Scale aviation modeller international

The Vickers Viscount

The World’s First Turboprop

Airliner

AUTHOR: Nick Stroud

YEAR: 2018

PUBLISHER: Frontline Books

ISBN: 978-1-5267-0195-4

FOR M AT: 120 pp Paperback

D

uring World War 2 the

Brabazon Committee,

charged with developing

a post-war civil aviation

strateg y, included among their

recommendations a need for a

home-grown DC-3 replacement. The

Viscount was developed in the light

of this, and became one of the most

successful British airliners ever

produced. This book tells its story.

After a short introduction, the

author (son of one of the founding

editors of Aircraft Illustrated

magazine) starts with a chapter

entitled “Genesis”, which takes

the reader through the ideas which

led to the Viscount, the aircraft’s

pedigree, and a discussion of rivals

such as the Airspeed Ambassador.

Subsequent chapters cover its

development; its early service

history; a technical description;

later variants; military service;

the loss of VH-TVC in 1961 (text by

Macarthur Job); later service; a list

of surviving airframes; and a series

of colour proiles by Juanita Franzi.

In addition to the proiles, the

text is illustrated throughout by a

number of tables (of variants, for

example) and a well-chosen selection

of contemporary photographs. As

well as Viscounts these include other

comparable or relevant types, such

as the Lockheed Electra. There is

even a rare photograph of LN715, a

Vickers Wellington that was used as

a test-bed for the Rolls-Royce Dart

engine, which was such a signiicant

factor in the Viscount’s success.

The author conveys a very

comprehensive account of the type

in the relatively few pages of this

book, and I highly recommend it,

particularly to those with any sort

of interest in post-war aviation.

Thanks to Pen & Sword Book

Ltd for the review copy.

MJC

Airbus A380

2005 to Present

AUTHOR: Robert Wicks

YEAR: 2017

PUBLISHER: Haynes Publishing

ISBN: 978-1-78521-108-9

FOR M AT: 188 pp Hardback

T

his title is one of the Haynes

Manual series of books,

and was published in 2017,

ten years after the A380 entered

service with Singapore Airlines. It

follows the now-familiar style of a

Haynes Manual, with a cover still

in the same style as the original

DIY car maintenance books.

As is usual with the series, the

contents are very comprehensive.

The reader is irst presented with a

forward, then a chapter concerning

the origins of Airbus, the aircraft

development lifecycle, and other

background information relevant

to the aircraft and its conception.

Subsequent chapters cover

development and production, then

go into detail about various systems

and aspects of thei operation, such

as the engines, light deck, and the

issues surrounding compatibility

with airport equipment designed

for smaller single-deck aircraft.

There is even a whole chapter

devoted to aircraft turnaround,

a hugely complex operation

designed to minimise the time the

aircraft spends on the ground.

Finally, the author presents

some conclusions, summing up

issues such as the disappointing

sales record compared with

expectations, and discussing possible

futures. Finally, there is a glossary

and a comprehensive index.

I confess that when I irst saw

the A380 lying on an early visit to

Filton, I did not think it looked all

that big. Then I spotted the escorting

aircraft, and realised that it was

really that big! Since then, the sight

of one lying has always left a slight

feeling of awe. This book provides a

good insight into what is arguably the

most impressive aircraft regularly

lying into Britain’s airports today.

Thanks to Haynes Publishing

for the review copy.

MJC

Airframe Album 2

The Hawker Sea Fury

A Detailed Guide To The Fleet Air

Arm’s Last Piston-engine Fighter

AUTHOR: Richard A. Franks

YEAR: 2013, 2nd updated and expanded

edition 2018

PUBLISHER: Valiant Wings Publishing

ISBN: 978-0-9957773-3-0

FOR M AT: 114pp softback

I

missed the irst edition of this

book, so I was really pleased

to see this second edition,

especially as I have just treated

myself to the new 1/48 scale

Airix kit. This second edition

has been updated and expanded

to include that kit. As well, the

list of surviving airframes has

been updated to include the recent

and current restoration projects

around the world. (I am lucky

in that one of the more recent

restoration projects (G-CBEL) is a

regular visitor to my local airield

at Sy well, Northamptonshire, UK;

the sound of the Centaurus engine

at full throttle is rather special!)

The book opens with a technical

description, before moving on to

look at the evolution of the aircraft:

its prototype, production versions,

and projected variants. These

chapters will prove invaluable to

the modeller, as pretty much every

aspect of the airframe is illustrated,

either with photographs, extracts

from the technical manual, or

isometric drawings. The chapter

on camoulage and markings gives

detailed descriptions of the schemes

worn by the type in service around

the world and is supplemented by

six pages of colour proiles that

illustrate some of these schemes.

The last chapter has a list of

the current Sea Fury survivors. As

stated in the introduction to this

chapter, the list was somewhat

diicult to compile because, in

some cases, many of the airframes

are made up of diferent parts

from many diferent aircraft!

Two kit builds are included

in this updated edition: the new

1/48 scale Airix kit and the 1/48

scale AMG kit of the T Mk 20

(two-seat) Sea Fury. The book is

rounded of with a kit, decal, and

accessory listing for the type.

So, if you have the new Airix kit

in your stash and you fancy adding

a bit of detail, or you just want to

know more about the type, then

this book deserves a place on your

bookshelf. My thanks to Valiant

Wings Publishing for supplying

this excellent book for review.

TMU-S

78 • DECEMBER 2018 • SCALE AVIATION MODELLER INTERNATIONAL

BOOKS & MEDIA