The Naval Ages: Galleys, Sails, Steam, Missiles.  This episode focuses on the third naval age, the Naval Age of Steam.

The Third Naval age began with ironclad battleships, also known as pre-dreadnoughts, which effectively used artillery guns, iron plating, and steam power.  The keynote war of this naval era is the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905), specifically the Battles of Tsushima Strait and Port Arthur. 

Once the HMS Dreadnought was created, the dreadnought battleship era of the Naval Age of Steam began.  This era would last until WWII.  The keynote battle of this era was the Battle of Jutland in WWI.

The Third Naval Age ended in WWII as a result of the aircraft carrier, which replaced battleships as the principle ship of the fleet. 

For more information, read:
Dictionary of Battles by David Chandler
World Civilizations: 9th Edition
The Pacific War Companion by Daniel Marston
Europe at War: A "Red Book" of the Greatest War of History
Submarine by Drew Middleton

Military History Podcast is sponsored by Armchair General Magazine and International Reserach and Publishing Corporation

Operation Enduring Freedom, specifically the 2001 war in Afghanistan, was the first step to President Bush's war on terror.  It is known as the greatest special forces war ever fought because of the US's heavy reliance on a few highly-trained operatives on the ground pinpointing targets for a high-tech force in the air. 

The war was fought between the Coalition (consisting mostly of US forces)/Northern Alliance (Afghan rebels) and the Taliban (Afghan government)/Al Qaeda (led by Osama bin Laden).  The was was pretty much one-sided, with the Northern Alliance ground offensive easily sweeping through Kabul, the capital of the Taliban, and Kandahar, the military stronghold of the Taliban.  The one battle that the Coalition/Northern Alliance arguably lost was the Battle of Tora Bora, in which Osama bin Laden was cornered but somehow escaped.

Now, it is the insurgency that is causing problems for the new government led by Hamid Karzai. 

The war is seen as a "good war" by both sides of the political aisle.

For more information, read:
Foreign Affairs: The Afghan Quagmire (November 2001)
Bush's Speech          
Galenet Article One
Galenet Article Two
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/enduring-freedom.htm

Military History Podcast is sponsored by Armchair General Magazine and International Research and Publishing Corporation

The Red Raiders of the 22nd Bombardment Group were involved in almost every single major action in the Pacific Theater of World War II.  Starting out as a medium bomber group (equipped with the B-25 Mitchell and the B-26 Liberator), the "silver fleet" turned into a heavy bomber ground once it was outfitted with the new B-24 Liberator heavy bomber. 

The group's amazing five-year history is explained thoroughly in the book: Revenge of the Red Raiders (The Illustrated History of the 22nd Bombardment Group during WWII).  This illustrated encylopedia contains over 1000 pictures (w/detailed captions), 5 comprehensive appendices, and 624 pages of detailed (albeit thick) information.  The pros and cons of the book are discussed within the episode.

Revenge of the Red Raiders can be purchased here

Military History Podcast is sponsored by Armchair General Magazine and International Reserach and Publishing Corporation

This is the second part of a two part episode on military robotics:

• UAVs or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
• RQ-2 Pioneer: Israeli/American recon UAV
• RQ-1 Predator: American high endurance recon UAV, armed with Hellfire missiles
• RQ-4 Global Hawk: American high altitude recon UAV
• USV or Unmanned Space Vehicles
• Key Hole Series: Visual Recon Satellites
• Mentor Satellite Series: Audio communications espionage device
• Lacrosse Satellite Series: Visual Recon, can see through clouds and 10 feet of dirt
• GPS Satellite Series: Used by troops to pinpoint their locations
• Anti-satellites: Armed with nuclear weapons, used to bring down other satellites
• Anti-Anti-Satellites: Satellites armed with missiles to bring down anti-satellites
• SDI Laser Satellites: Satellites that shoot down incoming missiles

For more information, read:
http://science.howstuffworks.com/military-robot.htm
http://www.spawar.navy.mil/robots/
How to Make War by James F. Dunnigan
http://www.npr.org/news/specials/obits/reagan/timeline.html

Military History Podcast is sponsored by Armchair General Magazine and by International Research and Publications Corporation