Description
Book SynopsisAlmost from the first days of seafaring, men have used ships for “spying” and intelligence collection. Since early in the twentieth century, with the technological advancements of radio and radar, the U.S. Navy and other government agencies and many other navies have used increasingly specialized ships and submarines to ferret out the secrets of other nations. The United States and the Soviet Union/Russia have been the leaders in those efforts, especially during the forty-five years of the Cold War. But, as Norman Polmar and Lee J. Mathers reveal, so has China, which has become a major maritime power in the twenty-first century, with special interests in the South China Sea and with increasing hostility toward the United States.
Through extensive, meticulous research and through the lens of such notorious spy ship events as the Israeli attack on the USS
Liberty, the North Korean capture of the USS
Pueblo, and the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency’s success in clandestinely salvaging part of a Soviet submarine with the
Hughes Glomar Explorer,
Spy Ships is a fascinating and valuable resource for understanding maritime intelligence collection and what we have learned from it.
Trade Review"The release of this book creates high expectations. It is subject matter with a clear gap in the historical record and now a distinguished naval expert attempts to fill the void. . . . Readers will discover that the high expectations are well met."—D. Colt Denfeld,
Journal of America's Military Past"An interesting and valuable addition to the intelligence officer's bookshelf."—Admiral Tom Brooks,
ReadBook“
Spy Ships by Norman Polmar and Lee Mathers is another authoritative, comprehensive, and professional narrative that one expects from these authors. . . .
Spy Ships fills a gap in our understanding of the importance of intelligence collection in naval operations. This book is a welcome edition in my reference library. BZ!”—Capt. John A. Rodgaard, U.S. Navy (Ret.), author of
Tailships: Hunting Soviets with a MicrophoneTable of ContentsList of Illustrations
Foreword by Rear Admiral Thomas A. Brooks, U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Perspective
Acknowledgments
List of Abbreviations
U.S. Navy Ship and Submarine Designations
1. The Dawn of Spy Ships
2. Western Spy Submarines
3. The Cold War: The Red Side
4. The Cold War: Red Submarines
5. American Spy Ships: Part 1
6. The Attack on the USS Liberty
7. American Spy Ships: Part 2
8. The Seizure of the USS Pueblo
9. Unusual Spy Ships
10. Some Bottom Lines
Appendix A. Soviet/Russian Spy Ships
Appendix B. U.S. Spy Ships
Appendix C. Other Spy Ships
Notes
Bibliography
General Index
Ship and Submarine Index
