Rolling Thunder Fifty Years On: The Genesis, Evolution, and Impact of America’s Most Controversial A

When:  Jun 13, 2018 from 18:00 to 20:30 (ET)
Associated with  Long Island Section

In 1965, President Lyndon Johnson, Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Earle Wheeler launched Operation Rolling Thunder (1965-1968), an ill-considered effort to persuade the leadership of then-North Vietnam to abandon their support of Viet Cong guerrillas in South Vietnam, and Pathet Lao insurgents in Laos. Initiated at a time when Johnson and others had at best ambivalent views over the emerging war in Southeast Asia, Rolling Thunder proved a costly failure, marked by high losses of aircrew and airplanes, with many of those who survived enduring years of brutal captivity before release in 1973. Rolling Thunder has become the “how not to” air campaign of the “how not to” war, but its influence—on strategy, operational planning, training, tactics, procedures, and technological development was profound, and continues to influence military operations and thought today.

Dr. Hallion received his BA and Ph.D. from the University of Maryland. He has been the Curator of Science and Technology, National Air and Space Museum; the NASA Contract Historian, and Adjunct Faculty at the University of Maryland; the Air Force Historian at Edwards AFB, Wright-Patterson AFB, Andrews AFB, and the Pentagon; the Senior Advisor for Air and Space Issues, Office of the Secretary of the Air Force;  the Special Advisor for Aerospace Technology to the Air Force Chief Scientist; the Senior Advisor, Commonwealth Research Institute/Concurrent Technologies Corporation; and Senior Consultant to the Science and Technology Policy Institute of the Institute for Defense Analyses. He is currently the Vice President of the Earth Shine Institute.

 

Dr. Hallion has authored: 13 books; 12 monographs and special studies; 31 chapters; numerous articles, essays, and presentations; and has edited 6 books. He is a Fellow of AIAA, RAes, and the Royal Historical Society, and is a member of many associations including the American Aviation Historical Society and the Society for the History of Technology.

Dinner:
$40, Members and Guests
$15, Students

RESERVATIONS REQUIRED, RSVP BY June 11, 2018
to: David Paris at davidsparis@twc.com or (516) 458-8593

Directions:  Borrelli’s Restaurant is on the south side of Hempstead Turnpike, between the Meadowbrook Parkway Exit M5 (Hempstead Turnpike) and Merrick Avenue.

Location

Borelli's Restaurant
1518 Hempstead Turnpike
East Meadow, NY 11554