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Post by andym on Sept 14, 2019 21:19:26 GMT
This massive publication (624 pages) by Santiago Rivas (Crécy, 2019) must be the heaviest book in my library. There is a large chapter on pre-1940 aircraft, then each country is listed in its own chapter with comprehensive details of aircraft operated. Warbirds are also covered, as is the British presence in the Falklands. Finally, there is a 65-page Appendix covering the histories of the aircraft covered. I would say that in some cases it can be difficult to reconcile the information in the main body of the book with the information in the tables at the end - you will have seen my post to AB-IX regarding Argentine Avro 504s for example.
Some of this confusion can be put down to poor proof-reading. For example, the 12 Brazilian Navy Sopwith Snipes are authoritatively listed in both the main book and the Appendix as having serials 111 to 115, 121 to 124, and 131 to 133. There is one photo, which shows an aircraft with serial 125! Nevertheless, there is a lot of rarely-seen information here which the author should be congratulated for assembling.
I am not sure a true specialist would find much new information about his/her pet subject in this book, particularly regarding the "newer" types (Jet Provost, Canberra, Jaguar etc). For example, a quick check of the Venezuelan Jet Provost entry showed nothing to update what is readily available elsewhere with regard to the re-serialing process which took place in 1966.
All in all though I do recommend this book. It is packed full of information and photos, and is an interesting read, as well as being a useful reference which I am sure I will often pull off the shelf.
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Post by Stig Jarlevik on Sept 14, 2019 22:23:37 GMT
Andy
I agree
I have not had time to read the book though, but I must confess I find the layout somewhat puzzling. In the appendix I cannot find any good reason to separate the Argentinian Avro 504 for example.
Main problem, I would say, is that Hikoki seems to have an editor who is either twiddling his (her's?) thumbs or haven't a single clue about the subject in front of him/her.
I also must confess I think this has now become a major problem for many books I buy. Doesn't anyone read the stuff before it goes to the printer? I mean, the first thing I would ask myself when reading a book I was editing/publishing would be: 'Do I understand what this guy is writing?' If I don't I would ask some serious questions until I either understood the author had the answers (and corrected his manuscript) or, if he didn't have any answers, made that clear to his readers.
No answers to the puzzling Snipe 125 upside down. If 12 aircraft was the total number then the only suggestion I can make is that when s/n 112 was damaged it got a new number when repaired, 125. In the past it has always been listed as 112A....of course without any photo evidence....
Cheers
Stig
PS: I have some theories regarding the Argentinian Avro 504, but I was hoping someone else would stick his neck out for a change....
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Post by andym on Sept 29, 2019 18:32:41 GMT
A few more notes from the book:
Argentina
Walrus – loss date of 7-O-3 is given as 27Jul35 in text, but 22Jul35 in photo caption next to it!
Lincoln -
B-002 is ex RE349, not RE346
B-003 had no link to RE364!
Chile Navy
Avro 504N 75 – says lost 17Jul27 in text, 12Jul27 in Appendix
Chile Army
DH.9 – text says both 12 and 20 received
Vickers Wibault – text says both 26 and 27 received
Paraguay
Moth T-1 - loss date quoted as both 30Sep31 (appendix) and 30Sep32 (main text)
Peru
Avro 504K – the appendix only lists 101E and 104E with the E suffix, but there is a photo of 106E on page 80…..
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Post by andym on Dec 7, 2019 16:55:22 GMT
Some more notes:
Argentina
Canberra – different tie-ups are given for three of the aircraft.
B-106 is listed as WH727 – all previous sources say WJ609
B-107 is listed as WH875 – all previous sources say WH727
B-109 is listed as WJ609 – all previous sources say WH875
Dominican Republic
Vampire – text says Vampire 2726 was lost on 15Jun59, but there is a photo of it “with the paint scheme adopted in the mid-60s”
Ecuador
Strikemaster – text says 248 lost on 20Nov75, appendix says 10Nov75 – latter is correct I think.
Peru
Canberra – 254 is ex XM936, not XM964
257 is ex XM279, not XM278
Hunter – photo said to be of 132 is clearly of 143…
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