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Anthony Tucker-Jones

"In this companion volume to his photographic history of Soviet tanks and armoured vehicles, Anthony Tucker-Jones provides a visual guide to the vast array of aircraft, warships and missiles the Soviet armed forces deployed at the height of the Cold War. Although the superpowers never came to blows, the so-called 'Cold War' was far from cold, with numerous 'hot' proxy wars being fought in Africa and the Middle East. All these conflicts employed Soviet weaponry which has been captured in action in the colour and black-and-white photographs selected for this book. Between the 1950s and 1980s Soviet and Warsaw Pact countries churned out thousands of weapons ready for the Third World War. They also embarked on a technological arms race with NATO in an attempt to counter each new piece of equipment as it appeared. The MiG fighters, the Badger and Backfire bombers, the nuclear submarines have achieved almost iconic status, but, as Anthony Tucker-Jones's book shows, there was much more to the Soviet armoury than these famous weapons. Much of it, despite its age, remains in service with armies, guerrilla forces and terrorist organizations around the world today."

Pen & Sword Aviation

Modern Warfare

Soviet Cold War Weaponry: Aircraft, Warships, Missiles and Artillery

The T-54, T-62 and T-72 main battle tanks along with the personnel carriers, assault guns, self-propelled guns and anti-tank missiles that are illustrated in this photographic history represent the high point in the design and manufacture of armoured vehicles by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. 

Although the superpowers never came to blows, the 'Cold War' was far from cold, as numerous 'hot' proxy wars were fought in Africa and the Middle East, and these conflicts employed the Soviet weaponry that is shown in action in the colour and black-and-white photographs selected for this book. Between the 1950s and 1980s Soviet and Warsaw Pact countries produced thousands of tanks and armoured vehicles ready for the Third World War. 

They embarked on a technological arms race with the NATO allies in an attempt to counter each new piece of equipment as it appeared in service. Much of this Soviet weaponry has achieved almost iconic status and, despite its age, remains in service with armies, guerrilla forces and terrorist organizations around the world today. It is also of enduring interest to collectors, re-enactors and modellers who are fascinated by the military equipment of the late twentieth century.

Pen & Sword Military

Soviet Cold War Weaponry: Tanks and Armoured Vehicles

Drugs, war and terrorism were the unholy trinity that brought the US-led air campaign crashing down on the Taliban regime in Afghanistan in October 2001 in Operation Enduring Freedom, and this photographic history is a graphic introduction to it. The immediate aim was to eject the Taliban from power, and to capture or kill the al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and his supporters whom the Taliban were sheltering. The decade-long war that followed, first against the Taliban regime, then against Taliban insurgents, is one of the most controversial conflicts of recent times. It has also seen the deployment of thousands of coalition troops and a huge range of modern military equipment, and these are the main focus of Anthony Tucker-Jones's account. He covers the entire course of the conflict, from the initial air war, the battle for the White Mountains and Tora Bora, the defeat of the Taliban, the escape of bin Laden and the grim protracted security campaign that followed an asymmetrical war of guerrilla tactics and improvised explosive devices that is going on today.

The Afghan War: Operation Enduring Freedom 2001–2014: Operation Enduring Freedom 1001–2014

This Vietnam War history examines the grueling Tet Offensive and America’s struggle against the Viet Cong with more than 180 wartime photographs.

 On January, 30th, 1968, the North Vietnamese communists launched a coordinated surprise attack across South Vietnam against the South Vietnamese and American armies. Superior firepower eventually crushed the offensive, but it proved to be a major moral victory for the communists, and a turning point in the Vietnam War.

 In this photographic history, Anthony Tucker-Jones tells the story of Tet through both color and black and white images showing all sides of the conflict. The result is a vivid reassessment of this defining moment in the bitter campaign against communism in South-East Asia.

 The images show the conditions, the nature of the fighting, and the equipment and the weaponry used—with special focus on the battles for Hue, Khe Sanh, and Saigon. They show the impact of combat on civilian populations as their communities became battlegrounds. And they illustrate why the assault caused many at home across the US to lose faith in America’s commitment to the South.

The Vietnam War: The Tet Offensive, 1968

This photographic history of Operation Desert Storm vividly captures the drama and humanity of each stage of the conflict.

In the early 1990s, the American military led a coalition of United Nations forces to liberate Kuwait from Iraqi occupation. With more than 180 color photographs, The Gulf War provides a remarkable visual account of the conflict, documenting the vast array of military equipment deployed by both sides in the air, at sea and on land.

Author and military expert Anthony Tucker-Jones, who was an analyst for British Defense Intelligence at the time of the conflict, describes the armed forces that were ranged against each other, including troops, armored vehicles, artillery pieces and aircraft. He also offers a concise overview of key events, including the preliminary air campaign, the elimination of the Iraqi navy, the coalition's ground offensive, tank battles, the liberation of Kuwait City, and more.

The Gulf War: Operation Desert Storm 1990–1991

The Iraq War is a visual record of the American-led Operation Iraqi Freedom of 2003, which resulted in the dramatic overthrow of dictator Saddam Hussein. In a striking sequence of photographs Anthony Tucker-Jones shows how this was achieved by the American and British armed forces in a lightning campaign of just two weeks. 

But the photographs also show the disastrous aftermath when the swift victory was undermined by the outbreak of the Iraqi insurgency - in the Shia south, in Baghdad and the Sunni Triangle, and in Fallujah where two ferocious battles were fought. The author, who is an expert on the Iraqi armed forces and has written extensively on the Iran-Iraq War and the Gulf War, gives a fascinating insight into the Iraqi army and air force and into the multitude of weapons systems Saddam purchased from around the world. 

He also looks at the failures on the American and British side - the flaws in the tactics that were used, the poor performance of some of the armoured fighting vehicles and at the reformed Iraqi armed forces who have now taken responsibility for security in the country. The Iraq War is a vivid photographic introduction to a conflict that has only just passed into history.