The Lockheed P-38 Lightning Book Review
By David L. Veres
| Date of Review | October 2022 | Title | The Lockheed P-38 Lightning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Author | Richard A. Franks | Publisher | Valiant Wings Publishing |
| Published | 2022 | ISBN | 978-1-912932-27-6 |
| Format | 256 pages, softcover | MSRP (BP) | £25.95 |
Review
You’re banished to the proverbial desert island. And you can only take one book on WWII’s swift, deadly P-38 Lightning.
Make it this one.
The Lockheed P-38 Lightning A Complete Guide to the “Fork-tailed Devil” – 19th in Valiant Wings’ outstanding “Airframe & Miniature” range – surveys the whole, spellbinding saga in 256 picture-packed pages.
Expertly authored and edited by Richard A. Franks, text deftly dissects all variants, including prototypes and derivatives. And format follows the publisher’s proven prescription.
The first 96 pages of “Airframe” chapters chronicle P-38 evolution, developments, international use, and camouflage & markings. Charting both wartime and postwar service, text also explores dedicated F-4 and F-5 photo-reconnaissance versions.
Dozens of color profiles and insets by Richard J. Caruana survey Lightning schemes. And an illuminating page features 1:72-scale plans with stencil placement specs.
Remaining “Miniature” sections showcase specially commissioned, step-by-step kit builds – including one of Anigrand Craftworks’ 1:72 XP-58 Chain Lightning – by Steve A. Evans, available models, scale specs, variant notes with 3D isometrics, close-up shots, and tech-manual excerpts.
I didn’t know that RS Models offer injection-molded, 1:72-scale kits of early P-322s!
My sincere thanks to Valiant Wings Publishing for this review copy.