I’m receiving ever more queries like, ‘who am I’, ‘how do I know this’, ‘where do I get this information’... Some are outright irritated by my self-consciousness: ‘how can I be so sure about what am I talking about’?
The mass of you following me nowadays do not know me at all, even less so my professional work, and thus this is not surprising. Indeed, it’s better you ask than to simply accept what I report.
I grew up in the 1970s and 1980s. Back then, there was no internet: people like me could follow ongoing wars only via newspapers and TV. Some had friends or relatives that were directly involved. But, generally, were - in comparison to modern times - 'isolated', and clueless.
Wars we were following were such like in Angola of 1975-1992; Nicaragua of 1979, Soviet intervention in Afghanistan, 1979; the fall of the Shah and then the Iran-Iraq War; Falklands 1982, then the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982 etc., etc. etc.
Some might think the media was more serious and more responsible back then: with hindsight, I say, ‘only a notch’.
Between others, one of stories published everywhere at the time was that there was no air warfare between Iran and Iraq. That both air forces were doing nothing. It was exactly like there are now such reports about the VKS. Really, biggest contemporary experts were making such statements – and they were really people of calibre – and they went to great extensions to explain the ‘whys’.
Call me a ‘maverick’, and I was certainly a clueless kid, but I couldn’t believe that. Two air forces, trained for years, both equipped with some of the best gear there was to buy. That’s why I began researching.
‘Regular/official’ ways were all closed: local embassies for example, wouldn’t provide any kind of details. Thus, I began researching ‘unofficially’. Establishing contacts etc.
Gradually, 10-15 years later, I’ve had enough for the first few books. From the point of view of what I know today, that was ‘nothing’. Like stone-age. I was still clueless. But, it was a good start, and so the first few books came together, in 2002-2003. And as I continued researching and – despite all the possible jerks throwing stones in my way (and at me) – publishing, the more came together.
Nowadays, I can say: not only were people explaining there was no air war between Iran and Iraq completely wrong. But, that war was actually decided by air warfare. Should there be any doubts, check this book: Iraqi Mirages.
https://www.helion.co.uk/.../iraqi-mirages-dassault...
….and while researching that war, I worked myself through a few dozens of other, ‘obscure’, ‘no story’ air wars, and through involved air forces. Nowadays, I’ve got a very good idea about the history of the Angolan, Egyptian, Ethiopian, Iranian, Iraqi, Syrian, Yemeni air forces, and the wars they fought, just for example. See,
- Ogaden of 1977-1978
(https://www.helion.co.uk/.../wings-over-ogaden-the...)
- Angola, 1975-1992
(http://helion.co.uk/.../war-of-intervention-in-angola...)
- Western Sahara, 1975-1991
(https://www.helion.co.uk/.../showdown-in-western-sahara...)
- Lebanon 1975-1990
(https://www.helion.co.uk/.../lebanese-civil-war-volume-1...)
- Yemen, since the 1960s
(https://www.helion.co.uk/.../hot-skies-over-yemen-volume...), etc., etc., etc.
Moreover, through researching these air forces – the mass of which was equipped with Soviet-made ‘MiGs’ (and Sukhois, and Antonovs and Mils etc.) – I came to research the Soviet armed forces, and the air force in particular. That’s resulted in such books like:
- MiG-23 in the Middle East
(https://www.helion.co.uk/.../mig-23-flogger-in-the-middle...),
- Or about the the Russian military intervention in Syria
(https://www.helion.co.uk/.../moscows-game-of-poker...)
That’s what I’ve been doing most of the time for the last 35+ years.
Thus, when nowadays somebody comes to tell me, ‘VKS is not flying over Ukraine’: sorry, I can only… be extremely sceptical. Iranians were ‘not flying’ over Iraq, and Iraqis were ‘not flying’ over Iran, and Syrians can’t fly, and Iraqis even less so, and Egyptians have no air force, and where is Yemen at all…?
I’ve heard, fact-checked, and de-bunked all such nonsense long, long ago.
For a near-complete list of all of my books, see here:
https://www.helion.co.uk/people/tom-cooper.php...
When you fly with an airline, I doubt you're first searching for the pilot to discuss the route, flight speed and flight altitude, take-off- and landing-procedures with him. You do not even come to the idea to ask how long is the pilot flying passengers around, don't you? You simply take your place, 'fly', and let the pilot do his/her job.
Think about this, and keep in mind: I'm doing my job for 35+ years.