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Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$108.00

Before I begin this review I think it is important to know that I flew Cobras in the Army and now fly them with the Army Aviation Heritage Foundation, so I am intimately familiar with them. So I tend to be a little bit of a nit picker or rivet counter when it comes to Cobras. Please forgive me.

When ICM released the AH-1G Cobra in 1/32nd scale there was much rejoicing in the helicopter modeling world. We had waited so long for a replacement for the venerable Revell AH-1G. The Revell kit was released in 1968 and it was very basic. Accurate in outline but lacking in any detail. It needed lots of aftermarket to bring it up to speed. Would ICM be better? Oh heck yeah.

Book Author(s)
Ken Conboy
Review Author
David Horn
Published on
Company
Helion & Company
MSRP
$29.95

“The Erawan War, The CIA Paramilitary Campaign in Laos, 1961-1969” is volume one of a two volume set. The second volume covers the years 1969 through 1974. The book starts out by setting the stage in 1960 where Laos was a neutral buffer zone between communist and western nations. With a near bloodless coup in Laos, the need of an intervention by the CIA to aid rebels was needed. This book covers the timeline and details of the CIA in Laos for most of the Vietnam conflict. Participants or groups are listed in the text and in an abbreviations section which include the anti-Communist “Royalist Armed Forces” (FAR), Peoples Army of Vietnam (PAVN), Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and “Air America”.

Book Author(s)
Mark Proulx
Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
Eagle Editions Ltd.
MSRP
$24.95

Eagle Editions is synonymous with Luftwaffe subjects so it comes as no surprise that their latest book in the Wings of the Black Cross series is an airplane that just evokes memories of the Luftwaffe, the iconic Ju-87 Stuka. The name and the noise of the airplane became a symbol for Luftwaffe dominance of the air in the early part of the war. By the Battle of Britain, it was grossly outclassed and obsolete, yet is soldiered on until the very end of the war.

Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
Scale Aircraft Conversions
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$18.95

Having built two of the ICM 1/32nd scale Cobras I can tell you that the mounting point is a fragile joint. On my first one I broke it off twice and had to pin and glue it back on. It was frustrating as it was near the end of the build.

Well SAC has taken that frustration out of the equation. Inside their typical blister pack are two white metal landing gear and four parts for the ground handling wheels. Mine were perfectly cast and were exact replicas of the kit landing gear, but stronger. This set has the aerodynamic fairings installed on Vietnam era Cobras. These fairings were later removed and the round crosstubes remained.

Book Author(s)
Witold Koszela
Review Author
Luke R. Bucci, PhD
Published on
Company
Kagero Publishing
MSRP
$24.95

Thanks to Casemate Publishing & IPMSUSA for the review copy!

Kagero Publishing, from Poland, extends their Top Drawings Series with No. 116, the French Marine Nationale aircraft carrier Clemenceau (le Clem). She was placed into service in 1961, incorporating the latest advances in aircraft carrier technology. She and her sister ship, Foch, were active for more than 40 years, forming the backbone of French military power projection. The TopDrawings series is designed for modelers to have a reference for detailed appearances of individual ships and aircraft. TopDrawings consist of color covers with black & white (B&W) line drawings of the ship, particular features, and equipment, especially armament (including aircraft). But the main attraction is the separate, large foldout of B&W scale drawings – 1/400 in this book, to match existing model kits.