I Attended TOPGUN in 1988 Flying the F-14

 

TOPGUN, officially called the Navy Fighter Weapons School at the time, was designed to teach Navy fighter pilots the skills necessary to consistently win. TOPGUN was created in 1969 during the Viet Nam War when it became apparent that pilot’s skills needed to be improved.

It was the experience of attending the TOPGUN, and living the daily life of a fighter pilot, that led me write West of the Rock. A Navy fighter squadron would select a pilot in the squadron to attend TOPGUN where he would learn the latest tactics and training in air combat. Upon graduation from TOPGUN he would return to his squadron as the Pilot Training Officer and teach all that he had learned. The Navy is the pointy end of the spear and our mission at the time was to be able to shoot down other aircraft and protect the fleet. We were the ones who would draw first blood, the first ones to go in harms way. TOPGUN taught us the skills necessary to shift the odds in our favor. They taught us how to win.

In this novel I describe in vivid detail just what it is like to land on an aircraft carrier at night and relive the daily contests with fear. Attending TOPGUN was only a small piece of what this life was like. TOPGUN led me write the book but there is so much more to the story of being a navy fighter pilot, with TOPGUN being just a part. The book will tell you the rest of story, the things they will never officially tell you about.

Want to know more about TOPGUN and life as a fighter pilot? Get your copy of West of the Rock today!