US Naval Institute Proceedings - March 1977

Front Cover, U. S. Naval Institute Proceedings, Volume 103/3/889, March 1977. GGA Image ID # 1d11018aa9

On the Front Cover

Lieutenant Richard M. Smith's somber photograph of TA-4J Skyhawks in echelon formation over NAS Kingsville, Texas, is one of ten winners of this year's Naval and Maritime Photo Contest. The other winners will be published in a forthcoming issue of the Proceedings.

The New Character of Warfare 18

Vietnam left wounds so deep that we seem now to be unready to support any foreign governmental movement that might require a commitment of troops or even money or material.

By Rear Admiral Wycliffe D. Toole, Jr., USN
Backfire: Long Shadow on the Sea-Lanes 26

Close and continuing scrutiny of the newest Soviet bomber by U.S. and NATO experts suggests that it may be intended for strategic missions against allied shipping.

By William D. O'Neil
Shallow Water Warfare in Northern Europe 36

How much do we—how much do they?—know about those saline shallows in which NATO and Warsaw Pact naval forces may one day find themselves locked in mortal combat?

By Commander Michael Salitter and Commander Ulrich Weisser, FGN
The Trouble With Alliances .. . 46

NATO, like all alliances, is subject to constant and unavoidable change. It is not success or failure, then, but changing conditions, that will destroy NATO as they have destroyed all alliances.

By Thomas H. Etzold
Fostering Dissent 54

We should not try to stifle dissent nor steel ourselves simply to tolerate it. Instead, it should be fostered, institutionalized, and channeled toward positive ends.

By Rear Admiral Harley D. Nygren, NOAA
Erosion of an Ethic 56

Some high-ranking officers have a far better understanding of politics, technology, and bureaucracy than they do of the attributes necessary to lead and command military forces.

By Colonel Ronald P. Dunwell, USMC
Hellcats Over Truk 63

In the early months of World War II, the Japanese fleet base at Truk was viewed with considerable apprehension, particularly by the carrier pilots who would have to attack it.

By Barrett Tillman

Cover


Departments
The Old Navy 72
Comment and Discussion 75
Nobody asked me, but 86
Book Reviews 88
Books of Interest to the Professional 92
Professional Notes 96
Weapon Systems 107
Notebook 108

The opinions or assertions in the articles are the personal ones of the authors and are not to be construed as official. They do not necessarily reflect the views of either the Navy Department or the U. S. Naval Institute.