Zvezda ZVE6191

Building the Supermarine Spitfire The iconic Supermarine Spitfire, the most strategically important British single-seat fighter of World War II. The Spitfire, renowned for winning victory laurels in the Battle of Britain along with the Hawker Hurricane, served in every theatre of the War and was produced in more variants than any other British aircraft. The Spitfire was designed by Reginald Mitchell of Supermarine Ltd., in response to a 1934 Air Ministry specification calling for a high-performance fighter with an armament of eight wing-mounted 0.303-inch machine guns. The airplane was a direct descendant of a series of floatplanes designed by Mitchell to compete for the coveted Schneider Trophy in the 1920s. One of these racers, the S.6, set a world speed record of 357 miles per hour in 1929. Designed around a 1,000-horsepower, 12-cylinder, liquid-cooled Rolls-Royce PV-12 engine (later dubbed the Merlin), the Spitfire first flew in March 1935. It had superb performance and flight characteristics, and deliveries to operational Royal Air Force (RAF) squadrons commenced in the summer of 1938. A more radical design than the Hurricane, the Spitfire had a stressed-skin aluminum structure and a graceful elliptical wing with a thin airfoil that, in combination with the Merlin's efficient two-stage supercharger, gave it exceptional performance at high altitudes. The version of the Spitfire that fought in the Battle of Britain was powered by a Merlin engine. Faster than its formidable German opponent the Bf-109 at altitudes above 15,000 feet and just as manoeuvrable, Spitfires were sent by preference to engage German fighters while the slower Hurricanes went for the bombers. More Hurricanes than Spitfires served in the Battle of Britain, and they were credited with more 'kills,' but it can be argued that the Spitfire's superior high-altitude performance provided the margin of victory. Meanwhile, Supermarine was developing more-capable versions of the Spitfire driven by progressively more-powerful Merlin's. The eight 0.303-inch machine guns gave way to four 0.8-inch automatic cannons, and by war's end the Spitfire had been produced in more than 20 fighter versions alone, powered by Merlin's of up to 1,760 horsepower. Though outperformed by the German Fw-190 on that aircraft's introduction in 1941, the Spitfire restored parity the following year and eventually regained the advantage. It remained a first-line air-to-air fighter throughout the war. Spitfires were used in the defence of Malta, in North Africa and Italy, and, fitted with tail hooks and strengthened tail sections, as Seafires from Royal Navy aircraft carriers from June 1942. Spitfires helped to provide air superiority over the Sicily, Italy, and Normandy beachheads and served in the Far East from the spring of 1943. Fighter-bomber versions could carry a 250 or 500lb bomb beneath the fuselage and a 250-pound bomb under each win One of the Spitfire's most important contributions to Allied victory was as a photo-reconnaissance aircraft from early 1941. Superior high-altitude performance rendered it all but immune from interception, and the fuel tanks that replaced wing-mounted machine guns and ammunition bays gave it sufficient range to probe western Germany from British bases. n late 1943 Spitfires powered by Rolls-Royce Griffon engines developing as much as 2,050 horsepower began entering service. Capable of top speeds of 440 miles per hour and ceilings of 40,000 feet, these were used to shoot down V-1 'buzz bombs.' During World War II, Spitfires were exported in small numbers to Portugal, Turkey, and the Soviet Union, and they were flown by the U.S. Army Air Forces in Europe. When production ceased in 1947, 20,334 Spitfires of all versions had been produced, 2,053 of them Griffon-powered versions. Fighter versions of the Spitfire were withdrawn from RAF service during the early 1950s, while photo-reconnaissance Spitfires continued in service until 1954. In Model Aircraft 'Extra Special' #6, the biggest book of this series some 22`Spitfire build projects will be included, in a 'how-to' format, and continue this fantastic series modelling guides from MA Publications, the new name in scale modelling.

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Panavia Tornado ADV by Des Brennan The Tornado F.3 spent just over twenty-three years in frontline operational service with the Royal Air Force compared to a similar period for air-defence Phantoms, and twenty-eight years for the Lightning. While every operational Tornado F.3 unit bar 25 Squadron had been operating one of those aircraft types before transitioning to the F.3 only 29 (as OCU) and 11 Squadrons along with 1435 Flight would move forward from Tornado onto the Eurofighter Typhoon. And of them only the latter transitioned directly without a break in service. Its entry-to-service was not, just like many other types before and since, particularly smooth especially with regard to its Foxhunter radar, however once the initial problems were resolved it went on to possess and deliver an outstanding BVR CAP capability. It was not and was never intended to be one of the 'dogfighters' it was often erroneously compared with, and through the design compromise with the IDS variants was undeniably more suited to a low/mid-level environment. Despite this and with the ever growing constraints on RAF budgets and concomitant growing demands on the Tornado F.3 throughout its service, the skills and dedication of its air and ground crews along with the expertise of the British aviation industry ensured that the aircraft more than excelled in all that was asked of it. Perhaps most tellingly the Tornado F.3/ADV was taken into combat by all three operators, with the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia over Iraq and by the United Kingdom and Italy over the Balkans. In both theatres the opposing regimes had proven records of manipulating propaganda and were forever alert to exploit any imagined weakness as some armchair Air Marshals would have had the F.3/ADV to be. Yet while all three operators faced threats from ground defences, on not one occasion did any hostile force attempt get close enough to expose itself to the real and present threat posed by the Tornado F.3 ADV. This book is written by Des Brennan and is superbly illustrated by Richard J.Caruana.

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The Auster, In British Military & Foreign Air Arm Service. Author Adrian M Balch 64 pages, 15 pages of Colour Profiles Over 150 many never seen before images Stemming from the original American Taylorcraft design, the British Auster is arguably as well known and famous as the Tiger Moth, being built at the right time to provide a vital role during WW2 in the Air Observation Post role, spotting and reporting artillery positions, particularly during D-Day and through decades of post-war conflicts worldwide. Founded in 1938 at the Britannia Works, Thurmaston near Leicester, England, as Taylorcraft Aero-planes (England) Limited, they made 1,604 high-wing Taylorcraft Auster monoplanes which were built during World War II for the armed forces of the UK and Canada. The type has proved to be versatile and adaptable to worldwide conditions being fitted with wheels, floats or skis as per the Trans-Antarctic Expeditions, which are all recorded within. This is another comprehensive Warpaint book by Adrian Balch, which covers the design and de-velopment of the Auster, highlighting the variants that were used in military service by the RAF, Army Air Corps and air arms around the world, culminating in the variants built by BEAGLE. Nearly 150 photographs, many rare and never seen before, illustrate the type in military service, supported by 13 pages of colour profile drawings and plans by artist Sam Pearson.

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The Last Flight Of the L31. The true story of the Potters Bar Zeppelin (Albatros specials) On October 1 1916, the inhabitants of Potters Bar, Middlesex were witness to the fiery destruction of a raiding German Zeppelin that came down on the Oakmere Estate.All 19 crewmembers perished,including the airship's redoubtable commander Kapitanleutnant Heinrich Mathy. This evocative century-old event is now commemorated by Ray Rimell in this new book officially published on 1 October 2016; with the aid of many contemporary eyewitness accounts,plus official military records and personal family archives ,the author presents a fulsome account of the night's drama and traces the wartime career of L31's commander as never before. Including over 50 rare photos,together with specially- commissioned artwork and drawings ,Ray's unique account accurately records one of the most dramatic aerial encounters over British soil during 'The Great War.' Limited to 1000 copies,all individually numbered and signed by the author, advance copies are now available in limited numbers....

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