I though long ago that I had seen just about every picture of the World War I Albatros D.V and D.Va. Then Windsock comes along and publishes another Datafile that is jam packed with photos that I have not seen before and of aircraft markings that were new to me. This Datafile includes black and white photos taken during and after WWI and pictures of the two flyable aircraft built by The Vintage Aviator Ltd., as well as Albatros artifacts belonging to The Aero Conservancy (https://www.aeroconservancy.com/) here in the US. A narrative description of the process of building the two aircraft is included.

Lion Roar has been providing ship modelers with extensive sets of ship-specific photo etch for some time, and now offers generic railings for nearly any WWII era Japanese vessel. The package contains two identical sets of stainless steel rails, each containing three different types of rails. One type is the “drooping chain” type that is usually found on the main deck (as well as the second deck on battleships), and two types of “solid” rails usually found on the upper decks or superstructure. The solid rails are of a three-dimensional nature, requiring that the extra long stanchions be folded over themselves to provide supplemental, angled supports to each stanchion. This is a new twist that I’ve never seen this before on PE deck railings.

The Vought F8U-3 Crusader III was thought by some to be “the best fighter never produced.” The Crusader III was an evolution of the F8U-1 Crusader, with a larger fuselage, more pronounced air intake, and a more powerful propulsion system. It retained the variable-aspect wing found on the earlier aircraft.

The book follows the development of the Crusader III from conception to retirement. It is filled with period photos that would be invaluable to anyone wanting to replicate this aircraft. It also includes drawings that were used during the evaluation of the aircraft, comparing it to competitors’ aircraft, such as the F3H Demon.