Coming soon from Helion and Company and author Mikhail Timin is Air Battles over the Baltic 1941 Volume 1: Soviet Air Power in the Baltic 1940–41, the opening volume of a major four-part study that examines the Soviet Air Forces stationed in the Baltic region in the months before the German invasion of June 1941.

Using Soviet and German archival sources, acclaimed aviation historian Mikhail Timin provides the most detailed account yet of how these forces were organised, trained and equipped, and the extent to which they were prepared for the challenge to come… Richly supported by colour profiles, photographs, maps and tables, this volume offers a comprehensive analysis of the Baltic air alignment in 1940. It sets the essential foundation for understanding the disastrous air battles that followed on 22 June 1941, when the Luftwaffe struck and the Red Air Force struggled to respond.

The 104 page paperback publication is currently available for pre-order with release set for May 31.

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Modelsvit has announced the development of a new tool Martin AM-1 Mauler model kit in 1/48 scale.

The Mauler was a bulky, single-seat, carrier-based attack aircraft developed by the Glenn L. Martin Company for the U.S. Navy during World War II, intended to haul very heavy ordnance loads from fleet carriers but entering service only in 1948 due to development delays and technical troubles, and serving in small numbers until the early 1950s before being eclipsed by the more successful Douglas AD Skyraider.

The company has released a series of 3D renderings and photos of the first test spruces which can be seen after the break. The model is slated for release later this year.

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A 1947 Cessna 120 airframe project has been spotted for sale.

According to the listing, it has 4,349 hours total time and features several upgrades, including added “D” side windows, a full electrical system with lighting and avionics provisions, and shoulder harnesses for both seats. The aircraft landed off‑airport after a fuel exhaustion incident, causing tailwheel bracket failure and wrinkling of the tailcone skins from the midpoint aft, but the cabin, wings, engine mount, firewall, landing gear, and vertical surfaces were undamaged. Additional minor issues include small non‑structural dents in the left wing leading edge, a slightly bent cabin top skin, and a minor push in the left elevator skin. The engine has been removed (airframe compatible with C‑85, C‑90, or O‑200), and the aircraft comes with complete logs, extensive documentation including the original 1947 weight and balance, and remains in calendar annual until July 2026.

The project is located in Minneapolis, Minnesota and is currently available for US $4,995, although bids are also being accepted. Click here to check out the eBay listing, which includes many additional photos and details.

Coming soon from MMPBooks and Richard J. Caruana is Flying Colours of Richard J. Caruana, which focuses on illustrations of historic aircraft produced over his 50 year career.

During the last decade or so a considerable number of requests were received, especially from the younger generation, for me to put together a cross-section of my work into a book. Truly an impossible task considering the thousands of illustrations produced over these fifty years. It was therefore with this in mind that I’m embarking on this voyage of memories that will hopefully be met with approval by both those who remember the drawings in now-defunct or difficult to find publications and also those too young to have had the opportunity of enjoying them. It also gave me the chance to update older illustrations to today’s standards.

This release will be the latest in a series of publications focusing on his aircraft profiles. It will include the Fokker D.VII, FIAT CR.32, Fleet Air Arm Corsairs, Boulton Paul Defiant, Last of the Spitfires, USAF Starblazers, SEPECAT Jaguar and Guido Pongiluppi.

The 48 page, paperback publication is currently available for pre-order with release set for March 15.

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Italeri has released a new edition of their 1/48 Spitfire Mk. IX focused on ace liveries.

The Mk. IX was an interim upgrade to counter the German Fw 190, entering service in 1942 with over 5,600 units produced, making it the second most numerous Spitfire variant. Powered by a more powerful Rolls-Royce Merlin 60-series engine with a two-stage supercharger, it offered superior high-altitude performance, speed up to around 408 mph, exceptional climb rate, and improved structural reinforcements compared to the earlier Mk. V, while retaining excellent maneuverability. Typically armed with two 20mm Hispano cannons and four .303 Browning machine guns (or variations), it served extensively in escort roles, intercepting bombers, and air superiority missions across Europe, significantly restoring Allied dominance during WW2.

The release (2843) includes new decals representing five aircraft flown by RAF aces: F/Lt Pierre Clostermann of 602 Squadron, W/Cdr James E. Johnson of 402 Squadron, F/Lt Jan Falkowski of 402 Squadron, S/Ldr Russell Foskett of 94 Squadron and F/Lt George Beurling of 412 Squadron.

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A 1961 Piper PA-24-180 Comanche airframe has been spotted for sale.

According to the listing, it has 2,461 hours total time, a clean 1961-style center-stack panel with intact flight and engine instruments, good cloth interior, and a modern blue/white/gold paint scheme. It is sold minus its prop-struck O-360 engine and propeller. It suffered a gear-up landing that scraped the belly from mid-cabin to the aft edge of the nose gear well, with no reported damage to wings, flaps, ailerons, Metco-style wingtips, tail surfaces, firewall, cowling, engine mount, or landing gear and drive system. The aircraft comes with complete logs from new through the last annual, weight and balance, AD compliance sheets, POH/AFM, FAA airworthiness certificate, and bill of sale.

It is currently on a tiedown at Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and is currently available for US $5,995, although bids are also being accepted. Click here to check out the eBay listing, which includes additional photos and details.

Coming soon from Osprey Publishing and author Mark Lardas is Philippines 1941–42: America’s disastrous start to the Pacific War, a fully illustrated study of the Pacific War’s little-known first major air campaign.

On December 7, 1941, the Japanese not only attacked Pearl Harbor, but also struck at US and allied bases throughout the Pacific, including the USA’s biggest overseas territory, the Philippines. However, that was an air battle the US was expecting. The USAAF had beefed up its assets in the Philippines, sending nearly a quarter of its available B-17s to the Far Eastern Air Force (FEAF).It could also call on the Philippine Army Air Corps (PAAC).

Aviation historian Mark Lardas explains how despite that, in a campaign that lasted barely a month, Japan’s air forces routed both the FEAF and the PAAC, gaining air superiority and permitting Imperial Army troops undisturbed access to the Philippine coast. Within a week Japan ruled the skies over Luzon. Two weeks later it had air superiority over all the Philippines. After a month, its control was so complete the Imperial Army felt confident to move its 5th Air Group back out of the Philippines. While desultory air combat would continue off and on for the next three months, the issue was decided by 5 January 1942.

Packed with original artwork, 3D diagrams, maps and photos, this is the history of how the first air campaign of the Pacific War turned into a humiliating defeat for the United States.

The 96 page publication is currently available for pre-order in paperback and Kindle editions with release scheduled for July 28.

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Sword Models has released their new tool Short SB.6 Seamew model kit in 1/72 scale.

As previously reported, the Seamew was a British lightweight carrier-based anti-submarine aircraft developed by Shorts in the early 1950s to replace the FAA’s Avenger. It first flew on 23 August 1953 but suffered handling problems and shifting defense priorities, which led to limited production and ultimately cancellation after only a small number of airframes were built.

The release (SW72157) is described as “quite large” and includes liveries for XE169 of HMS Warrior and XA123 of HMS Bulwark.

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A 1969 Piper Cherokee 140B project airframe has been spotted for sale.

According to the listing, the project has sat for many years in the dry Palm Springs, California desert. It has no engine, prop, exhaust, FAA paperwork, logbooks, or documented history, but it is a largely complete airframe with upgraded 140B interior/“six‑pack” throttle‑quadrant panel, pilot toe brakes, modern-style seats, and installed nav/coms, audio panel, Mode C transponder, and portable intercom. It also includes most interior plastics and trim.

The airframe shows minimal corrosion thanks to the arid climate, but has sun-damaged paint and a damaged aftermarket right wingtip. It is being sold cheaply as a rebuildable aircraft or high-value parts donor.

The project is currently available for US $3,995, although bids are also being accepted. Click here to check out the eBay listing, which includes additional photos and details.

Coming soon from Fonthill Media and author Justo Miranda is Rocket Interceptors 1941–1947:

During its short life, the rocket interceptor, a concept that reached maturity towards the end of the Second World War, attracted the attention of top scientists, designers and aeronautical engineers in Germany, the USSR, the United States and Japan. It was universally agreed that an interceptor capable of flying 300 mph faster than any other aircraft would give the wielding power untouchable aerial superiority. However, this new technology was unable to adapt to the realities of war.

The complexity of the propulsion system and the need to develop new aerodynamic concepts were challenges too great for the aeronautical industries of the major powers at the time, which specialized in the mass construction of piston fighters. Nor were fighter pilots able to adapt to the high-G combat conditions that came with achieving speeds of nearly 900 mph; it was simply not possible for them to aim and fire.

In 280 immaculate technical drawings, each set within its historical context and with full performance specifications, Rocket Interceptors 1941–1947 presents 125 project, prototype and combat rocket-powered aircraft developed by Germany, the United States, the USSR and Japan in the 1940s, though initial development for some can be traced as far back as the 1920s. This is the last word on a technology that, had it been properly harnessed, might have changed the course of the Second World War.

The 288 page, hardcover book is currently available for pre-order with release set for May 30.

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