Between April to October of 2018, several F-15Es from the 494^th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron (the "Panthers") deployed to an undisclosed location in the Middle East to support Coalition Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve, tasked with striking Islamic State targets in Iraq and Syria. While deployed, the Panthers completed nearly 2,000 missions, over 10,000 flying hours, employing more than 500 precision-guided munitions in support of US Central Command operations. On their return to Lakenheath at the end of the deployment, the aircraft were seen sporting some very striking nose art and mission markings.

Since 2001, TwoBobs decals has built up a reputation for high-quality, well-researched and detailed decal sheets with a focus on modern US aircraft. This decal sheet focuses on some of the more prominent Panthers from the OIR deployment.

The airframes on this sheet are:

This tome is the second in this new series, Single. This series format consists of a 4-view colour profile, scale plans, and photo details of a single variant; in this case the PZL P.11c. MMPBooks are distributed in North America by Casemate Publications. You won’t find an introduction or background summary, as this series dives straight into the drawings, illustrations, and photographs.

Artur Juszczak has illustrated over forty books for MMP. Some of these titles include the following: Boulton Paul Defiant (MMP Yellow 6117); Hurricane Ace Josef František: The True Story (MMP Blue 9); Henschel Hs 123 (MMP Orange 8114); and Fighters over France and Low Countries (MMP Red 4).

History

There were numerous experiments involving jet propulsion for aircraft just prior to the outbreak of World War II, with Germany, Britain, and Italy leading the way. The United States, the Soviet Union, and Japan were somewhat late in starting, but by the end of the war, only the Russians and the Japanese had failed to fly a jet powered prototype, and Germany, Britain, and the United States had begun to produce actual jet fighters, with Germany and Britain in the lead.

This text, the second in the series by Osprey, covers the Gloster, Heinkel, and Caproni prototypes. Osprey’s previous book, X-Planes, Luftwaffe Emergency Fighters, covers most of the Luftwaffe developments, although none of these types reached actual production.