Description
On April 14, 1994, after two U.S. Air Force jets shot down two U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopters, the Air Force concluded the pilots made a reasonable mistake. Writing about her daughter, one of the victims of the accident, the author presents the story of her daughter's final flight, the Air Force's mishandling of the subsequent investigation, and the Pipers' battle with government bureaucracies for accountability. While told in a highly personal manner, the author backs her narrative with research from sources that include news articles (many from Air Force Times ), government press releases, affidavits, and proceedings from several official investigations, though without notes. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
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On April 14, 1994, on a clear morning over northern Iraq's no-fly zone, two U.S. Air Force F-15 jets encountered two U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopters on a routine mission. Within ten minutes, the F-15s misidentified the helicopters and shot them down with fire-and-forget missiles. For three years, aircraft had patrolled these skies with a near-perfect safety record. Although the Black Hawk's downing was one of the worst air-to-air friendly fire incidents involving U.S. aircraft in military history, the Air Force would officially conclude the pilots had made a reasonable mistake. One victim was ebullient twenty-five-old intelligence officer Laura Piper, in love with life and with being an Air Force lieutenant. Movingly written by her mother, A Chain of Events is the story of Laura's final flight and the Air Force's mishandling of the subsequent investigation. It is a story of duty, patriotism, a mother's devotion to a daughter's memory, and her family's disappointment in a beloved institution.
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