Swedish Bomber Colours 1924-1958 Book Review

By David L. Veres

Review

Christmas came early this year with MMP’s lavishly illustrated account of Swedish Bomber Colours 1924-1958 – available in North America from Casemate.

Mikael Forslund’s 296-page effort chronologically divides by subject into ten, picture-packed parts. And each section surveys the design, development, deployment, and disposition of a single type in Swedish service:

• B 1 – FIAT BR
• B 2 – FIAT BR 1
• B 3 – Junkers Ju 86K
• S 7/B 4, S 7A/B 4A, B 4B Hawker Hart
• B 5 – Northrop 8A-1
• B 6 – Seversky/Republic 2PA Model 204 Guardsman
• B 7 – Fokker G.1B
• B 16A – Caproni Ca 313 R.P.B/S
• B 17 – SAAB 17
• B 18 – SAAB 18

Coverage includes testing notes, action accounts, personal commentary, and attrition rates. Tables and charts also recap technical data and performance characteristics – as well as individual aircraft serials with corresponding unit codes, service dates, and remarks.

Experiments and variants abound. How about that dorsal 20 mm canon turret installed on a B 3 (Ju 86K-1)? And how about that Seversky J 9 fighter-type camouflage applied to another Junkers?

Try those on Italeri’s classic 1:72 Ju 86 kit!

Nor must you sequentially tackle this terrific tome. I metaphorically meandered from the Caproni Ca 313 and Junkers Ju 86K through the SAAB 17 and 18 to the Northrop 8A-1, Seversky 2PA Guardsman, and Fokker G.1B – then to the rest.

But this remains, nominally at least, a commentary on “colors”. And every part includes remarks on insignia, codes, badges, and personal markings – often with dimensions and specifications.

Warpaint notes survey official schemes and variations – the latter including temporary winter finishes. And color and camouflage coverage references Swedish, US Federal Standard, RLM, and Italian standards.

Oh, yes … it’s from MMP. So hundreds of photos, detail shots, and extended, explanatory captions augment text. Prepare for plenty of eye candy.

Gripes?

Why no Caproni 313 profile with Sweden’s unique version of Italian camouflage? Why make lengthy, continuous quotations confusingly indistinguishable from main text? And isn’t a “95 degree dive angle” inverted flight?

But I quibble.

MMP has forged brilliant repute with groundbreaking studies like this. Make it your introduction to this facet of neutral Sweden’s absorbing aviation history.

Just as importantly, read it in concert with Forslund’s magnificent monographs on Swedish Fighter Colours: 1925-1954 (White Series, No. 9117) and Swedish Jet Fighter Colours (White Series, No. 9135) – also from MMP.

Now, PLEASE, where can I get a DVD of Första Divisionen???

With thanks to MMP for the review copy.