Military Model Scene

Title: P-51 Mustang
Author: Robert Jackson & Lynn Ritger
Publisher: Pen & Sword
ISBN: 978-1-52675-990-0

We get to number 19 in the FlightCraft series from Pen & Sword and it tackles one of the most famous fighters of WW2, the North American P-51 Mustang. A 96-page soft-cover book, it is that bit bigger than other FlightCraft titles.
The book is split broadly into 3 sections, and the first and third each have their own sub-divisions. The first 50-pages tell the story of the real thing, a history which takes in the original development story and then a service history which extended well beyond the end of WW2. Service with the RAF, USAF, Poles, Chinese, and Koreans and later the Middle East with the Israeli Defence Force. The P of P-51 stood for Pursuit, only later was it changed to an F for Fighter. There are sections covering its' use as a Tactical and an Escort Fighter. While many will be familiar with its' role flying escort for the US 8th Air Force over Europe, it also includes how the Mustang, equipped with long-range fuel tanks was also used to escort B-29s on raids against mainland Japan from captured airfields on Iwo Jima. To this is added their post-war development and operational use. These elements are all well illustrated with archive photos
The second section holds 8-pages of excellent colour profiles illustrating 24 individual aircraft. All that leads into the third and final element of the book which moves on the the P-51 Mustang in Model Form. Accompanied by photos of some very well made models, it assesses a large number of kits of the Mustang which are available in different scales and from a fair number of manufacturers, which in turn reflects the popularity in modelling the Mustang. The manufacturers include Academy, Airfix, Monogram, Meng, Tamiya and more so if you are looking for some inspiration and some idea of which kit you would like to go for, then this is well worth checking out.
Another good addition to the FlightCraft series and one of the most popular model subjects I can think of. A good historical background coupled with a valuable overview of the quality of models you can get and the best one for the particular variant you are interested in. Easy to recommend.
Thanks to Pen & Sword for our review copy.

Robin