Barrett Tillman grew up on an Oregon wheat and cattle ranch where he was exposed to agricultural aircraft from childhood. He learned to fly at age 16 in 1965 and was involved in restoring and flying antique aircraft: a Navy N3N-3 biplane trainer and a Douglas SBD-5 dive bomber. The latter led to his first book, an operational history of the Dauntless published in 1976.
Graduating from the University of Oregon with a journalism degree in 1971, Tillman has worked as a freelance writer, book publisher, and magazine editor. First published at age 15, he has written 50 books (ten fiction) with contributions to 10 more, and 800 magazine articles. Since 1990 he has been a full-time author and novelist while appearing as a documentary TV commentator in the U.S. and Europe. His work has been honored with ten awards for history, biography, and literature. His prior activities include Eagle Scout, two state championships as a percussionist, competitive speech and debate titles, and leading a national champion shooting team.
Awards:
- 1978: Contributor’s Award, American Aviation Historical Society
- 1981: U.S. Air Force Historical Foundation Writing Award
- 1987: North American Society for Oceanographic History (with John B. Nichols)
- 1994: Naval Order of the United States History Writing Award
- 1994: Admiral Radford Award for Naval Aviation History and Literature
- 1998: Tailhook Association Lifetime Achievement Award
- 2009: U.S. Naval Institute General Prize.
- 2019: Naval History Author of the Year