April 1980: As U.S. special forces abandoned their staging base deep in the Iranian desert, tragedy struck. A Marine helicopter hit an Air Force C-130 loaded with fuel. The giant fireball killed eight. The attempt to rescue 50 American hostages in Tehran collapsed in failure and humiliation. The secret mission had stretched the Marine helicopters to the limit. They were not the best tool for the job, but they were the best the military had. Anticipating some miscues and mechanical failures, the Pentagon had dispatched extra ships, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the challenges encountered.

The Desert One debacle was almost a decade in the making. The military had ramped up for Vietnam without building up. Units in Europe were gutted to fill platoons in Vietnam. Major equipment modernization programs were jettisoned to help pay for the war. And as soon as hostilities ended, Washington took a “peace dividend,” eviscerating the Pentagon’s budget.