
Hogs in the Sand
A Gulf War A-10 Pilot's Combat Journal
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Buy Now for £16.99
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Narrated by:
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Jim Seybert
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By:
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Buck Wyndham
About this listen
"I am awed by my destructive power. With a small squeeze of the gun trigger under my right index finger, I can rip the turret off a thirty-ton battle tank and throw it 200 feet across the desert, while the rest of the tank burns in an explosion of white-hot, burning phosphorescence. But the cold, morbid reality of it does not exist from where I sit and watch it happen. There's no dramatic chord. No deafening explosion. No screams suddenly stifled. The soundtrack of a pilot's war is mostly silent."
The mighty, iconic A-10 Warthog was first thrust into battle in Operation Desert Storm. The men who took it through walls of flak and surface-to-air missiles to help defeat the world's fourth-largest army were as untested as their airplanes, so they relied on personal determination and the amazing A-10 to accomplish their missions, despite the odds.
Hogs in the Sand is the epic and deeply personal year-long journey of one of those pilots as he fights an increasingly terrifying war, all the while attempting to win over a woman and keep control of his internal demons. For anyone who has admired the Warthog, seen it in action, or called upon it to be their salvation, this story will fulfill a desire to virtually strap into the cockpit, while gaining unprecedented understanding of the mind of a modern combat pilot.
©2020 Buck Wyndham (P)2021 Tantoroverall good
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The book is based off the diary kept by Buck Wyndham. The book begins with Wyndham's squadron based in Cambridge, England and follows his training while introducing us to some of his squadron mates. Further, we meet a love interest of Wyndham's, Sarah. Life is going on swimmingly until the squadron is called up to participate in operation Desert Shield. This involves being relocated to Saudi Arabia and living in a tent. Fortunately, Sarah is there too.
Much of this book details life prior to the outbreak of the actual Gulf War, so isn't packed from start to finish with tales of daring do. Combat missions form a relatively small proportion of this story, so those wanting action all the way may be disappointed. That's not to say this book is boring, not at all. It's a balanced account of what it is like to be a combat pilot with all that entails. That could mean sitting around for hours as well as all the mundane duties required of these men.
AN ongoing theme throughout is Wyndham's interest in Sarah, a woman who appears to be caught between two men competing for her affections.
The combat missions are interesting and paint a vivid picture of what it was like to fly missions in the A-10. Low visibility air to air refuelling and close formation flying in such conditions are every bit as hazardous and difficult as one might imagine with Wyndham's honest account a refreshing perspective for those who believe pilots are fearless.
Narration is good with Jim Seybert's easy to listen to voice. As ever, I have to remark upon the poor proofing at times. The call of "Jink!" by one pilot to another when coming under fire is sometimes "Junk!" A typo that appears several times, making for an odd sounding warning when read by the narrator. Also, there were several typo's involving the word Kevlar, instead being read as Kelvar. Sure, these are minor gripes, but still rather unprofessional by the publisher's to have missed ... several times!
All in all, this is a decent read, if not the best of its kind to be found on Audible.
AN Interesting Account
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Great Stories
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Excellent!
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Really worth a listen!!
Could not stop listening!
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Basically as mostly a transcript of Buck's war diaries it's got a bit of a daily report about it but in some ways this is not so bad a format.
Certainly a good book with some very thought provoking and interesting parts to it and very well narrated by Jim Seybert.
Glad to have listened to it and I really enjoyed it, but was not a perfect 5 star overall for me.
An interesting tale from the Gulf War
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Just Brilliant
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The narrator makes a couple of mistakes, messing up words like "kevlar" or switching dates. It's a bit weird and should have been caught, but doesn't detract too much.
The only thing I didn't like was the absolutely cringe of the author recanting how he has a crush on a fellow officer who already has a fiance. It culminates in him awkwardly professing his love after the war is over and her confusedly turning him down. It was obvious to her there would never be anything romantic between them and she didn't even lead him on. The whole thing comes across as emo-high-school-drama. Anytime you hear him talk about Sarah, just skip forward a minute or two, it's really not worth your time.
Great insight in Warthog ops
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Excellent
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Highly recommend this book to all military airplane enthusiasts and any residents of East Anglia during the period that the A-10 was stationed here.
Puts you right in the driving seat of a fire breathing rocket sled!
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