Series:

SMI

6 total works

Cover of Curtiss P-40 Warhawk

Curtiss P-40 Warhawk

by Tomasz Szlagor

Published 2 April 2015
Curtiss P-40, known to Americans as Warhawk, and to their allies of the British Commonwealth as Tomahawk and Kittyhawk, fought on nearly all fronts of the Second World War, serving with the American, British, Australian, New Zealand, South African, Canadian, Free French, Chinese, Dutch and Soviet air forces. The American Warhawks were part of as many as nine US Army Air Forces stationed overseas: the 5th (Australia, New Guinea, Philippines); the 6th (Central America); the 7th (central Pacific); the 9th (Middle East, North Africa), the 10th (India, Burma), the 11th (Alaska, Aleutians), the 12th (North Africa, Italy); the 13th (the Solomons); and the 14th (China). During the first years of the war the P-40 helped the Allies stem the offensive of the Axis powers and fight them back at the last-ditch defensive positions, like Kunming in China, Port Moresby on New Guinea, Darwin in Australia or El Alamein in Egypt. Never a high-performance fighter, it nonetheless proved a potent weapon in capable hands. Often turned into a fighter-bomber in later years, it soldiered on until phased out in favor of more advanced designs..

Cover of P-47 Thunderbolt with the Usaaf – European Theatre of Operations
The P-47 Thunderbolt was the largest, heaviest, and most expensive fighter aircraft in history to be powered by a single piston engine. Heavily armed with eight .50-caliber machine guns, four per wing when fully loaded, the P-47 weighed up to eight tons, and in the fighter-bomber ground attack roles could carry five inch rockets or a significant bomb load of 2,500 pounds; over half the weight the B-17 bomber could carry on long-range missions (although the B-17 had a far greater range).

The P-47 was one of the main United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) fighters of World War II, and served with other Allied air forces, notably those of France, Britain, and Russia. Mexican and Brazilian squadrons fighting alongside the U.S. were equipped with the P-47

This book contains invaluable information for the enthusiast and modeller, including many black and white photos never seen before, and highly detailed colour profiles.

Cover of P-47 Thunderbolt with the Usaaf in the Mto, Asia and Pacific
P-47 Thunderbot’s service outside western Europe, in three other major theaters of World War II – the Mediterranean, Asia and Pacific – although perhaps not as publicized, was no less colorful and varied, which makes it an excellent subject for a photo-story. During the long campaign in Italy, Thunderbolt was the best air interdiction aircraft the Allies had; pitted against German and Italian fighters, it proved more than a match. In the Pacific, Thunderbolt easily held its own against Japanese fighters over New Guinea, and later over Japan’s Home Islands. Armed with ‘fire bombs’, bazookas and other ordnance, it earned distinction as close air support aircraft during the invasion of Marianas. Also in China-Burma-India theater the P-47 excelled both as fighter and fighter-bomber, with the renowned Air Commandos, among other units.

Cover of P-51/F-6 Mustangs with the Usaaf – European Theater of Operations
The North American P-51 Mustang powered by the British-designed Rolls-Royce Merlin/Packard engine was, quite simply, the best long-range escort fighter of the World War Two era. Entering service in November 1943, it curtailed prohibitive losses suffered by the heavy bombers of the US Eight Army Air Force which carried out the strategic daylight bombing campaign against the Third Reich. In the European Theater of Operations the USAAF also deployed Mustangs, with great success, as free-ranging strafers, fighter-bombers, scouts and reconnaissance aircraft. Eventually, it was the P-51 that broke the backbone of the Luftwaffe.

Cover of P-51/F-6 Mustangs with Usaaf - in the Mto

Cover of Martin B-26 Marauder & Douglas A-26 Invader
About Scale Model International Library: SMIL contains many historical, often rare photos which were an inspiration for colourful schemes from many different views which you can find inside. For aviation, history enthusiasts and modelers alike.

In this volume from the SMIL series Kagero introduces the history of American medium bomber B-26 Marauder and its brother the A-26 Invader.

This fantastic new volume contains dozens of historical photos that show many details and interesting facets of planes used during World War II. There are also beautiful colour schemes made by Andrzej Sadlo, one of the best graphic artists in the world. Kagero show planes with most attractive paint schemes and nose-arts to offer the modeller a variety of interesting details to capture.

This Scale Model Library focuses on B-26 Marauder and A-26 Invader bombers which took part in air battles over Europe. The 88-page book contains 121 b&w photos, which are captioned in English and Polish. Nine planes are presented in colour profiles painted by Andrzej Sadło. Also attached is a decal sheet printed by Cartograf, which contains 1:72, 1:48 and 1:32 individual markings for the following planes depicted on the colour charts:

- B-26B-50-MA (s/n 42-95864) 'Valkyrie' coded '7I-B' of 497th BS / 344th BG;
- B-26B-15-MA (s/n 41-31608) 'Our Baby' coded 'AN-Q' of 553rd BS / 386th