John Boyd was the greatest fighter pilot in American history. He defeated every pilot who challenged him in less than 40 seconds. But what made Boyd a man for the ages was what happened after he left the cockpit. Boyd made a career of challenging the intractable Pentagon bureaucracy, making enemies and a few devoted disciples who would become known as "The Acolytes." Boyd transformed the way military aircraft - in particular the F-15 and F-16 - were designed with his revolutionary "Energy-Maneuverability Theory," fighting the Air Force's entrenched ideas every step of the way. He then dedicated lonely years to a radical theory of conflict that at the time was mostly ignored, but now is acclaimed as the most influential thinking about conflict since Sun-Tzu.

For more information on the strategy of Col Boyd, and to download copies of his briefings, please visit the two sites that archive and discuss his work: Defense and the National Interest and War, Chaos, and Business.

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