Customer Reviews

Warplanes of the Luftwaffe: A Complete Guide to the Combat Aircraft of Hitler's Luftwaffe from 1939 to 1945

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
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For those looking for an indepth reference oriented book relating to the Luftwaffe of WWII, this is the book for you. The author provides a very thorough look into a wide array of aircraft (a/c), giving both a developmental history as well as a fairly indepth look at what specifically changed from variant to variant. The information provided is very detailed and well laid out. You will find various color drawings interlaced with actual photos. As well, many types include a detailed "transparent" which details the components of the a/c. The author has also included a very handy quick reference feature in the form of a chart which provides a snapshot of important characteristics of specific types. As an example, the chart for the Fw 190 includes a snapshot of some 50+ variants from the Fw 190 V1 to the Ta 153. In describing a given a/c, the author does a very good job of giving a well rounded view of the plane; what was good about it, and what wasn't. You won't find, however, pilot accounts or actual combat recollections. The book is very much reference oriented. Overall, an excellent addition to ones collection. Trevor Myler

Pros: Very complete, includes all the front-line types plus some of the most interesting
experimental planes. Interesting text, planes arranged in alphabetical order. Most
pictures in black and white, but it has many color side-drawings for camouflage
illustration. Many cutaway and double-page illustrations.

Cons: Would have liked it more if it had included all the
second-line types as well.

Hardcover, 253 pages, profusely illustrated. Reviewed by: Eduardo Ahumada M. Antofagasta-Chile.

... for aviation. The book is really beautifull. It is precise in it's descriptions, although not in-depth for all presented models. The aircraft described in the book all have reached the flying status, so experimentals built but not flown didn't make it in. You might miss some aircraft, I'm not an expert (yet), but it looks very complete. On the down side: The extensive use of pictures (some wartime color pictures too!) sometimes forces the accompanying descriptive texts to be placed in a chaotic manner. I Just can't get past those first pages, so much do I enjoy them. Yes, truly a work right from the heart...

I found this book to be the best refference I've come across regarding Luftwaffe aircraft. Very well researched with good photographs,provided appropriate detail and attention to each aircraft. One might be surprised that the Luftwaffe even possessed helicopters, along with some highly advanced rocket and jet aircraft. For example, there was even a prototype for a jet-powered flying wing, very similar to our B-2 stealth bomber! Highly recommended.

I'm no expert but I am familiar with most of the Luftwaffe planes and I can't seem to think of one that's not represented here. Represented is rather a weak term for what this book provides. 250 pages, most of them with at least two or three illustrations of the various types. Photographs, a few of them in color, color drawings including quite a few 'three views' (front-on, top down and profile) of the more important types. There are also about two dozen 'cut-away' diagrams showing the structural and internal components of the planes.

That's just the visual treats the book provides. The written descriptions give the required information - powerplant, dimensions, performance, armament, etc. Where there were prototypes, modifications and variants, details are also given. Of interest to me, and highlighted by the book, is the fact that much of the history of the Luftwaffe is also a story about designs and designers. Experimental designs were almost a rule rather than the exception. The great designers like Willy Messerschmitt, Ernest Heinkel and Claudius Dornier live on through their wonderful planes, even the great 'what might have beens' (Me 262, He 162, Arado 'Blitz' and my personal favorite, the revolutionary Do 335). All are beautifully depicted for us here.