Fortune Favors the Brave: The Story of First Force Recon (Naval Institute Special Warfare Series) - Hardcover

Meyers, Bruce F.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1557505489 ISBN 13: 9781557505484

Publisher: Naval Inst Pr, 2000

Synopsis

Special Warfare Series. U.S. Marine Corps amphibious reconnaissance patrols preceded every major landing in the Pacific during World War II, coming ashore on rubber boats from submarines and high-speed transports to recon enemy beaches. After the war better techniques were developed by a small group of highly trained, fearless Marines who in 1957 established the first of the Corps' now legendary Force Recon Companies. The story of those pioneering post-war years is told by Force Recon's first commanding officer, Bruce Meyers, a legend in his own right. Commissioned six months before the end of World War II to command a combat swimming platoon, Meyers later headed Gen. "Chesty" Puller's amphibious recon school, initiating new ideas for the insertion of small teams behind enemy lines by parachute and by buoyant ascent from submerged submarines. In 1955 Meyers joined the commandant's experimental Test Unit One as the project officer for its reconnaissance unit that led to the first Force Recon. The book chronicles many Force Recon firsts: HALO jumps from jets; operational parachute jumps from navy carrier aircraft; the locking out and underway recovery of recon patrols from navy fleet submarines; the live pickup by Fulton Skyhook of downed personnel; and the development and use of pathfinding tactics and equipment for Marine helicopter assaults. This groundbreaking work by Force Recon pioneers has never before been recorded in detail. Meyer's account makes it clear that the company earned the reputation it enjoys today.

About this title

From the Publisher:

Catalog Entry,(Front Flap Copy) Naval Institute Press 2000 Spring Books, pp.3 "U.S. Marine Corps amphibious reconnaissance patrols preceded every major landing in the Pacific during World War II, coming ashore on rubber boats from submarines and high-speed transports to recon enemy beaches. After the war better techniques were developed by a small group of highly trained, fearless Marines who in 1957 established the first of the Corps' now legendary Force Recon Companies. The story of those pioneering post-war years is told by Force Recon's first commanding officer, Bruce Meyers, a legend in his own right. Commissioned six months before the end of World War II to command a combat swimming platoon, Meyers later headed Gen. "Chesty" Puller's amphibious recon school, initiating new ideas for the insertion of small teams behind enemy lines by parachute and by buoyant ascent from submerged submarines. In 1955 Meyers joined the commandant's experimental "Test Unit One as the project officer for its reconnaissance unit that led to first Force Recon.

The book chronicles many Force Recon firsts: HALO jumps from jets; operational parachute jumps from navy carrier aircraft; the locking out and underway recovery of recon patrols from navy fleet submarines; the live pickup by Fulton Skyhook of downed personnel; and the development and use of pathfinding tactics and equipment for Marine helicopter assaults. This groundbreaking work by Force Recon pioneers has never before been recorded in detail. Meyers' account makes it clear that the company earned the reputation it enjoys today.

From the Back Cover:

FORTUNE FAVORS THE BRAVE by Bruce Meyers Bruce Meyers joined the NROTC in 1942. He served as a platoon leader in World War II, a rifle company commander in Korea, and a commander of Special Landing Force Alpha on LPH Iwo Jima, and the 26th Marine Regiment at Khe Sanh. After twenty-eight years of service he retired as a colonel in 1970 and entered the practice of law in Seattle as a trial attorney. He later served as an associate dean and associate professor of law at a West Coast law school. He lives with his wife in Seattle, Washington. Back Cover Copy FORTUNE FAVORS THE BRAVE by Bruce Meyers "A real-life counterpart to the heroes in my historical fiction series THE CORPS, Colonel Meyers writes a true, gritty story of Marine Corps parachute and submarine reconnaissance. This is an honest account of the men who fought and died developing First Force Recon."

W.E.B. Griffin. Author of the series THE BROTHERHOOD OF WAR, THE CORPS, HONOR BOUND and MEN AT WAR. "Everything that force recon is today was built upon the solid foundation laid by Colonel Meyers and his generation. From night parachuting off carrier-based jets to slipping stealthily ashore from submerged subs, they 'wrote the book' for those who followed. Today's recon men owe them a debt of gratitude for their ingenuity, daring and dedication. My thanks to the author for telling their story so well."

Major John Plaster, U.S. Army Special Forces (Ret)

author of SOG: The Secret Wars of America's Commandos in

Vietnam. "Colonel Meyers has made a major contribution to the nation's reconnaissance capability by perfecting techniques for launch from submarines. Although his book describes these technical issues, it is written in a narrative style filled with excitement - an adventure story in the laboratory."

Captain Paul Keenan USN(Ret)

former executive officer of USS PERCH "This book fills a void that needed to be filled a superb job."

Major Bruce Norton USMC(Ret)

author of FORCE RECON DIARIES, VIETNAM "Good solid history that covers the very complex nature of creating something new and different within a culture that is hidebound and conservative."

LtColonel Alex Lee USMC(Ret)

author of FORCE RECON COMMAND "The danger starts before men ever go to war. FORTUNE FAVORS THE BRAVE is an intriguing account of men who learned to swim from submerged submarines and others who fell from jets in the sky - and how they came together to create a remarkable fighting force."

Sherry Sontag coauthor of BLIND MAN'S BLUFF: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage.

About this edition

• Publisher: Naval Inst Pr
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 1557505489
• ISBN 13: 9781557505484
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 211