The story of the United States Air Force (USAF) stretches back to aerial operations prior to the First World War—well before the USAF became a separate service—and looks forward to a new era of airpower in space. Fighting from Above presents a concise account of this expansive history, offering a new perspective on how the air forces of the United States created an independent way of warfare over time. From the earliest battles of the USAF’s predecessor organizations to its modern incarnation, Brian D. Laslie identifies four distinct and observable ways of war that developed over four distinct epochs. Beginning with the development of early air power (1906–1941), he highlights the creation of roles and missions, with bombardment theory and practice ascendant. An era of strategic dominance (1942–1975) followed in which the ideas of strategic bombardment ruled the air force; when such notions were unceremoniously proven false during the Vietnam-era conflicts, a period of tactical ascendancy (1975–2019) began. Finally, Laslie considers the current environment, where much of the story of the USAF remains unwritten as it grapples with the prospects and challenges posed by drones and the U.S. Space Force. While detailing combat operations, Fighting from Above also pays close attention to technology, politics, rivalries, logistics, policy, organization, equipping, and training. Thorough, concise, and innovative in its approach, it is an authoritative, exceptionally readable history of the development of American airpower.   “Exciting, tightly-focused … Brian Laslie brings together huge amount of history into one well-written, sweeping narrative. Fighting from Above offers a great anchor point for understanding the US Air Force.”— Michael W. Hankins , author of Flying Camelot: The F-15, the F-16, and the Weaponization of Fighter Pilot Nostalgia   “This engaging and well-grounded account will be tremendously useful to airpower enthusiasts, military professionals, and scholars alike. Brian Laslie has established a scholarly standard for future students of airpower.”— Robert P. Wetteman Jr ., professor of history and director of the Center for Oral History at the United States Air Force Academy   “ Fighting from Above  stands out because Laslie, the Command Historian at the US Air Force Academy, is unafraid to critique past (and present) strategies, policy decisions, and operational employment of airpower with clear and well-supported analysis. If his goal was to create a text to help students and practitioners of airpower use the past to think carefully and critically as the Air Force periodically updates its “way of war” for the future, he has succeeded.”— American Historical Review "It is well worth the read." ― Journal of the Air Force Historical Foundation "A succinct summary of over one hundred years of U.S. military aviation history, from the first efforts to provide reconnaissance for the 1916 Punitive Expedition in Mexico to modern conflicts in the Middle East... A useful and engaging summary of the service's history." ― Journal of American History    Brian D. Laslie is the Command Historian at the United States Air Force Academy and the author of numerous articles and books, including Air Power’s Lost Cause: The American Air Wars of Vietnam .