This book covers the navalized Bf-109 variant; the Bf-109T or “Toni” as it was called by her pilots. There are three main chapters which cover everything from design through its combat history. There are not many books covering the 109T (long out of print ‘Sea Eagles’ is the only one that comes to mind) so this is a most welcome addition.

The need for the Bf-109T was linked hand in hand with the building of Nazi Germany’s only aircraft carrier; the “Graf Zeppelin”! This ship had many trials and tribulations during its build and these only further muddied the 109T’s development.

A Brief History

When first produced, the Vickers-Armstrong “6 ton” light tank could not find acceptance with the British Army because the 2 small turrets on the tank were fitted with machine guns only. The tank was later modified into the “B” version that had a 47mm gun and the turret was moved to the right side due to traffic in England being left-sided.

The Model

Upon opening the kit box, there are 12 sprue trees in a bag, some vinyl treads and a small decal sheet. The smaller parts trees are lettered with numbered parts. The largest tree is not lettered but the parts are numbered. There is no parts layout diagram. Marking options are for a Mk. F and B version in Bulgarian Army colors, 1938, in what looks like Panzer gray or a Mk. F version for a British Army training unit, 1939, in a dark earth color. There appears to be no decals for the British version but turret decals are provided for the Bulgarian version.

Before World War II started, Germany had already begun to investigate the feasibility of putting infantry support guns under armor and giving them cross-country mobility, providing heavy fire support to infantry units during the advance. This led to the line of vehicles collectively known as Sturmgeschutz. Built on converted Panzer III chassis, they were produced in ever increasing numbers right up to the end of the war. Continuous up-grades were made as their roles evolved. Originally envisioned to provide on-call, organic fire support to infantry units during the assault, they became premier tank killers of the German armored forces by the end of hostilities.