TOPGUN: The Legacy

Brad Elward is a military aviation writer and a retired appellate attorney. He has written 14 books and dozens of articles for World Air Power Journal, Combat Aircraft, The Hook, and International Air Power Review. He was granted unprecedented access to TOPGUN for the research and writing of this book.

“Unequivocally the most thorough and authoritative account of the United States Navy Fighter Weapon School (TOPGUN) from its inception in 1968 until today. Equally impressive is how author Brad Elward superbly delves into the infancy of fighter aircraft dogfighting more than half a century before TOPGUN was established. He skillfully leads the reader through decades of developments, innovations, mistakes, and reckonings that defined the fascinating path of naval aviation through the 20th and 21st century. While some readers may be drawn to this epic book because of the storied airplanes and events that define this history, Mr. Elward does an even better job of sharing insights into the people who are unquestionably the crucial ingredient to making TOPGUN what it is today.”