"Aero
Detail No. 21 - Messerschmitt Bf 110"
by Shigeru Nohara and
Masato Tanaka
Dai Nippon Kaiga Co., Ltd.
| ISBN: | N/A |
| Review Type: | Book Review |
| Rating: | Highly Recommended |
S u m m a r y |
| Price: | 2600 Yen |
| Advantages: | Great coverage of last remaining Bf 110G; good mix of line art, some colour profiles, detail drawings and photos. All text is in both Japanese and English. |
| Disadvantages: | Less emphasis on early models (B-F) |
| Recommendation: | Highly recommended for any modeller contemplating a Bf 110G project |
T h e B o o k |
Many of you will already be familiar with the Aero Detail series of books. The format is
particularly helpful for modellers, with a combination of photos of surviving museum
aircraft, contemporary "in-action" pictures, colour schemes and excellent line
art illustrating details of the aircraft. A section at the back of each book provides
additional line-art illustrations of all the variants of the subject aircraft.
The focus of the series to date has been mainly single-seater fighters, but a few bombers have crept in over the last year or so. The twenty-first Aero Detail covers the Messerschmitt Bf 110. This is a particularly welcome volume (to me, anyway) as reference material on the Bf 110, although not rare, is hardly thick on the ground.
The Bf 110 earned a bad reputation during the Battle of Britain where it was decimated by Spitfires and Hurricanes. However, the Bf 110 continued to offer successful duty in other theatres and in other roles. The Bf 110 outlived both its successors (the Me 210 and Me 410) on the production lines, and saw service right to the end of the war. Its role as a night fighter was particularly crucial. This fine book provides coverage appropriate to this significant aircraft.
The 76 page book commences with 277 photos (over 49 pages) of the last remaining Bf 110 in the world. It is a Bf 110G-4, and is located at the RAF Museum. The photos cover every imaginable nook and cranny of the aircraft. This is followed by two pages of generic camouflage and marking patterns, and a single page with five single-side colour paintings of Bf 110 colour schemes. The "in-action" photos are not particularly unique, but the subsequent detail drawings and photos are excellent. Major variations of rudder, engine nacelle, supercharger intakes, radiators, exhaust, canopies, radar and armament are very clearly illustrated.
Scott T. Hards of Hobbylink Japan took most of the photos and wrote the English translation. His style is straightforward and easy to understand. Almost all of the Japanese text is also provided in English.
This is a terrific book about an interesting subject. The recent releases of kits in both 1/72 and 1/48 makes it even more relevant. If you only buy one reference on the Bf 110, buy this one!
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