F-15 Eagle Walk Around

By Lou Drendel

Color by Lou Drendel & Don Greer
Illustrated by Andrew Probert

Squadron/Signal Publications

Reviewed by Brett Green

F-15 Eagle Walk Around is available online from Squadron.com

Squadron/Signal's F-15 Walk Around provides excellent photo coverage of F-15 details, variants, ordnance and camouflage schemes. 

This book follows the familiar Squadron Walk Around formula. Its soft cardboard covers contain 80 pages in landscape format. The book presents two pages in black-and-white, then two in colour, for the whole book. It is packed full of relevant and well captioned photographs. The 40 full-colour pages are used to good effect with many detail and operational photos, nice colour profiles and detail illustrations. 

Conversely, it should be pointed out that this book does not (nor does it claim to) provide any detailed history, operational or technical information beyond the text of the captions. However, the captions are very informative. This is to be expected when it is supplied by well-known aviation author Lou Drendel.

The contents are organised in chronological order. Coverage commences with the F-15A, to the two-seater "B", the upgraded single-seater "C",  the F-15D trainer and F-15E Strike Eagle. The biggest percentage of the book is reserved for the F-15C. 36 pages of detail photos and line drawings leave little to the imagination. The F-15E also receives great coverage, with 22 pages devoted to this variant.

The author shares the credit with Don Greer for the cover art and profiles. Despite the relentlessly grey camouflage of USAF Eagles, the twelve profiles and two plates on the covers manage to convey variety and interest. The profiles include top views to illustrate camouflage schemes, and the F-15I Ra'am profile adds a little colour to the expanse of grey. 

For reasons I do not entirely understand, the single-seat F-15A/C Eagle does not seem to grab the attention of today's modeller despite the wide availability of the Hasegawa's very respectable kit and various accessories.

Squadron/Signal's F-15 Walk Around might provide the inspiration for modellers to take another look at this model, not to mention the big 1/32 scale F-15C and E kits from Tamiya. The timing of this book for the F-15E Strike Eagle is especially good, with two recent 1/48 scale boxings under release from Revell.

In fact, this book has proven to be an expensive review sample for me. After leafing through the book I was inspired to go out and buy the Hasegawa's 1/48 scale F-15C, the Black Box cockpit and a set of SuperScale decals. Furthermore, I don't know if I can hold out against the Revell Strike Eagle for much longer!

This book maintains the high standard of Squadron's Walk Around series. Its detailed photos and expert captions will make this latest title a useful companion to modellers of the F-15A, C and E variants in particular. 

Recommended.

Thanks to Squadron for the review sample.

Review Copyright © 2001 by Brett Green
This Page Created on 16 November, 2001
Last updated 22 July, 2003

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