A Tale of Yale, The Nation, and Cold War Politics

At the height of the Cold War in the early 1980s, the Russians shot down a commercial airliner, Korean Air Lines Flight 007, that strayed into their airspace. The shootdown became the era’s most incendiary incident, drawing the superpowers to the brink of nuclear war.

Flight of the Dove: KAL 007—On the Wings of Conspiracy is the behind the headlines account of David Pearson’s investigation into the KAL tragedy, a roller coaster of hope and disillusionment for a Yale graduate student who finds himself unexpectedly propelled to international prominence as the key KAL investigator. The book gives unusual insight into contemporary politics and international affairs, the academic and publishing worlds, and, improbably, Spain. It offers along the way insights into human nature, culture, and gender that are often unexpected and always revealing. Flight of the Dove is a detective story, a tale of ambition and friendship and romance, an insider’s account of the temptation of fame and the seduction of conspiracy.

“I was hooked and put everything else aside. I don’t think there is anything similar in the literature, whether it is on accidents like this, or conspiracies by the government, and certainly not the confessions of an obsessive academic.”

Charles B. Perrow
Professor Emeritus of Sociology, Yale University
Author of Normal Accidents

“It is a terrific read. I enjoyed it and know others will too.”

Garry D. Brewer
Professor Emeritus of Policy and Management, Yale University
Author of The War Game