Customer Reviews

Finnish Aces of World War 2 (Osprey Aircraft of the Aces No 23)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm sure that I'm not the only student of military and aerospace history that has had enough of the usual subjects: B-17s and P-51s of the 8th Air Force, the invasion of Normandy, panzers and their battles, and so on. What this books offers is information about an unusual subject: Finnish fighter aces in World War II.

To most readers, the Finnish-Russian battles are an obscure sideshow to World War II. Yet this was a fascinating theater of the war. Outnumbered and often with obsolescent aircraft, the Finns fought with bravery and skill. Warrant Officer Eino Juutilainen was the top Finnish ace, with 94 victories. This made him one of the top-scoring fighter aces of World War II, with other Finns also having impressive records.

The color plates are the highlight of Osprey publications, and the ones in this book are outstanding. They encompass both the aircraft and their pilots. The photographs are also good. The text is a little dry and there are too many typos. This is a minor point but does detract from the book. The only significant omission in the book is a map. I don't know the geography of Finland, I doubt that most other readers do either, and it is hard to follow the narrative without a map. Given the excellent maps in other books from this publisher, this is a big disappointment.

In summary, a decent book about an interesting and obscure subject.

This book is one of the Osprey Aviation Series. Osprey books are aimed at the model enthusiast and wargamer, with good photos, some color plates, and a concise overview of the subject. This volume is an excellent addition to the series. Well writtend accounts of the air war in the Winter, Continuation, and Lapland Wars are matched with the aces that flew in those campaigns. Appendices have the aces' scores sorted by aircraft flown, 1/72 scale line drawings, and thumbnail unit histories.

All in all, this book delivers exactly what it promises. Since the book concerns itself with aces, only the fighter arm is considered. Almost no mention is made of the recce, or bomber units in the Finnish AF at this time. If you are a modeler or wargamer and need details about aircraft camoflauge, uniforms, or air battles, this book is recommended.

Considering the lack of resources and the unenviable position of being almost cut off from the rest of Europe, the Finnish Air Force did a wonderful job of defending the airspace of Finland. This book is a fine testament to these wonderful people and the courage they exhibited. I find the shortcomings mentioned in the other reviews to be too harsh...this book is a find, an excellent resource and if you end up wanting a map of Finland, well get on the internet and do a little exploration.

'Finnish aces of WWII' is a truly great book to read. I was surprised to read that the Finnish were the second best fighter pilots in the world. Even though there wasn't very many Finnish aces, they were very skilled pilots. I found this book a pleasure to read.

In 1939, when the Russians were attacking Finland, the Finnish had obsolescent aircraft like the Buffalo, D.XXI and Gladiator. But they fought valiantly and many times won!
The Finnish had a cease-fire in March of 1940 when the USSR was plowing into the mainland of Finland. But in 1941 the Finnsh had a offensive to take ownership of their islands that Russia had taken on the cease-fire, but now using better aircraft, such as the H-75 Hawk, G.50 and Bf-109G, the Finnish pilots had complete air superiority.

The book brings first hand accounts, many pictures, color plates of planes and pilots, and lots of information on aces. The last 7 pages are encyclopedia on the Finnish aces.
On this book, Osprey delivers nothing less than a fantastic read! I recommend this book for anyone who wants to read about the infamous Finnish aces.
5 stars from me as always.