Dmitry Khazanov is a widely respected Russian researcher of Soviet aviation in World War 2. He is the author of more than 20 books and numerous articles about Soviet military aviation. Dmitry Khazanov, joined by co-author Aleksander Medved, and illustrators Jim Laurier, Gareth Hector, Andrey Yurgenson present a depiction of the each side’s aircraft and the environment they engaged each other in.

The Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter inflicted a tremendous beating on the VVS’ early Yakolev fighters early on, taking full advantage of Germany’s combat hardened pilots. Many of Germany’s scoring aces benefited from the Messerschmitt’s technical superiority over the overweight and underpowered Yak-1. Eventually the tide turned as the VVS gained experience, improved their tactics and upgraded their aircraft. Dmitry Khazanov paints a detailed portrait for mastery over the frozen skies of the Eastern Front between the Bf 109 and the Yakolev fighters.

Growing up along the Central Coast of California it was common to see Woodies for all types throughout town, at the car shows, school parking lots, and definitely at the beach. They were as familiar as the Volkswagen Vans and Chevrolet Corvairs. Not as frequent as Volkswagen Bugs or Ford Mustangs. I always thought of them as beatnik wagons as those that drove them seamed a little disheveled looking.

AMT Round 2’s re-release of the 1941 Ford Custom Woody is a valued addition for those modelers who prefer the quieter and more functional hot rods of the time. Face it, not too easy to haul 2 surf boards 30 miles up the coast to your favorite break in the back of a Ford 1929 T bucket. Panel wagons and Woodies were the main ride for the surfer beach bums of the 60’s and 70’s.

When the United States first started its bombing campaign in North Vietnam, it discovered that its ability to combat the sophisticated air defense system was very limited and early on it became apparent that the AGM-45 Shrike anti-radiation missile had a number of serious limitations, particularly in its range, small warhead and limited seeker. In effort to overcome some of these limitations, the Navy worked with General Dynamics to develop an air-launched version of the Navy’s RIM-66 Standard surface-to-air missile. By using an existing missile platform, development proceeded fairly quickly and the result was the AGM-78 Standard ARM (anti-radiation missile). Early versions of the AGM-78 were actually outfitted with the same seeker head as the Shrike, but as the Standard ARM had a much larger warhead, a larger engine and a gimbaled seeker head, it was more flexible and effective than the Shrike.