Topgun
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- Create Date：2022-07-08 03:41:45
- Update Date：2025-09-23
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- Author：Dan Pedersen
- ISBN：1405943823
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Summary
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TOPGUN - THE REAL STORY
'GOOSE AND MAVERICK MOVE OVER 。。。' - Admiral James Stavridis
March 1969。 American jets are getting shot down at an unprecedented rate over Vietnam。 In an urgent effort to regain the advantage the Admirals turn to a young naval aviator called Dan Pedersen。
Officially， the programme he set up was called the US Navy Fighter Weapons School。 To everyone else it was known simply as TOPGUN
Pedersen's hand-picked team of instructors - the Original Eight - were the best of the best。 Together， they revolutionised aerial warfare and rediscovered the lost art of fighter combat。
This is the extraordinary， thrilling story of how TOPGUN saw America reclaim the skies， by the man who created it。
_______________________________
'It's hard to read Dan Pederson's Topgun and not think of Tom Cruise。 A pleasure to read' Wall Street Journal
'Direct， vivid and unvarnished。 A high-flying， supersonic tale' Hampton Sides， author of Ghost Soldiers
'Topgun earned Dan Pedersen the title of American Hero' Washington Times
'A riveting seat-of-the-pants flight into the lethal world of the fighter pilot' Dan Hampton， author of Viper Pilot
TOPGUN - THE REAL STORY
'GOOSE AND MAVERICK MOVE OVER 。。。' - Admiral James Stavridis
March 1969。 American jets are getting shot down at an unprecedented rate over Vietnam。 In an urgent effort to regain the advantage the Admirals turn to a young naval aviator called Dan Pedersen。
Officially， the programme he set up was called the US Navy Fighter Weapons School。 To everyone else it was known simply as TOPGUN
Pedersen's hand-picked team of instructors - the Original Eight - were the best of the best。 Together， they revolutionised aerial warfare and rediscovered the lost art of fighter combat。
This is the extraordinary， thrilling story of how TOPGUN saw America reclaim the skies， by the man who created it。
_______________________________
'It's hard to read Dan Pederson's Topgun and not think of Tom Cruise。 A pleasure to read' Wall Street Journal
'Direct， vivid and unvarnished。 A high-flying， supersonic tale' Hampton Sides， author of Ghost Soldiers
'Topgun earned Dan Pedersen the title of American Hero' Washington Times
'A riveting seat-of-the-pants flight into the lethal world of the fighter pilot' Dan Hampton， author of Viper Pilot
Reviews
Jenn Taylor
，
This was an interesting and exhilarating story of the author's career as a naval pilot and his involvement in creating the U。 S。 Navy Fighter Weapons School named Topgun。 Dan Pedersen takes us on a journey as he shares his story of his days as a pilot， being chosen to start a school to train fighter pilots， to commanding his own ship。 He explains the problems he faced in the military and the hardships of his personal life。 Pedersen will keep your interest as you follow him through the years。 If This was an interesting and exhilarating story of the author's career as a naval pilot and his involvement in creating the U。 S。 Navy Fighter Weapons School named Topgun。 Dan Pedersen takes us on a journey as he shares his story of his days as a pilot， being chosen to start a school to train fighter pilots， to commanding his own ship。 He explains the problems he faced in the military and the hardships of his personal life。 Pedersen will keep your interest as you follow him through the years。 If you are into non fiction or a little history about the military or aviation， you will enjoy this book！ 。。。more
James Phelan
，
Rare True InsightPederson details of a now Famous and Glorious advent in Military Aviation is Amazing and rings true to the Core！！！！！ A great debt of Gratitude to him and all of those who paid and sacrificed so much for our Country and way of Life！ Salute！
Jim Swike
，
The Real Story of Top Gun and how it got started and continues today。 A little bit Techy but a great read。 If you are a fan of the two movies， you will want to give it a read。 Enjoy！
Paul Eberhart
，
Great insight and first person history of a legendary program。 Good insight into the leadership necessary and the professional mindset required of fighter pilots。 Memorable and enjoyable。
Bonnie
，
Fascinating read。 Wonderful insight into those dedicated fighter jet crews and the progression from being on the losing side of dog fights over Vietnam to being the top fighters in that war and others。 This book describes why and how TopGun was created and its legacy to the armed services。 Commander Pedersen writes with a style that is easy to read with details and anecdotes that gives the reader a humanization and appreciation of those involved in TopGun being created。
Brian Gaston
，
I quite enjoyed the section in this book that related to the creation of the Topgun school and its influence on the armed forces。 However， much of the book is about the author and his views which I found less interesting。
Ross Lindhorst
，
Very interesting。
Wally Tomlinson
，
I like this book because it tells about the Top Gun program in Miramar CA。 and how the program got started。
Ricardo Motti
，
One star for each dozen times I watched 'Top Gun'。That said， I wish it was more about the school and less about the guy。 One star for each dozen times I watched 'Top Gun'。That said， I wish it was more about the school and less about the guy。 。。。more
Georgie
，
⭐️⭐️⭐️。5 stars。
Dan Thomas
，
4/5This is a great story of the inception of the Navy’s most elite fighter weapons school， “Top Gun”。 I don’t have much to say， except that it was a great read on the challenges and successes the original team of aviators had to be able to introduce such an effective schoolhouse to the Navy。
Nathaniel Ballesteros
，
The title of the book Top Gun would leave the viewer to assume the book is about the famous fighter weapon school， or the famous movie， that both bear the name。 The book does go into the Top Gun program， but it much more of an autobiography of Dan Pedersen himself。 I considered dropping my review down one star to four as others have for that reason， yet I found my self not able to put the book down。 Page after page I found myself deeply intrigued about the beginnings of the school and the man wh The title of the book Top Gun would leave the viewer to assume the book is about the famous fighter weapon school， or the famous movie， that both bear the name。 The book does go into the Top Gun program， but it much more of an autobiography of Dan Pedersen himself。 I considered dropping my review down one star to four as others have for that reason， yet I found my self not able to put the book down。 Page after page I found myself deeply intrigued about the beginnings of the school and the man who was tasked to start it。 It was a pleasure to follow such an interesting career。 Perhaps the number one thing to cement the five star review is the colored picture of the trailer of the initial Top Gun school， included in the middle as a picture insert。 That's one for the wall。 It's just a reminder that some of the best things have the most humble beginnings。 。。。more
Peter Morfe
，
A compelling story about one Navy fighter pilot's career， including （most prominently） the creation of Topgun。 From the first chapter， the author acknowledges that this is partly a story about the conflict between results-driven risk takers and bureaucrats --- as soon as he used the word "careerist，" I was hooked。 As far as the Topgun component of the book is concerned， what you get is an inspiring story about an extraordinary group of pilots that were empowered --- in spite of bureaucratic dysf A compelling story about one Navy fighter pilot's career， including （most prominently） the creation of Topgun。 From the first chapter， the author acknowledges that this is partly a story about the conflict between results-driven risk takers and bureaucrats --- as soon as he used the word "careerist，" I was hooked。 As far as the Topgun component of the book is concerned， what you get is an inspiring story about an extraordinary group of pilots that were empowered --- in spite of bureaucratic dysfunction --- to perform at the highest levels and take very real risks。 By the sound of it， Topgun achieved the goals it was founded to accomplish even though， in many ways， the odds were stacked against them。 。。。more
Chris Adams
，
Great Book
Gedi௨
，
+PROS++ a story from one of Bros who co-founded the Topgun - "a revolution from nothing but pride and devotion"+ historical lessons from the American aviation post WWII+ " mentoring and loyalty to each other。。。inside the brotherhood of naval aviation"+ presentation of intricacies of Dogfighting—officially known as air combat maneuvering （ACM）+ learnings by losing+ on need to test things before using them in the war/critical situation （high-tech weapon wizardry of the 1930s）+ 90-day trial period +PROS++ a story from one of Bros who co-founded the Topgun - "a revolution from nothing but pride and devotion"+ historical lessons from the American aviation post WWII+ " mentoring and loyalty to each other。。。inside the brotherhood of naval aviation"+ presentation of intricacies of Dogfighting—officially known as air combat maneuvering （ACM）+ learnings by losing+ on need to test things before using them in the war/critical situation （high-tech weapon wizardry of the 1930s）+ 90-day trial period in which Topgun would operate semi-independently to evaluate whether the trial balloon rose or popped+ popcorn fund to be used for the morale and welfare of the Dogs+heavy-caliber leadership-Cons-- sometimes too technical for non-fighter pilots or anybody outside of aviationQuotes"“Automobiles， aircraft， and air-to-air missiles are built to fail。 Expect problems and anticipate them。” I considered his fusion of traits—detail-driven aggression—to be the best possible mind-set for a Topgun instructor。" 。。。more
Mike
，
I like stories of airplanes， especially those my dad worked on while in the Air Force。 Placing an F-4 on the cover is guaranteed to draw my attention while at the bookstore。 Though it is focused on the Navy， I was curious at how Topgun started and the tactics they devised to make the F-4 squadrons fight better against the North Vietnamese MiGs。Do note that this isn’t a full history of Topgun。 It is a memoir of a Navy pilot who was the officer tasked with starting a school to teach advanced dogfi I like stories of airplanes， especially those my dad worked on while in the Air Force。 Placing an F-4 on the cover is guaranteed to draw my attention while at the bookstore。 Though it is focused on the Navy， I was curious at how Topgun started and the tactics they devised to make the F-4 squadrons fight better against the North Vietnamese MiGs。Do note that this isn’t a full history of Topgun。 It is a memoir of a Navy pilot who was the officer tasked with starting a school to teach advanced dogfighting techniques。 While interesting to follow the author through his Navy career， the Topgun portion is only the middle of the book。 The F-4 was designed to be a fleet interceptor that also could drop bombs。 Dogfighting training was essentially banned due to combination of safety concerns， desire to not tax airframes and a perceived lack of need by the Navy leaders。 The constraint of requiring visual identification of an unknown aircraft removed one of the F-4’s primary weapons， the BVR Sparrow。 It is clear from the author that the aircrews were given an aircraft that wasn’t proven and tossed into a war that was micromanaged from afar。 From other books it was clear the US forces were not utilized in a manner that would achieve any type of victory。（An excellent dive into the messed up the execution of the Vietnam War is _Dereliction of Duty_ by H。 R。 McMaster）The F-4 aircrews were pushed through their training in order to get them over to Vietnam， as the losses were staggering。 Hundreds of aircraft a year across all services。 A lot were due to SAMs and AAA， but as the North Vietnamese air force gained confidence， the MiGs were tearing through US air wings。 No where along the way were the crews taught how to survive a knife fight。It is a sad testament of procurement then and now that the US military had bought weapon systems that were not proved to work。 Throughout the book there are a number of mentions of squadrons firing all of their missiles and not hitting anything。 By not exposing issues， officers protected their careers。 According to the author， no one in the Navy did a thorough evaluation of the aircraft and missiles to determine root cause of failures。 Until the Topgun instructors did just that。 It seemed like the missle manufacturers had not stepped aboard a carrier to watch how the crews handled them。 Amazing that such end to end QA was missing， which ensured our aircrews were sent into a fight with bad equipment。The middle of the book is the best part， with the author building out what became Topgun。 The tactics developed went against all doctrine， but were exactly what was needed in order to win。 I liked the author’s description of taking the F-4 into the vertical and having it stand on its tail in order to change the dogfight。 Or how one of the instructors took the aircraft beyond controlled flight in order to snap a turn that much faster。 They made the F-4 do things it wasn’t designed to do， but could with the right skills behind the stick。 Another neat segment was about the Topgun instructors heading over to Area 51 to fly against captured MiGs。 It makes perfect sense， as how else would tactics instructors know how to exploit their adversary’s weaknesses。 The author does trash talk the Air Force， though there is a bit of truth behind it。 The Air Force is rigid in their tactics and any push to change would have been stamped out。 The Air Force thinks they are better dogfighters， but their adherence to unwavering tactics ensures their weaknesses will be found。 The service’s internal politics is such that they want aircraft that can dogfight， but the real threat is SAMs。 Overall an intersting look at F-4’s in Vietnam。 I wished there was more on the evolution of Topgun as a school。 。。。more
solo
，
one of those personal memoirs books， which i tend to take with a pound of salt。 about as full of himself as one would expect from a founding member of Topgun， though， title notwithstanding， only part of the book actually deals with Topgun itself。 which is understandable， given that it is a memoir， and Pedersen handed over the command after less than a year and rotated out fairly soon。besides the author's obligatory opinions on how things should be run you'll also get treated to a fair amount of one of those personal memoirs books， which i tend to take with a pound of salt。 about as full of himself as one would expect from a founding member of Topgun， though， title notwithstanding， only part of the book actually deals with Topgun itself。 which is understandable， given that it is a memoir， and Pedersen handed over the command after less than a year and rotated out fairly soon。besides the author's obligatory opinions on how things should be run you'll also get treated to a fair amount of apologia for some of the less glorious stuff that happened under his command。 and， incidentally， get to wonder how wisely some of the US tax payers' dollars are spent。。。 。。。more
Alistair Rogers
，
No quite what I was expecting but fun all the same。 4 Stars。
Esteban Stipnieks
，
Another Pilots memoris strap in enjoy the flight enjoy the story this is a recreational read 。。。。 it captures a period of time and the perspective of the pilot。。。。。 it tells us how Top Gun was born。。。。。 it tells us why and it tell us about fighter pilots and women。。。。 entertaining yes a life changinge or enlightening book no。。。 a book that creates controversy so 。。。。 it is a simple enjoyable read with some information about a rarely written about plane time。。。。。 and more informatio about one of Another Pilots memoris strap in enjoy the flight enjoy the story this is a recreational read 。。。。 it captures a period of time and the perspective of the pilot。。。。。 it tells us how Top Gun was born。。。。。 it tells us why and it tell us about fighter pilots and women。。。。 entertaining yes a life changinge or enlightening book no。。。 a book that creates controversy so 。。。。 it is a simple enjoyable read with some information about a rarely written about plane time。。。。。 and more informatio about one of the Navy's most infamous mounts。。。 good basic summer time read 。。。more
Josh
，
This was an interesting account of what the real Top Gun was and how it got started。 It’s part historical account， part air battle/tactics recount， and part personal memoir。 In a lot of ways it’s autobiographical。 I would have preferred more tactics and historical dramas and less personal stories， as the author often laments his familial woes and hardships due to his military service。 It upsets me to hear because I know these people chose what they do; they can’t have it all。 Their careers obvio This was an interesting account of what the real Top Gun was and how it got started。 It’s part historical account， part air battle/tactics recount， and part personal memoir。 In a lot of ways it’s autobiographical。 I would have preferred more tactics and historical dramas and less personal stories， as the author often laments his familial woes and hardships due to his military service。 It upsets me to hear because I know these people chose what they do; they can’t have it all。 Their careers obviously come first， so why have a family that you’re going to mess up？ I’m talking about career-long deployment types， mainly。 Anyway， that’s my opinion on the matter which is why I only gave it 3 stars。 It’s kind of a strange tale especially how he never stopped loving his first sweetheart even though he was married two other times and then finally got together with her。 People are weird。 。。。more
James R Jackson III
，
It's really true。People can be brave， honest， and true。 This was a great book about real people。 We should give them all the honor they can stand。？et Whimpered It's really true。People can be brave， honest， and true。 This was a great book about real people。 We should give them all the honor they can stand。？et Whimpered 。。。more
Bri
，
Good one！This book was a good look into the history of Top Gun and how it came about。 I really enjoyed it！
Kent M。
，
Excellent memoir。 Would love to meet the man。 He retired around the time I was coming in to the Navy。He definitely represents a bygone era。 We need to relearn some of the lessons we learned the hard way already。
Sebastijan Videc
，
Interesting autobiography and the story about establishing the Topgun， its lessons and its results。 Also a very interesting author's view on F-35 （which I agree on）。 And last but not least， interesting love story there as well。 Interesting autobiography and the story about establishing the Topgun， its lessons and its results。 Also a very interesting author's view on F-35 （which I agree on）。 And last but not least， interesting love story there as well。 。。。more
Frank Minich
，
The book is mistitled; it's more an autobiography than a history of the institution。It did provide some visibility as to the level of commitment required to perform as a Navy fighter pilot - the family comes second， at best。 It's not clear whether the paucity of details regarding his children is due to their desire for privacy or his lack of recall。As I'm reading the author's polemics against the structure of the Navy， I'm thinking of the quote from Eric Hoffer: Every great cause begins as a mov The book is mistitled; it's more an autobiography than a history of the institution。It did provide some visibility as to the level of commitment required to perform as a Navy fighter pilot - the family comes second， at best。 It's not clear whether the paucity of details regarding his children is due to their desire for privacy or his lack of recall。As I'm reading the author's polemics against the structure of the Navy， I'm thinking of the quote from Eric Hoffer: Every great cause begins as a movement， becomes a business， and eventually degenerates into a racket。 Surely the Topgun insights needed to be institutionalized into the regular training curriculum of the RAG - but the author doesn't see it that way。 。。。more
Mr Roy Davidson
，
Enjoyed the book for both is technical content from a man who had been there， seen it and got a suitcase full of t-shirts。 But I think the names of the book is misleading。 This was aDan Pederson auto biography。 Nothing seeing with that， but don't mislead the potential readership。 There was less than a quarter off the book on TopGun。 Enjoyed the book all the same。 Sad way to end such a distinguished career。 Enjoyed the book for both is technical content from a man who had been there， seen it and got a suitcase full of t-shirts。 But I think the names of the book is misleading。 This was aDan Pederson auto biography。 Nothing seeing with that， but don't mislead the potential readership。 There was less than a quarter off the book on TopGun。 Enjoyed the book all the same。 Sad way to end such a distinguished career。 。。。more
Michael
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This is not a simple story; yes， it’s an easy read， but Pederson does so much more than tell of the Topgun program he helped create that inspired the film we’ve all come to appreciate in our own ways。 Certainly， this is an adventure story following the thrill of a man who knows how to fly， but it’s also heartbreak: of a husband/father not around for his family; of airtime warriors with their wings tied at times because of Washington policy （my father is a Vietnam Vet and I will not share this bo This is not a simple story; yes， it’s an easy read， but Pederson does so much more than tell of the Topgun program he helped create that inspired the film we’ve all come to appreciate in our own ways。 Certainly， this is an adventure story following the thrill of a man who knows how to fly， but it’s also heartbreak: of a husband/father not around for his family; of airtime warriors with their wings tied at times because of Washington policy （my father is a Vietnam Vet and I will not share this book with him—it would just upset him）; of death and politics and blame; of history repeating itself at an unforeseen cost that will be paid in blood。 This is an American story for Pederson， whose happinesses and heartaches are dried in black and white on the pages， but in between one can freely sense other colors and the emotional heft they symbolize。 This is also an American story for a young boy he saved from the South China Sea （among many， many others） who one day became a man and tracked Pederson down to thank him （to show him） that an act of human kindness has legs so strong they time travel through the generations。 。。。more
Jjkean2
，
As someone that grew up an Air Force brat， has been to too many air shows to count， and played about every flight sim from the 90s and up， I enjoyed this book very much。 At first I was a bit taken surprised when Dan started years before Top Gun was formed， but now I understand the need to discuss deficiencies that Top Gun could help solve。 I loved hearing Dan's story and his final chapters about the failings of the F35 should be dropped en masse over Washington for all of the politicians to read As someone that grew up an Air Force brat， has been to too many air shows to count， and played about every flight sim from the 90s and up， I enjoyed this book very much。 At first I was a bit taken surprised when Dan started years before Top Gun was formed， but now I understand the need to discuss deficiencies that Top Gun could help solve。 I loved hearing Dan's story and his final chapters about the failings of the F35 should be dropped en masse over Washington for all of the politicians to read。 I do understand the reviews that were a little disappointed that the book didn't go more into Top Gun though， as I was curious what was happening at the school after Dan left。 This book is definitely Dan's memoir。 。。。more
Christine Chenderlin
，
I've never been a non-fiction fan， but I learned a lot here and would recommend it to anyone who wants to learn more about Topgun。 I've never been a non-fiction fan， but I learned a lot here and would recommend it to anyone who wants to learn more about Topgun。 。。。more
Scottsdale Public Library
，
“On March 3， 1969， the United States Navy established an elite school for the top one percent of its pilots。 Its purpose was to teach the lost art of aerial combat and to ensure that the handful of men who graduated were the best fighter pilots in the world。 They succeeded。 Today， the Navy calls it Fighter Weapons School。 The flyers call it: TOP GUN。" – From the opening title sequence of the movie， Top Gun （1986）。 Top Gun: An American Story by Captain Dan “Yanke” Pedersen， USN （Ret）， is the amaz “On March 3， 1969， the United States Navy established an elite school for the top one percent of its pilots。 Its purpose was to teach the lost art of aerial combat and to ensure that the handful of men who graduated were the best fighter pilots in the world。 They succeeded。 Today， the Navy calls it Fighter Weapons School。 The flyers call it: TOP GUN。" – From the opening title sequence of the movie， Top Gun （1986）。 Top Gun: An American Story by Captain Dan “Yanke” Pedersen， USN （Ret）， is the amazing historical account of the creation of the United States Navy’s Fighter Weapons School at Naval Air Station Miramar in San Diego， California also known as “Fightertown U。S。A。” This well-written， fast-paced autobiography is filled with personal accounts and perceptive observations by Dan Pedersen， who together with nine hand-picked naval aviators developed and taught ACM （Air Combat Maneuvering） or “dogfighting” tactics and strategy that eventually became the Top Gun Navy Fighter Graduate School。 There are great leadership and mentoring lessons to be gleaned from this brilliant book。 I recommend this autobiography to all naval aviation history enthusiasts as well as readers who have enjoyed， Yeager: An Autobiography by General Chuck Yeager and Leo Janos。 The author was interviewed by C-SPAN 3 American History TV on 7/14/2019。 https://www。c-span。org/video/？461562-。。。 I definitely recommend watching Dan Pedersen’s presentation after you have finished reading the book so you can really enhance your “Top Gun” experience。 – Leslie G。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Topgun
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Topgun&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Topgun&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0