John D. Gresham
He lives in Fairfax, Va. He is an author, researcher, game designer, photographer, and military commentator with numerous publishing, design, speaking, and television appearance credits in his portfolio. He was the primary researcher and partner to Tom Clancy on his best-selling series of non-fiction “guided tour” books about military units. These include Submarine (1993), Armored Cav (1994), Fighter Wing (1995), Marine (1996), Airborne (1997), Carrier (1999) and Special Forces (2001), all published by Berkley Books.
He also is the award-winning co-designer of “Supermarina I” and “Supermarina II” (Clash of Arms Games, 1996 and 1997), a naval wargame based upon Larry Bond’s award-winning “Command At Sea” game system. Gresham’s book DEFCON-2 (with Norman Polmar), is a new single-volume history of the Cuban Missile Crisis and was published by John Wiley & Sons in 2006. His latest book, Beyond Hell and Back (October 2007, with Dwight Zimmerman), describes seven key U.S. special operations missions.
He is currently working on a pair of books, one on post-9/11 Medal of Honor recipients, and the other on the F-22A Raptor fighter. He has provided interviews, commentary, research, screenwriting, and production assistance for various documentary series produced for the History, Learning, Military, New York Times, Discovery, and National Geographic channels.
Stories by John D. Gresham
Handicapping the U.S. Air Force KC-X Tanker/Transport Competition
Published in Aerospace under Defense Technology, Featured with no comments
Over a decade since the original KC-X Tanker Modernization requirement to replace the aging U.S Air Force (USAF) fleet of KC-135 Stratotankers was first identified, it appears that a contract will finally be ...more »
USS Freedom (LCS 1) Deploys
Published in Naval under Defense Technology, News with no comments
On Feb. 16, 2010, the USS Freedom (LCS 1) left Mayport, Fla., for her first operational deployment, fully two years ahead of her original schedule. Freedom is the first of the Navy’s new ...more »
Wearing Many Hats: An Interview with Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.
Published in Defense Wide under Defense Issues, Featured, Interviews with no comments
In an era when political partisanship has become a blood sport and the members of Congress have become almost completely detached from the U.S. military – except for the funding of spending bills ...more »
Caring for Soldiers: An Interview with U.S. Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Chiarelli
Published in Defense Wide under Defense Issues, Featured, Interviews with no comments
The link between combat trauma and battlefield stress was known long before post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) was clinically diagnosed in the 1970s. Terms like “shell shock” and “combat fatigue” have long been used ...more »
Shipbuilder: An Interview with Mike Petters, President of Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding
Published in Naval under Featured, Interviews with 2 comments
Warships do not just spring to life: They have to be designed and built for the crews that will sail them into harm’s way. The process of constructing ships like USS New York ...more »
Interview: Gen. Bryan D. Brown, USA (Ret.)
Published in Defense Wide under Defense Issues, Interviews with 3 comments
Since the early 1990s, the process known as the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR), has guided the U.S. military and the Department of Defense (DoD) in deciding what to buy, what their base strategies ...more »
Interview: Lt. Gen. Frank Klotz, USAF – The First Commander of Air Force Global Strike Command
Published in Aerospace under Featured with no comments
The last few years have been tough ones for the airmen assigned to sustain the nuclear-armed bombers and missiles of the U.S. Air Force (USAF). Several well-publicized incidents involving mishandling of nuclear weapons ...more »
F-22A Raptor Myths
Published in Aerospace under Featured with 2 comments
- Cost – The F-22 Raptor is much more expensive to procure per unit than the F-35 Lightning II – In fact, the flyaway cost of an F-22 is ...more »
