that I have flown or have been associated. Further, the story is mostly about collection systems and doesn't talk much about the airplanes. The 1 inch thick book contains a lot of research, many pictures and not just a few facts; it must have involved a massive public affairs and declassification effort by the PA folks at Wright Patterson. Thanks to Bill Grimes for the book. RIP.

[Lchamp · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I worked in this project, everything was classified at the codeword level. Now, it is interesting to see the configurations of project planes that I did not fly. The configurations of those I did fly are so accurate, I tend to believe the other configurations. I trust that it has all been declassified in the 40 years after I left the program.

[Ra Fe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd read of the Big Safari program in a book I had finished last fall. I wasn't dissapointed in this book and kind of wondered how much time it took to get approval to include certain details. Definitely a reference keeper.

[Matt Sikes · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent, factual overview of the American ISR platforms developed in protection of our country from the Cold War into the present era.

[Mark Phinney · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent history of an amazing acquisition program in the Department of Defense.