Lords Of The Sky

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • The definitive history of combat aviation and fighter aircraft, from World War I to present INCLUDES 32 PAGES OF PHOTOGRAPHS AND 12 MAPS Lords of the Sky is the “dramatic, fast-paced, and definitive" (Michael Korda) history of fighter pilots and aircraft and their extraordinary influence on modern warfare, masterfully written by "one of the most decorated pilots in Air Force history” (New York Post). A twenty-year USAF veteran who flew more than 150 combat missions and received multiple Distinguished Flying Crosses, Lt. Colonel Dan Hampton draws on his singular firsthand knowledge, as well as groundbreaking research in aviation archives and rare personal interviews with little-known heroes, including veterans of World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. Hampton (the New York Times bestselling author of Viper Pilot) reveals the stories behind history's most iconic aircraft and the aviators who piloted them: from the Sopwith Camel and Fokker Triplane to the Mitsubishi Zero, Supermarine Spitfire, German Bf 109, P-51 Mustang, Grumman Hellcat, F-4 Phantom, F-105 Thunderchief, F-16 Falcon, F/A-18 Super Hornet, and beyond. In a seamless, sweeping narrative, Lords of the Sky is an extraordinary account of the most famous fighter planes and the brave and daring heroes who made them legend.

Angus Wells carved a place for himself on the shelves of hundreds of thousands of fantasy readers. Now, with Lords Of The Sky, it is clear that he has saved his most sweeping and imaginative tale for an epic more powerful than anything he has written before. For centuries, the Dhar have had to face the Ahn, fierce warriors who would lay claim to Dharbek, the land they call their ancestral home. Now, in fantastic airships powered by magic, the Ahn have begun their greatest campaign yet. In preparation for the coming onslaught, Storymen like Daviot travel the land collecting tales and sharing the history it's their responsibility to safeguard. But Daviot's travels show him the dark side of Dharbek, and inspire him to be a catalyst for change, to overcome doubt and fear, and pursue the one dream that has eluded Dharbek. Using his special gifts for storytelling and world-building, Angus Wells reaches new heights with a story as ambitious as it is broad in scope. Lords Of The Sky has all the action, adventure and magic a fantasy-lover could desire, and tackles social change, prejudice, the value of genuine friendship and the power of enduring love.

The Gene Wars have turned Earth into a blighted wasteland. Mile-long airships patrol the skies, exacting crippling tribute from the scattered ground communities. Threatened by mutant vegetation and predatory creatures, forced to the brink of starvation by the Sky Lords, Minerva - a former feminist utopia - has had enough. Its rebellion is swiftly crushed and Jan Dorvin, a Minervan warrior, is winched aboard a Sky Lord; towards a fate worse than death. For as a ground dweller and slave - but above all, as a woman - she is now regarded as the lowest form of humanity and is consigned to a life spent serving the sexual appetites of male slaves. But no Minervan could be kept slave for very long.....

When the villagers kill a raven, angering the lord of the sky, one kind-hearted boy travels great distances to set things right again.

Marc Vitrac was born in Louisiana in the early 1960's, about the time the first interplanetary probes delivered the news that Mars and Venus were teeming with life—even human life. At that point, the "Space Race" became the central preoccupation of the great powers of the world. Now, in 1988, Marc has been assigned to Jamestown, the US-Commonwealth base on Venus, near the great Venusian city of Kartahown. Set in a countryside swarming with sabertooths and dinosaurs, Jamestown is home to a small band of American and allied scientist-adventurers. But there are flies in this ointment – and not only the Venusian dragonflies, with their yard-wide wings. The biologists studying Venus's life are puzzled by the way it not only resembles that on Earth, but is virtually identical to it. The EastBloc has its own base at Cosmograd, in the highlands to the south, and relations are frosty. And attractive young geologist Cynthia Whitlock seems impervious to Marc's Cajun charm. Meanwhile, at the western end of the continent, Teesa of the Cloud Mountain People leads her tribe in a conflict with the Neanderthal-like beastmen who have seized her folk's sacred caves. Then an EastBloc shuttle crashes nearby, and the beastmen acquire new knowledge... and AK47's. Jamestown sends its long-range blimp to rescue the downed EastBloc cosmonauts, little suspecting that the answer to the jungle planet's mysteries may lie there, among tribal conflicts and traces of a power that made Earth's vaunted science seem as primitive as the tribesfolk's blowguns. As if that weren't enough, there's an enemy agent on board the airship... Extravagant and effervescent, The Sky People is alternate-history SF adventure at its best. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Written from a Tai/Shan perspective, the intricate and often unsettled realities that existed in the Shan States from early times up to the military coup in 1962 are described in a comprehensive overview of the stresses and strains that the Shan princes endured from early periods of monarchs and wars, under British rule and Japanese occupation, and Independence and Bamar military regime. Part One covers chronological events relating them to the rulers, the antagonists, and the people and the continuing conflict in the Shan State. Part Two deals with the 34 Tai/Shan rulers, describing their histories, lives, and work. Included are photographs and family trees of the princes, revealing a span of Shan history, before being lost in the mists of time. The past is explained in order that the present political situations may be understood and resolved amicably between the Bamar government, the Tatmadaw, and the ethnic nationalities. NOTES <5> ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS <7> CONTENTS <9> THE AUTHOR <15> MAPS <17> § Map 1: Political Divisions, Union of Burma, 1948 <17> § Map 2: Location of Shan States, 1939 <18> § Map 3: Resources of the Shan Plateau <19> § Map 4: Major Ethnic Groups of Burma <20> PREFACE <21> ACKNOWLEDGEMENT <23> PART ONE: Background Chapter One: The Early Period <26> § The Shan Plateau <26> § Migrations <27> § The Early Ava Court <28> § Differences <30> § Mutual Respect <32> § The Limbin Confederacy 1886 <33> § British Annexation <34> § Under the British 36<> § Changing Times <36> Chapter Two: British Rule <41> § The Watershed 1922 <41> § Burma Round Table Conference 1931-1932 <43> § Federated Council of Shan Chiefs <45> § The Feudal Lords <47> § The Privy Purse <48> § Contentment? <50> § Some Progress <51> Chapter three: The Interim <58> § A Storm Approaches <58> § Enter the Japanese <58> § Japanese Occupation <60> § Distrust <63> § Return of the British <64> § SCOUHP 1946 <68> § Attlee-Aung San Treaty <69> § Anti-feudalists <70> § Namkham U Htun Aye <73> Chapter Four: Panglong and After <77> § The Panglong Agreement of 1947 <77> § Committee of Inquiry 1947 <79> § Tragedy <80> § Constituent Assembly <81> § Selecting a President <82> § Insurgency <84> Chapter Five: Ten Long Years <91> § Disenchantment <91> § To Secede or Not, 1958 <93> § Tatmadaw's Soft Approach <95> § The 1959 Abdications <96> § New Elections <97> Chapter Six: Without Trust <103> § The Federal Proposal <103> § U Tun Myint <105> § No Compromise <107> § The Coup d'etat 1962 <110> PART TWO: GUARDIANS OF THE SHAN PLATEAU Chapter Seven: The Northern Shan States <121> § Hsipaw State <121> o Fate Unknown <121> o Hsipaw State <123> o The Saohpa Long <124> o Strained Relations <126> o Japanese Occupation <127> o The Tabaung Festivals <128> § Hsenwi State <140> o Hsenwi Saohpa Long <140> o Japanese Disapproval <141> o Flight to Safety <142> o Shan-Kachin <144> o Burma Road <145> o Dr. Gordon Seagrave (1897-1965) <146> § Mong Yai State <155> o A Kingdom Lost <155> o Hsenwi Divided <155> § Mong Mit State <164> o An Accomplished Prince <164> o The Saohpa Long <165> o Japanese Occupation <167> o Rubies <168> o Teak Forests <169> § Tawngpeng State <176> o The Palaung/Ta'ang <176> o Tawngpeng and its Saohpa <177> o The Namtu/Bawdwin Mines <180> o Not for Export <181> o Tea: a Drink or a Salad? <182> o An Episode <183> Chapter Eight: The Eastern Shan States <193> § Kengtung State <193> o Largest Mong <193> o Mangrai Descendants <194> o Kengtung Saohpa Long <195> o Close Ties <197> o Tai Khun and Tai-Lu <198> o The Kuomintang (KMT) <199> § Mong Pan State <216> § Kokang State <219> o Into the Fold <219> o The House of Yang <220> o The Next Generation <221> o Jimmy Yang <222> o The New Order <224> Chapter Nine: The Inner Shan States <233> § Isolation <233> § Mong Nai State <234> o Once Powerful <234> o Massacre <234> § Laikha State <242> o A Gracious Host <242> o A State of Many Names <243> o A Learned Abbot <245> § Mawkmai State <250> o A Charismatic Prince <250> § Mong Nawng/Mong Nong State <255> o Separated from Hsenwi <255> o Privy Purse <255> § Mong Kung State <262> o Appointed Saohpa in 1928 <262> § Mong Hsu State <271> o Actively Involved <271> o Mong Hsu Rubies <272> § Kesi Mansam State <274> o Warrior Princes <274> o Outstanding Career <276> § Tai Shan Resistance <282> o Noom Suk Harn <282> o The Golden Triangle <285> Chapter ten: The Central Shan States <292> § Yawnghwe State <292> o The Saohpa Long <292> o Hands-tied <294> o Yawnghwe Founded in 1394 <295> o Enter the British <297> o Phaung Daw U Poy <299> o Inle Needs Saving <300> § Mong Pawn State <316> o An Able Statesman <316> o The Mong Pawn Dynasty <316> o The Kyemmong <318> § Hsahtung State <325> o Remarkable Prince <325> o Advocating Unity <326> o Untimely Death <328> o The Pa-O <328> o Restlessness <330> § Lawksawk State <337> o Saohpa of Stature <337> o Japanese Courtesy <338> § Samka State <345> o Ancient Samka <345> o A Devoted Buddhist <345> § Loi Long/Pinlaung State <352> o Mountainous Region <352> o Combating Insurgents <353> § Nawngmawn State <356> o Sao Htun Yin <357> Namhkok State <359> § Wanyin/Banyin State <363> § Hopong State <364> § Sakoi State <367> § Mong Pai State <369> o Mong Pai Amalgamated <369> o Mobye Narapati <369> § Attempt at Progress <371> Chapter Eleven: The Mye Lat States: The Middle Lands <373> o Experimental Stations <375> § Hsahmong Kham State <376> o Arrival of the Danu <376> o Defended the State <377> o Politically Involved <378> § Pangtara/Pindaya State <384> o Pindaya Caves <384> o Becomes Saohpa <385> § Baw State <391> o Baw le-hse-le-ywa <391> o An Important Link <391> § Pwehla State <394> o Rulers of Note <394> o Promoted a Jemadar <394> § Pangmi/Pinhmi State <399> o Head Prefect and Kyemmong <399> § Ywangan/Yengan State <405> § Kyong State <411> Chapter Twelve: Sharing the Plateau <413> § The Two Wa States <413> o Introduction <413> § Mong Lun/Mong Lon State <415> o A Wise Ruler <415> o Eastern Special Region No. 4 <417> § Northern Wa States <419> o UWSP and UWSA <420> § The Karenni/Kayah State <421> o Three Karenni States <421> o Kantarawadi <423> o Bawlake <424> o Kyebogyi <425> o Becomes Kayah State <425> o Karenni's Wealth <427> § Diverse Communities <435> o Tribes and Kinships <435> o Troubled Relationships <436> o Akha <437> o Lahu <438> o Lisu <438> o Tai Neu <439> o Diversion <439> o Muong Sing to Luang Namtha <439> o First Encounter <440> o Tiger Women <442> o Sign Language <443> o A Holy Man <443> EPILOGUE <450> § Presidency <450> § Panglong Agreement and Federalism <451> § Ethnic Issues <451> § Conclusion <453> APPENDICES <454> § Appendix 1: The Panglong Agreement 1947 <455> § Appendix 2: Sao Harn Yawnghwe's Account <457> § Appendix 3: Sao Shwe Thaike's Letter, 1960 <463> § Appendix 4: Letter from Saohpa Sir Sao Mawng, 1926 <464> § Appendix 5: Letter Showing Shan Concern, 1947 <465> TABLES <466> § Table 1: Land area and money: the Shan States in 1939 <467> § Table 2: Approximate dates of reigns of rulers from British Annexation in 1887 <469> GLOSSARY 472 REFERENCES 474

Get inside the cockpit with Dan Hampton, the military’s most decorated F-16 pilot, in this enhanced e-book edition of Viper Pilot. Exclusive to this edition are 11 video interviews, where Hampton talks candidly about his time as a Wild Weasel and about the fighter jet that kept him alive through so many dangerous skirmishes. In addition, an interactive “first-person” cockpit diagram lets you get deeper into the action, providing a visual companion to the book that leaves you feeling like you’re sitting in the iconic F-16 itself. 151 combat missions 21 hard kills on surface-to-air-missile sites 4 Distinguished Flying Crosses with Valor 1 Purple Heart Sure to rank as one of the greatest aviation memoirs ever written, Viper Pilot is an Air Force legend's thrilling eyewitness account of modern air warfare. From 1986 to 2006, Lt. Col. Dan Hampton was a leading member of the Wild Weasels, the elite Air Force fighter squadrons whose mission is recognized as the most dangerous job in modern air combat. Weasels are the first planes sent into a war zone, flying deep behind enemy lines purposely seeking to draw fire from surface-to-air missiles and artillery. They must skillfully evade being shot down—and then return to destroy the threats, thereby making the skies safe for everyone else to follow. Today these vital missions are more hazardous than direct air-to-air engagement with enemy aircraft. Hampton's record number of strikes on high-value targets make him the most lethal F-16 Wild Weasel pilot in American history. This is his remarkable story. Taught to fly at an early age by his father, Hampton logged twenty years and 608 combat hours in the world's most iconic fighter jet: the F-16 "Fighting Falcon," or "Viper" as its pilots call it. Hampton spearheaded the 2003 invasion of Iraq, leading the first flight of fighters over the border en route to strike Baghdad. In the war that followed, he engaged in a series of brilliantly executed missions that earned him three Distinguished Flying Crosses with Valor; he notably saved a U.S. Marine unit from certain death by taking out the surrounding enemy forces near Nasiriyah. Two years earlier, on 9/11, Hampton's father was inside the Pentagon when it was attacked; with his dad's fate unknown, Hampton was scrambled into American skies and given the unprecedented orders to shoot down any unidentified aircraft. Hampton also flew critical missions in the first Gulf War, served on the Air Combat Command staff during the Kosovo War, and was injured in the 1996 Khobar Towers terrorist attack. With manned missions rapidly giving way to remote-controlled UAV drones, Viper Pilot may be the last memoir by a true hero of the skies. Gripping and irreverently humorous, it is an unforgettable look into the closed world of fighter pilots and modern air combat. Please note that due to the large file size of these special features this enhanced e-book may take longer to download then a standard e-book.

Includes legends of the early world of Persia, the epic of the Kings, Story-tellers, myths and mythology, and more.