On the Armada Bookshelf A Carrier at War.

On Board the USS Kitty Hawk in the Iraq War Richard F. Miller Potomac Books

Civil War historian Richard Miller accepted a somewhat anachronistic assignment onboard the USS Kitty Hawk shortly before the beginning of the 1993 Gulf War. His focus was not on the then-current political situation nor the carrier's mission, but on the sailors. The author interviewed the ship's crew--from fighter pilot to signalman, Captain to machinist mate. Intersecting with all types of people from all walks of life, he recorded their views of shipboard life, the war, politics and even their own personal ambitions. A Carrier at War is based on the journal he kept during his tenure aboard the Kitty Hawk and is unique in its focus on the men and women living and serving their country onboard what is billed as "America's only permanently forward-deployed aircraft carrier". Miller's speciality is the effects of

class, race, ethnicity and religion on Civil War soldiers' combat morale and unit cohesion. The tour onboard the Kitty Hawk provided a current view of how these elements affect shipboard life on today's floating combat-ready societies. The author has drawn upon his attention to detail and his ability to make others feel at ease with him and produced a captivating personality study of those who live within the cramped and limiting quarters of a 'bird farm'. The book will retrieve some long-lost images for those who have experienced shipboard life in years long past, and bring the true landlubbers a bit closer to its reality.

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