Messerschmitt Me 262 Schwalbe Part 2 Book Review

By Michael Benolkin

Review

AJ Press has released part two of the Me 262 Schwalbe's history. This title is published in English throughout. In this volume, the author have focused on the special prototypes, night fighters and the advanced concept aircraft that were on the drawing boards.

Coverage begins with the special prototypes, like the research done on towed bombs, RATO take-off, and the rocket-boosted Me 262C. The next section looks into the Me 262B and its conversion into a radar-equipped night fighter.

Next up is a look at the operational history and effectiveness of the nachtjager Schwalbe before the end of the war, which segways the story into postwar collection and study of working examples by "Watson's Wizards" and in the hands of the various air forces' test establishments.

An nice walk around of the Me 262 is provided in black and white, including an amazing look at a surviving Me 262B night fighter at a South African air museum. A variety of color profiles are included representing many of the operational and test versions of the aircraft covered in this title. In addition, 1/72 scale line drawings illustrate the differences between the various night fighter, trainer and concept aircraft based upon the Me 262. A separate pull-out sheet contains several four-view drawings of the aircraft in 1/48 scale. Coverage concludes with a full-color walk around of that South African Me 262 night fighter.

I am a bit surprised with all of the excellent photos of the nachtjager that I haven't seen published before as well as the photos taken by the authors themselves. This title is a must-have for all aviation historians and modelers alike. You can find this title and many of the other titles from AJ Press at the Air Connection website ( www.airconnection.on.ca).

My sincere thanks to Air Connection for this review sample!