Distant Thunder: The U.S. Artillery from the Spanish-American War to the Present

By Alejandro M. de Quesada

Distant Thunder details the engrossing experiences of a helicopter pilots tales of war told through letters that come straight from the heart. Often the author labored well into the night after a mission still wearing the dusty flight suit which bore witness to the events he penned.Don Harward was torn between two worlds; his loyalty to his family and to his country. Like so many other soldiers, even on leave, he can always hear the dim roar of guns, the distant thunder of war, and is always summoned towards the sound. Pacific Wings, a prestigious New Zealand-based magazine, has previously published some letters which have been praised by a growing readership, both aviator and non flyer alike, for their ability to transport the reader into the world of war. Includes superb action photographs from Dons personal collection. A twenty-five-year veteran of the US Army, he details action over Panama, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Afghanistan, including Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm, drawing also from his days in Army Special Ops, operating with 2-2 SAS. As a 160th SOAR pilot for a lot of his military career, his is a story that goes above and beyond the normal military lifestyle. An inspiring read.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Feb 29, 2016
• ISBN: 9781784380120

Alejandro M. de Quesada

Alejandro de Quesada is a Florida-based military history writer, an experienced researcher and a collector of militaria, photos and documents. He runs a firearms company as well as an archive and historical consultancy for museums and films as a secondary business. Alejandro has written over one hundred articles and over thirty books, including several for The History Press, and is the author of the following titles to date: A History of Florida�s Forts and Spanish Colonial Fortifications in North America.

Book preview

Distant

Thunder

An Artilleryman of Battery H, 1st United States Artillery dressed in his 1883-pattern fatigue blouse and wearing an 1874-pattern US belt plate at the time of the Spanish-American War. Note the 1895-pattern forage cap and insignia with regimental and battery designations. (NPS)

THE ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN SOLDIER, HIS UNIFORM AND HIS EQUIPMENT

Distant Thunder

The U.S. Artillery from the Spanish-American War to the Present

Alejandro M. de Quesada

Frontline Books

This edition of Distant Thunder

first published 2001 by Greenhill Books

published in this format in 2015 by

Frontline Books

an imprint of

Pen & Sword Books Ltd

47 Church Street, Barnsley, S70 2AS

www.frontline-books.com

Copyright © Alejandro M. de Quesada

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical or otherwise without first seeking the written permission of the publisher.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

Quesada, Alejandro M. de

Distant thunder: the US Artillery from the Spanish–American War to the present. – (The G.I. series: the illustrated history of the American soldier, his uniform and his equipment; v.26)

1. United States. Army–Artillery 2. United States.

Army–Artillery–History 3. United States.

Army–Artillery–Uniforms

I. Title

355.8’21’0973

ISBN 1-85367-464-8

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available

ABBREVIATIONS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank the following individuals, organizations, and institutions that made this work possible: John Phillip Langellier; George Pappas, Colonel, USA (Ret.); Robert G. Borrell, Sr.; A. M. de Quesada, M.D.; National Archives, College Park, MD; National Park Service, Gulf Islands National Seashore, Gulf Breeze, FL; The Casemate Museum, Fortress Monroe, VA; Fort Morgan State Park, AL; U.S. Army Military History Institute, Washington, D.C.; U.S. Army Quartermaster Museum, Fort Lee, VA; U.S. Army Ordnance Museum, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD; Public Affairs Office, 24th Infantry (Mechanized) Division (prior to inactivation in 1996 and reactivation in 1999); Fort Stewart Museum (formerly known as the Victory Museum), Fort Stewart, GA; 116th Field Artillery Regiment, Fl National Guard; 265th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, Fl National Guard; Camp Blanding Museum, Starke, FL; ADEQ Historical Resources, Inc.; and, sincere gratitude to the members of The Company of Military Historians for their guidance and camaraderie.

Design and layout by David Gibbons and Anthony A. Evans, DAG Publications Ltd

Edited by Andy Oppenheimer

Printed in China

DISTANT THUNDER

THE U.S. ARTILLERY FROM THE SPANISH–AMERICAN WAR TO THE PRESENT

The end of the Spanish-American War helped propel the United States onto the world stage as an imperial power with the acquisition of Puerto Rico, Guam,