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Blue Moon over Cuba: Aerial Reconnaissance during the Cuban Missile Crisis (General Aviation) Kindle Edition

by William B Ecker USN (ret.) (Author), Kenneth V. Jack (Author), Michael Dobbs (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 48 ratings
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Most books on the Cuban Missile Crisis tell the story using the memoirs of those who advised President Kennedy as he struggled to avoid World War III. This book is the only known personal account of the lead photographic reconnaissance squadron's scouting dangerous low-level operations, flying the supersonic RF-8A Crusader, during the classified Operation Blue Moon. Captain Ecker was the commanding officer of US Navy Light Photographic Squadron 62 (VFP-62, otherwise known as “Fightin' Photo”) during the Cuban Missile Crisis, a team created for reconnaissance and aerial photography, and consulted on the movie Thirteen Days, which included dramatic scenes of his first mission over Cuba on October 23, 1962. Blue Moon over Cuba is an authoritative and complete account of the low-level reconnaissance that might be said to have helped JFK avert nuclear Armageddon.
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  1. Part of series
    General Aviation
  2. Print length
    429 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publisher
    Osprey Publishing
  6. Publication date
    March 20, 2013
  7. File size
    15436 KB
  8. Page Flip
    Enabled
  9. Word Wise
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  10. Enhanced typesetting
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01BY34C64
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Osprey Publishing; 1st edition (March 20, 2013)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 20, 2013
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 15436 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 429 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 48 ratings

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  1. Kenneth V. Jack

    Kenneth V. Jack

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    Kenneth V. Jack enlisted in the Navy in July 1959 after graduating from New Kensington High School near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He graduated as a Navy photographer from the Navy's Photographic Training School in Pensacola, Florida and was assigned to Light Photographic Squadron 62 (VFP-62), Cecil Field, Florida. The squadron flew the supersonic RF-8A photo Crusaders, with state-of-the-art camera systems that provided photo reconnaissance for the fleet. After a year, the Navy sent him back for advanced training as an electronics photo technician to maintain the photo electronics that controlled the cameras.

    Prior to the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962, VFP-62 was implementing a high resolution camera called the KA-45, which gave the squadron a competitive edge over other military reconnaissance units. Mr. Jack helped test the camera for the rugged environment on aircraft carriers while assigned with his detachment to the super carrier USS Forrestal (CVA-59) a few months before the crisis errupted. As a consequence, VFP-62 was chosen to fly the first low-level photographic missions over the Soviet nuclear missiles hidden in Cuba. The photography obtained was presented directly to President Kennedy to help him assess the missile threat in Cuba. The squadron was highly decorated for its efforts.

    After leaving the Navy, Mr. Jack obtained Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Educational Mathematics from Penn State University and the University of Pittsburgh. He also obtained post-graduate credits in Computer Science. He taught advanced mathematics at Valley High School, in New Kensington, PA. for thirteen years and joined Westinghouse Electric Company as a Computer Software Engineer, designing and implementing computer safety code for Westinghouse and Russian nuclear reactor systems.

    He an his wife Darlene retired in 2002 to their retirement home in rural northern Pennsylvania where he fishes, reads, writes, and serves as his squadron's webmaster for their website www.vfp62.com. In retirement, he has consulted on several historical television documentaries, one being the History Channel's "Man, Moment, Machine" which highlighted President Kennedy, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the RF-8A Crusader. He and his squadron members have actively provided technical support for the restored RF-8A at Battleship Park Mobile, Alabama.

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  2. William B. Ecker

    William B. Ecker

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Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
48 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

By CJs Pirate
5.0 out of 5 stars Intriguing Tale of How We Almost Came to Blows with the Soviet Union
Reviewed in the United States on May 20, 2014
Verified Purchase
The late 1950s and early 1960s were very scary times for Americans. World War II had ended, Korean was a VERY recent memory. The word Vietnam was heard in some circles. However, what WAS heard in ALL circles was how the world almost went to war over missiles in Cuba.

For 13 days in October 1962, 13 months before his assassination, President John F. Kennedy played a game of high stakes chess with Soviet Premier Nikita Krushchev over the placement of nuclear capable missiles positioned in various locations throughout Cuba.

This is the story of how the missiles were discovered by one of the U.S. Navy pilots who flew the earliest Navy lead low altitude, high speed flights over the country. Tense, intriguing, scary are all words that come to mind.

As a child of 6 I remember our fallout drills of hiding under our school desks. Certainly those wooden and steel desks wouldn't have stopped nuclear fallout from reaching our young bodies. The drills were done only to give us a feeling of control.

Blue Moon is a must read for anybody of the age and time.
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Ron Edmonson
4.0 out of 5 stars overall good book
Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2023
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Got into a lot of details on the recon missions over Cuba. Which is great. But in the end it turned into peat and repeat and opinion.
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Kindle CustomerRobert
5.0 out of 5 stars Good reading
Reviewed in the United States on January 17, 2016
Verified Purchase
Enjoyed reading this book. My first tour of duty was in an F8 Squadron as an Metalsmith. I was a Plane Captain on the flightdeck of the USS ORISKANY, when the RF8 flown by Major John Glenn hit the round-down on landing. I also was stationed in gitmo for three years. The book brought back many memories. It is a good read without getting the reader bog down in too many details. Low and slow Intel is very important. This book takes you from the very high U 2 flights to the low and fast of the RF8s. It opens the door for the next generation of coverage from very high or something even slower.....
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Robert Gordon
4.0 out of 5 stars Stunning feats of flying over Cuba
Reviewed in the United States on March 21, 2014
Verified Purchase
If anyone doubts that U.S. naval aviators are the world's best, this book will change your mind! These pilots provided the low level photos of the Cuban missel sites that JFK needed to make continuous evaluations of their state or readiness. I knew about these photos at the time but I didn't, then, appreciate the degree of skill and daring required of the pilots who were assigned to get them. The book also details the extremely tense days of the crisis as the world teetered on verge of nuclear war.
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David J. Wallace
5.0 out of 5 stars Closeup of the Cuban Missile Crisis
Reviewed in the United States on July 16, 2013
Verified Purchase
This book is an excellent history of the seldom reported low level recon performed by the US Navy during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The author does a super job of helping the reader get the flavor of what it was like to perform this demanding task, especially considering how high the stakes could get.

I highly recommend this book for anyone wanting to get a better understanding of the crisis and / or tactical recon. This is especially useful as UAVs are now tasked with obtaining so much intel, having a human at the controls provides the flexibility you often need in developing scenarios. Can a UAV do the job, sure, especially if the person at its controls has the military / tactical understanding of what he is looking at.

Great book!
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Ken S
2.0 out of 5 stars An alternative view
Reviewed in the United States on March 17, 2014
Verified Purchase
I must have read a different book than the other reviewers. It was a great accomplishment, and there are details about the crisis that I didn't know, but this is not a page turner. An enormous portion of the book is quoted passages from people involved and other books about the missile crisis, so it reads more like an official account than story. I love non-fiction, but this is just boring.
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Aqua Man
4.0 out of 5 stars History Relieved
Reviewed in the United States on January 5, 2019
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Excellent book on how close the US came to WW3 back in the early 60's.

Very enjoyable read about a time 50 plus years ago when Naval Aviation proved that Ruissian missles were being placed in Cuba.

I personally flew with Captian Willain Ecker in the early 70's. True American Hero!
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bigdeafguy
4.0 out of 5 stars Astounding Service to the USA and the World
Reviewed in the United States on April 13, 2014
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Everyone knows the roll that high altitude U2 surveillance played in the Cuban Missile Crisis. Few people realize that low level flights by naval aviators (with slight help from the Air Force) provided the knowledge vital to Kennedy and his team as they stood nose-to-nose with the evil empire. I think this book sheds light on today's Russian adventures in Ukraine.
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