Description

Title: SAS – Phantoms of War – A History of the Australian Special Air Service

Author: Horner, David

Condition: Near Mint

Edition: Updated Edition

Publication Date: 2002

ISBN: 9781865086477

Cover: Soft Cover without Dust Jacket – 616 pages

Comments: A classic account of Australia’s elite fighting force told by Australia’s foremost military historian.

SAS: Phantoms of War is the history of the Australian Special Air Service. Originally published as SAS Phantoms of the Jungle in 1989, and a best seller since then, this edition has been updated to include details of the SAS’s activities in the 1990s and into the 21st century.

Based on patrol reports and interviews with participants, this Australian military classic tells the fascinating story of the formation of the SAS, its secret role in Borneo during confrontation with Indonesia and its operations in Vietnam. The SAS operated deep behind enemy lines, conducting surveillance at close range, poised to spring into violent action at need. It was with good reason the Viet Cong came to call them Ma Rung-‘phantoms of the jungle’.

After Vietnam, the SAS formed a crack counter-terrorist force, ready to defend Australia. It became involved in action in Somalia, Kuwait and East Timor in the 1990s and, in 2000, the security of the Sydney Olympic Games.

SAS: Phantoms of War tells the story of a highly disciplined force operating secretly at the cutting edge of Australia’s defence in war and peace.

About David Horner

David Horner is Professor of Australian Defence History in the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University. A graduate of the Royal Military College, Duntroon, he served as an infantry platoon commander in South Vietnam and has had many years of regimental and staff experience. In 1998, as an Army Reserve colonel, he became the first head of the Army’s Land Warfare Studies Centre. He has written numerous books on military command, operations, defence policy and strategy, including Defence Supremo, Blamey: The Commander in Chief and Breaking the Codes (co-authored with Desmond Ball).