History

The Fiat CR-42 was a development of the CR-32 biplane fighter designed by the noted Italian designer Celistino Rosatelli. It first appeared in 1938, and featured an 846 hp. Fiat A.74 radial engine and a “warren truss” wing strut arrangement instead of the usual biplane arrangement. The plane was all metal with mostly fabric covering, and was armed with two 12.7 mm Breda SAFAT machine guns firing through the propeller arc. The idea was to produce a fast, light, highly maneuverable fighter that coupe compete with the monoplane fighters then being produced by other European countries. It was better than nearly all of the biplanes then in service, but of course was outclassed by the more modern monoplane fighters then being introduced.

The first flight of the famous C-130 “Hercules” turboprop aircraft was on August 23, 1954, with the first production C-130 making its maiden flight on April 7, 1955. The aircraft has been in continuous production since, with over 2500 manufactured to date.

Written by Robert Pied and Nicolas Deboeck, this incredible book is an invaluable resource for modelers. Its 196 pages with over 550 photos show the C-130 in incredible detail. Photos of the interiors of the wheel wells, many open panels, and interior photos that show parts of the “Herk” that, until now, mostly maintainers saw. I was a maintainer (also known as a “Crew Chief”) who worked on C-130 “Herks” for over 25 years, and this book brought back many memories.

Saab has a long history of producing excellent fighter aircraft that are often at the leading edge of technology. The AJ 37 Viggen is a prime example of that legacy. Pied and Deboeck tell the story of this potent fighter through pictures and their associated captions. This book is part of HMH’s “Aircraft In Detail” series that is now up to a dozen volumes of front line fighter aircraft with the exception being one about the C-130. Most of the photos are of the two Viggens flying with the Swedish Air Force Historic Flight.

The AJ 37 entered operational service with the Swedish Air Force in 1971 as an attack fighter with the photo-recce version, the SF 37, following in 1973. A more advanced interceptor version, the JA 37, was delivered to the Air Force in 1974. The Viggen’s 2-seater was the flight trainer version, the SF 37. 2007 saw the last of the 329 multi-purpose fighters retire from operational service.