Brian R. Baker
Reviews By Author
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Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning IIPublished:
HistoryDesigned to replace such aircraft as the USAF F-16, A-10, the Navy’s F/A-18, and the Marine Corps ASV-8B STOL aircraft, Lockheed Martin’s Joint Strike Fighter was accepted by the armed services and three versions have been produced so far. Those versions are the USAF F-35A, the Marine Corps F-35B VTOL aircraft, and the Navy’s F-35C carrier fighter. A number of foreign countries have ordered the type. The Marine F-35B provides vertical as well as horizontal thrust. The F-35 is capable of several missions, including air superiority, ground attack, and interception duties. The Marine Corps unit VMFA-121 Green Knights was the first unit to receive F-35’s in 2012, and they have since been issued to USAF and Navy units. Currently, F-35A’s are being used as fighter trainers… more |
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Spotlight On Battle Of Britain DefendersPublished:
This issue of the Spotlight On series deals with the three major types of fighter used by the Royal Air Force against the Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain. The book is aimed primarily towards modelers who are interested in modeling the three major types used in that conflict, the Hurricane, Spitfire, and Defiant. The author begins with a one page summary of the battle, telling who was involved, and the types of aircraft used. The British, Canadians, New Zealanders, Australians, and South Africans are mentioned, along with the Poles, Czechs, and Belgians. Oddly, the Americans are not mentioned. The major feature of the book is the selection of color drawings of specific aircraft, including 20 Hurricanes, 12 Spitfires, and 2 Defiants in representative color schemes. Side… more |
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Polish Wings 29: Supermarine Spitfire V, Volume 1Published:
HistoryIn 1939, after the defeat of the Polish Air force by the Germans and the Russians, a substantial number of trained and experienced Polish pilots and ground crews managed to escape to France and England. Eventually, they were formed into fighter squadrons attached to, but not specifically a part of, the British Royal Air Force. Most of the pilots were originally assigned to units flying the Hawker Hurricane, but in 1941, these units were re-equipped with Spitfire Mk. V fighters, the current version of this famous fighter. From 1942 until early 1945, these units used Mk. V Spitfires against the Luftwaffe, until they were eventually replaced by the Spitfire Mk. IX and American Mustangs. In total, about 800 Spitfire Mk. V’s were used by various Polish units, and they… more |
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Tupolev Tu-2, Sukhoi UTB-2, Shcherbakov Shche-2, Polish Wings 28Published:
History: The TU-2 BomberThis book gives a very detailed history of three Russian designed aircraft that were used in quantity by the Polish Air Force, mostly after the end of World War II. The first aircraft, the Tupolev TU-2, was used in quantity by Poland, mainly for medium bombing, and later as a reconnaissance type, trainer, and target tug. The author goes into considerable detail giving an account of the design origins of the type and its service with the Russians before the Polish Air Force acquired them after the war. An interesting fact is that Tupolev began the design of the TU-2 before the outbreak of the war, and apparently he had run afoul of the Communist Party ideology. His design team was forced to work in a Soviet prison camp from 1939 until 1941, when they… more |
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Yugoslav Fighter Colors, 1918-1941 - Volume 1Published:
HistoryAfter World War I, the map of Eastern Europe was radically changed, with a number of ethnic groups becoming independent for the first time. One country, Serbia, eventually became part of the Republic of Yugoslavia, which joined the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes into one country. This, of course, forced considerable reorganization of their armed forces. Of course, Serbia has virtually no aircraft manufacturing industry, so the Yugoslavs were compelled to acquire airplanes of foreign manufacture, mainly those built in Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Italy, and England. German and Austrian aircraft were usually acquired as reparations due to the Treaty of Versailles, while the British, French, and Italian types were purchased directly. World War I vintage types were used… more |
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Morane Saulnier MS. 406, French, Polish, Finnish - Single No. 22/22APublished:
The BookThis book is part of a series that has recently become available, and covers one particular aircraft in great detail. It is aimed primarily at scale modelers, and provides enough information for a modeler to build a highly detailed model of this particular aircraft. All of the issue I have seen follow the same format, with a set of 1/72 and 1/48 line drawings of the aircraft, a series of black and white photos taken while the plane was in service, or just afterwards, a series of detail perspective drawings of various components of the aircraft, such as landing gear, cockpit details, structural features, and other items showing disassembled parts of the aircraft. In both volumes, there are two color photos of Finnish MS406’s dated 1942 and 1943, and at the end of each… more |
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Japan's Asian Allies, 1941-1945Published:
HistoryWhile the general course of World War II has been told and retold many times, some of the more obscure parts of the war have been largely ignored by historians, and this volume’s authors have made a great effort to rectify the situation. This book describes the situation in areas threatened and taken over by the Japanese at the beginning of World War II and explains how the Japanese attempted to make use of manpower in the conquered areas to assert control and defend against Allied attempts to retake these areas. Obviously, the areas Japan had acquired before Pearl Harbor, including parts of China and Manchuria which they renamed Manchukuo, had very diverse populations, with some openly hostile to other groups within the country. The Japanese objective was to… more |
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Lockheed T-33A Shooting StarPublished:
HistoryThe Lockheed T-33A, a two seat variant of the original Lockheed P/F-80 “Shooting Star” is perhaps one of the best known non-combat aircraft used by the U.S. Air Forces, along with the Navy, Marine Corps, and many foreign air forces. First developed in 1947, the prototype was a converted F-80C fighter with a two seat cockpit and deleted armament. First designated TF-80C, production began in 1949, and the type remained in production until 1959. Navy versions were called TV-2, and later T-33B. Nearly 6,000 were produced, and the type was also used by many foreign air forces, and was also built under license in Canada and Japan. They have since been replaced by the Northrop T-38 series, but many civilian licensed T-33’s are flown by wealthy warbird enthusiasts, and they… more |
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Fiat C.42 FalcoPublished:
HistoryThe 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 CR-42 was produced in… more |
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Fleet Air Arm Legends: Supermarine SeafirePublished:
Historical BackgroundNearly every historical modeler and historian is thoroughly familiar with the British Spitfire fighter, which probably did more to help the Royal Air Force achieve victory over the Luftwaffe than any other aircraft. However, less publicized is the role of the Spitfire as a naval, carrier-based fighter, replacing older types including the Gloster Gladiator biplane, Fairey Fulmar two seat fighter, and Sea Hurricane, which were in Royal Navy service at the beginning of the war. Looking back at the historical situation, it is understandable why the Royal Navy leaders wished to have an aerial superiority fighter for its carriers, and in the Spitfire, they felt they had a logical candidate. However, it didn’t turn out exactly as they had hoped, as a… more |