Scale aviation modeller international

Wrecks and Relics

Local Aviation Collections of

Britain

The UK’s Regional

Aeronautical Treasures

AUTHOR: Ken Ellis

YEAR: 2017

PUBLISHER: Crécy Publishing

Limited

ISBN: 978-1-91080-911-2

FOR M AT: 352pp Hardback

A

s an aviation author,

Ken Ellis needs

no introduction;

likewise, the Wrecks

and Relics series is also

well known to aviation

enthusiasts. This latest

edition looks at regional

aviation collections, while

the major national museums

are covered in its sister volume.

This book is split into chapters,

covering air museums by county

(for England), with a chapter

each for Scotland, Wales, and

Northern Ireland. As well as

describing the various exhibits

in these museums, the book has

short biographies of some of the

pioneer preservationists who

saved many of these aeronautical

treasures, so that we can visit

and appreciate them today.

Reading through this book, it is

amazing to see what can be found

in some of these small “out of

the way” museums: for example,

the only surviving section of a

First World War Felixstowe Flying

Boat can be found at the Norfolk

and Suffolk Aviation Museum,

Flixton, and the only surviving

Hawker Hunter F.2 can be found at

Sywell Aviation Museum, which

is my local aviation fix! These

are just two of the many unique

treasures which can be found in

the country’s regional museums.

I can see this book ending

up in the glove box of my

car so it can be used to plan

trips, as there are many little

museums that I wish to visit!

My thanks to Crécy

Publishing Limited for supplying

this excellent and highly

recommended book for review.

TMU-S

First Kills

The Illustrated Biography

of Fighter Pilot Wladyslaw

Gnys

AUTHOR: Stefan W.C. Gynys

YEAR: 2017

PUBLISHER: Casemate

ISBN: 978-1-61200-556-0

FOR M AT: 304pp Hardback

T

his detailed

biography gives

the reader a deep

understanding of the life

of the subject: from his

humble rural origins,

to his Polish Air Force

training, his first combat

in 1939, escape to France

and combat there in 1940,

escape again to Britain, and his

experiences within the RAF.

Along the way the author provides

a background of world events

and how they affected Wladysaw

Gnys and the people around him.

Of his bravery and skill there

is no doubt, and as with all of the

people from that era, his story

needs to be told. The variety of

aircraft Gynys flew in Poland

includes the French-built Potex

XXV trainer and the rather

antiquated PZL-11c fighter; in the

French Air Force, Morane Saulnier

406 fighters; and in the RAF,

Hawker Hurricanes and Spitfires.

In the PZL he achieved the very

first shoot-down of a German

aircraft in WW2, when he attacked

two Heinkel He111s, while it was

in an RAF Spitfire that he was shot

down, crashed, was wounded and

taken prisoner by the Germans.

He escaped from the Germans and

returned to the UK, where he spent

the rest of the war recuperating.

Post-war he emigrated to

Canada and after a hard time

as a farmer, switched to being

a successful businessman.

Towards the end of his life

he was able to return to Poland

to visit his family, but he also

met with the German Stuka pilot

who was his first adversary in

1939, becoming close friends.

An excellent read for all,

recommended. My thanks

to Casemate for supplying

this review copy http://www.

casematepublishing.co.uk.

Paul Middleton

Airframe and Miniature No.11

The Messerschmitt Bf 109

Late Series (F to K including the Z Series)

A Complete Guide to the Luftwaffe’s Famous Fighter

AUTHOR: Richard A. Franks

YEAR: 2018

PUBLISHER: Valiant Wings Publishing

ISBN: 978-0-9957773-0-9

FOR M AT: 240pp Softback

O

riginally this book was

going to be shorter, but

due to the sheer amount

of information available on

this ever-popular type, it had

to be expanded to 240 pages!

As we have come to expect from

this series, the book is separated

into two large sections, with the

Airframes chapters covering the

evolution, testing, production,

prototypes, camouflage, and

markings of the aircraft. The

latter section includes colour

profiles by Richard J. Caruana,

accompanied by photos of the

actual aircraft and a short history

of the service of the type in

various theatres or countries.

The second part of the book is

the Miniatures part, which features

four specially commissioned 109

builds, one each in 1/72 and 1/32

scales, and two in 1/48 – including

the new Tamiya kit! As well as

the builds there are listings of

available kits and accessories.

The isometric views of the

type in this section show the

differences between the various

versions, something which

I find particularly useful.

This section of the book

also features walk-around

photos of examples preserved

in museums, as well as

contemporary images and

extracts from technical

manuals; these will be very

useful for getting all those

little details correct.

The book is rounded off

with a select bibliography

of the many books that

have been published on the

109 over the years. Inside

the back cover you will

find pull-out plans in 1/48

scale by Jacek Jackiewicz.

You will find all of this

and much more in this

latest book from Valiant Wings.

As the title suggests, this book

is recommended for both the

enthusiast and the modeller.

My thanks to Valiant

Wings Publishing for

supplying this review copy.

TMU-S

BOOKS & MEDIA

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