Category: WW2 Era (1939-45)

Posted on by

How To Fly A Spitfire: A Nut-and-Bolt Guide to the World’s Greatest Aircraft

Coming soon from publisher Frances Lincoln and author Hattie Hearn is How To Fly A Spitfire: A Nut-and-Bolt Guide to the World’s Greatest Aircraft, which takes readers into the cockpit of the legendary Supermarine Spitfire to discover what it really takes to fly Britain’s most iconic fighter.

First flown in March 1936 and operated decisively throughout the Second World War and beyond, the Spitfire is considered a mechanical work of art. Its elegant elliptical wings, powerful Rolls‑Royce Merlin engine, and pivotal role in the Battle of Britain have secured its place in history, and in the hearts of aviation enthusiasts worldwide.

How to Fly a Spitfire takes you on a fascinating, hands‑on tour of this remarkable machine. Much more fun than an overly technical manual, it offers a readable, richly illustrated and step‑by‑step walkthrough of the Spitfire’s controls and systems, giving a unique impression of what it was like to actually pilot one.

The 192 page, hardcover book is currently available for pre-order with release slated for April 7.

Product Page

Please Note: This post contains an Amazon affiliate link. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Posted on by

Now Available: ICM’s New Tool Do 217K-2 With Fritz-X

ICM has released their new tool Do 217K-2 model kit in 1/48 scale.

As previously reported, the Do 217K-2 was a specialized variant of the German Dornier Do 217 bomber, developed during World War II to carry the heavy Fritz X radio-guided anti-ship bomb. To accommodate this advanced weapon, the K-2 featured a significantly increased wingspan (24.8 meters) and was the heaviest in the series at 16,850 kg, making it well suited for precision attacks against naval targets. Its battlefield debut saw it play a crucial role as an early platform for precision-guided munitions, notably leading to the sinking of the Italian battleship Roma.

The new kit is touted as an accurate reproduction of the aircraft’s geometry with two Fritz-X bombs / racks and marking options for three aircraft: Do 217K-2, III./KG100, Marseilles-Istres, Summer 1943; Do 217K-2, III./KG100, Marseilles-Istres, Autumn 1943; Do 217K-2, Major Bernhard Jope’s aircraft, III./KG100, Marseilles-Istres, Autumn 1943.

Product Page

Please Note: This post contains an Amazon affiliate link. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Posted on by

Mosquito Night Hunters: The Daring RAF Intruders Who Terrorized the Luftwaffe

Coming soon from Air World and author Jeremy Walsh is Mosquito Intruders – Target Europe: The RAF’s First Elite Night Raider Units

Using diaries, first-hand accounts, official records, and contemporaneous sources, the book chronicles the elite RAF Mosquito intruder squadrons—Nos. 23, 418, and 605—that conducted daring low-level night operations across Europe during WW2, targeting Luftwaffe airfields to intercept returning enemy bombers and fighters. The narrative traces the concept’s origins in the Battle of Britain, evolving from early Defiant and Boston aircraft to the superior de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito FB VI and NF II by mid-1943, highlighting the squadrons’ exceptional ‘Battle Honours’ in defending Malta, supporting Sicily’s invasion, aiding the Dambusters’ Dortmund-Ems Canal raid, spearheading D-Day attacks, and countering V1 flying bombs under charismatic fighter ace leadership. Featuring vivid portrayals of the Mosquito’s beautifully balanced design, speed, firepower, and resilience that earned aircrew reverence, the book immerses readers in these high-stakes missions’ development, execution, and pivotal role in Allied victory.

The 272 page, hardcover title is currently available for pre-order with a March 30 release.

Product Page

Please Note: This post contains an Amazon affiliate link. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Posted on by

Eduard Releases New P-51B / C Birdcage Mustang Model Kit

New for January is Eduard’s Weekend Edition P-51B/ C Mustang (Birdcage Canopy) model kit in 1/48 scale.

The kit (84209) includes Eduard plastic parts and decals with marking options for four USAAF aircraft, including “Ding Hao!” of 354th FG / 9th AF, “Lambie II” of 487th FS / 352th FG / 8th AF, “Lady Beth III” of 307th FS / 31st FG / 15th AF and “Anvil Chorus III” of 26th FS / 51st FG.

Buy on eBay

Please Note: This post contains an eBay affiliate link. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Posted on by

MiniArt to Release New Thunderbolt Mk I Model Kit

MiniArt will soon release a new Thunderbolt Mk I Royal Air Force Basic Kit in 1/48 scale.

The offering (48033) represents P-47 aircraft in RAF service during WW2 and includes highly detailed plastic parts and marking options for two aircraft: “Desperate Dan” of 258 Squadron and “36” of 73 Operational Training Unit. The Basic Kit format offers a straightforward and enjoyable build while preserving accurate external features.

As of this writing, it appears a final release date has not yet been announced. Click below to check out additional images.

Continue reading MiniArt to Release New Thunderbolt Mk I Model Kit

Posted on by

The Navigator’s Letter: WWII’s Hidden Bond Ignited by One Doomed Flight

Soon to get its U.S. release is the new book The Navigator’s Letter: The True Story of Two WWII Airmen, a Doomed Mission, and the Woman Who Bound Them Together from author Jan Cress Dondi. The book deals with the costliest US air raid of WW2, which occurred over Hitler’s oil fields at Ploesti, Romania on August 1, 1943. It brings to light one of the best untold and dangerous stories of the war, chronicling a moving and heroic story of patriotic duty, familial bonds, brotherhood, and love.

A true story, The Navigator’s Letter is a tale of uncanny coincidences: two friends from the same small Illinois town; both joined the Air Corps; both became navigators; both were assigned to B-24 Liberators; both flew missions over Europe; both of their planes were forced down over Ploesti; and both went missing-in-action.

Intertwined with events of WWII, the story follows the two B-24 navigators coursing through wartime, both with ties to the same woman. Their lives unfurl with the Air Force’s darkest day, Operation Tidal Wave. It was the first-ever zero-altitude air raid, which lead to Operation Reunion, the largest evacuation by air in history repatriating 1,162 POWs from Romania back to American air bases in Italy.

The 400 page, hardcover book is currently available for pre-order with release scheduled for February 10.

Product Page

Please Note: This post contains an Amazon affiliate link. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Posted on by

First Look: DBMK’s 1/32 DH.103 Hornet Test Build

DBMK has released the first test build photos for their de Havilland DH.103 Hornet F.1/3 & PR.2 model in 1/32 scale. The company states:

The blitz build is done. We did this to test the construction of the kit. Got to love the Hornet – looks imposing in 1/32 it has to be said. No filler has been used and minimal clean up. The kit is low pressure/limited run so some clean up is required due to the technology. The canopy is high pressure though this was an early test shot prior to finalisation and polishing. Some issue have been identified in the order of construction so it should be easier next time (an example is the ram air intake closure flaps that should be fitted before the wings are joined together). We are sure that you will enjoy building this as much as we have!

As of this writing it appears that a final release date has not yet been announced. Click below to check out additional images.

Continue reading First Look: DBMK’s 1/32 DH.103 Hornet Test Build

Posted on by

IBG’s Upcoming Spitfire Mk Vb Has Two Full Models, 18 Liveries, Tons More

IBG Models has announced the upcoming release of a Black Box Limited Edition Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vb (North West Europe 1941-44) model kit in 1/72 scale.

The offering (72591) will contain two full model kits with two comprehensive sets of 3D printed upgrade parts as well as 18 unique, thoroughly researched marking options. The box will also include four fuselages and four sets of wing upper halves allowing builders to represent any two options of the Mk Vb they choose from the box.

Full list of Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vb – North West Europe 1941-44 – Black Box Limited Edition contents:
2x Complete Spitfire Mk Vb plastic model kits (each of them including two different fuselage versions and two different wing upper halves variants)
1x Huge decal sheet with 18(!) marking options (containing 42 roundels and 20 fin flashes to cater for the huge variety included in the box!)
2x 3D-printed cockpit structure insert (with/without additional armour and headrest)
2x Sets of 3D-printed wheels
2x Sets of 3D-printed exhausts (each of them in 4 different variants!)
2x 3D-printed seamless carburetor air intakes
10x 3D-printed rear view mirrors (5 variants, each in 2 copies)
6x 3D-printed gunsights (3 variants, each in 2 copies)
2x Photo-etched frames with some of the smaller details
2x Sets of the most thoroughly researched stencils ever prepared for a Spitfire Mk Vb model in any scale (with separate subsets for Supermarine, CBAF and Westland-produced machines)
2x Sets of painting masks
1x Special bonus

The kit is currently slated for release sometime during the second half of January.

(via IBG Models)

Posted on by

North American T-6G Project For Sale: “Complete, Crazy Low Price”

Please Note: This is an archived post. The information presented here may not be current and the associated listing may no longer be active.

A 1951 T-6G project has been spotted for sale. According to the listing, the project (rebuilt from a late‑1940s airframe) is a complete but accident‑damaged aircraft. It is equipped with a 600 hp Pratt & Whitney R‑1340‑AN‑1 radial showing about 610 hours since a 2007 Covington overhaul. It features intact dual cockpits, instruments, controls, left wing, tailcone, and much external markings, but with the right wing torn off in a takeoff‑roll runway excursion, associated fire damage under the right side of the fuselage, bent prop blades, wrinkled forward fuselage skins, canopy glass damage, and some gear and control‑surface wrinkling. It has continuous logbooks from its U.S. airworthiness certification in 1984 through a just‑expired annual (12/12/2024, expired 12/31/2025), and Spanish service history with missing Spanish logs. It is offered as a low‑priced project suitable for rebuild to flying or display status, a static or cockpit display, or as a valuable R‑1340 engine and parts donor,

The machine is currently available for US $9,950, although offers are also being accepted. It is stored at Airlake Airport (KLVN) south of Minneapolis with limited free storage and on‑site loading assistance available. Click here to check out the complete eBay listing, which includes many additional photos and details.

Please Note: This post contains an eBay affiliate link. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Posted on by

Coming Soon: The Full Story of the Luftwaffe’s WW2 Kamikaze Force

Coming soon from Fonthill Media and author Walter S. Zapotoczny is Sonderkommando Elbe: The Luftwaffe’s Kamikaze Force.

By September 1944 the Third Reich was under constant attack by Allied bombers and suffering an onslaught by the Red Army to the east. The Nazi high command struggled for ideas to reduce the effect of the ceaseless bombing and thereby create some breathing space to build and strengthen their new weapon: jet-propelled aircraft. They believed that this new invention could turn the tide of the war.

At the end of 1944 a proposal was offered by Oberst Hans-Joachim “Hajo” Herrmann. His plan called for 1,500 fighter aircraft to conduct a massive attack against an Allied bomber formation on April 7, 1945, inflicting such casualties that the Allies would think twice about continuing their bombing campaign. Attacking bombers was not a new idea, but the method of attack was new. The German pilots were to fly their planes into the bombers, causing enough damage to bring down the aircraft. Unlike the Japanese Kamikaze pilots who carried explosives on board and died in the attack, the German pilots were instructed to bail out and parachute to safety to fly another day.

The 224 page, hardcover book offers the full story of the unit and its pilots. The book is currently available for pre-order with release slated for March 30.

Product Page

Please Note: This post contains an Amazon affiliate link. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.