Luftwaffe in Colour Volume 2: From Glory to Defeat 1942-1945

Eighty years after its creation, the Luftwaffe is still one of the most fascinating forces in the history of aviation. A companion to Luftwaffe in Colour Volume 1, which covered the victory years from 1939 up to Spring 1942, this volume with nearly 400 images contains even more fascinating material on the machines of the Luftwaffe and the men who flew them, as their fate took an increasingly grim path. Initially the Luftwaffe ruled the skies but thereafter fought an increasingly futile war of attrition which when combined with vital strategic mistakes in aircraft production, was its death knell. Despite this the Luftwaffe produced the most successful air aces of all time who feature in this volume. Among many remarkable images we see one of the last Junkers 87 B-2 operational on the front line on the Eastern Front during the winter of 1942-1943, the huge BV 222 V-5 of Lufttransportstaffel in the port of Heraklion in late 1942, pilots in Tunisia in 1943, the aces Hans Philipp, Wolfgang Spate and Heinz Schnaufer and a vivid demonstration of the reversal in fortunes in 1944 as Allied bombers destroy 106 places, engulfing them in fire at Schwabisch-Hall on German soil.In this painstakingly pieced together collection, originally published in France, the full detail behind the propaganda is once more revealed, in rare colour photographs. AUTHORS: Jean-Louis Roba, who lives in Belgium, is a well-respected World War II aviation historian who has worked on numerous books and magazine articles for the leading French military aviation publisher, Lela Press. He is the co-author of Luftwaffe in Colour Volume 1: The Victory Years 1939-1942. Christophe Cony who lives in France is a well-respected World War II aviation historian who has worked on numerous books and magazine articles for the leading French military aviation publisher, Lela Press. He is the co-author of Luftwaffe in Colour Volume 1: The Victory Years 1939-1942.

About the Author :
Jean-Louis Roba, who lives in Belgium, is a well-respected World War II aviation historian who has worked on numerous books and magazine articles for the leading French military aviation publisher, Lela Press. He is the co-author of Luftwaffe in Colour Volume 1: The Victory Years 1939-1942. Christophe Cony who lives in France is a well-respected World War II aviation historian who has worked on numerous books and magazine articles for the leading French military aviation publisher, Lela Press. He is the co-author of Luftwaffe in Colour Volume 1: The Victory Years 1939-1942.

Review :
All in all there is just so much in here that I think anyone with an interest in the wartime Luftwaffe, historian and modeller, there will be lots to like in this one. Over 400 striking images, each placed in context with a descriptive caption, fill this fascinating compendium… Luftwaffe in Colour will appeal to military historians and lay readers alike, and is a choice pick for public and college library collections. Also highly recommended is the companion volume, "Luftwaffe in Color: The Victory Years 1939-1942. Together they make an excellent pair, with plenty of reference material, plus a good read to be had in-between. The quality of the pictures in some cases gives the impression that they could have been taken yesterday. Any photo book stands or falls on the quality of photo reproduction and fortunately here not only is the standard very high but the quality of 90% of the images is very good indeed while each picture is informatively and expertly captioned. Once again, a volume to keep close to hand for reference, to dip into constantly. Especially high quality captions with each and every photograph that really add to the value of this book...provides some great diorama ideas. The authors have done an outstanding job. Both volumes are a fantastic addition to your aviation library. The reproduction quality is superb...these two are up there with the best. These books are superb modelling references...If like us you're a sucker for colour WWII photographs these books are superb value. This is a superb little book…will particularly appeal to modellers as its photographs tell much more than could be gleaned from black and white imagery. Interesting as it groups a large collection of colour pictures of the men and planes of the Luftwaffe. Some are not so well known, and this makes it surely worthy of inclusion to your collection, as a quick reference, a sample of Luftwaffe camouflage colours or a modellers source of inspiration. A brilliant collection of colour photos of the Luftwaffe in the later years of WWII." Listed in Military History Monthly's round up of the best military history titles for October 2017. This book is not only a valuable historical took for WWII historians but also essential for modelers who want to make their scale paint schemes as accurate as possible. The photographs in this book make it a very useful reference for both aircraft enthusiasts and modellers, but this usefulness is magnified by the fact that the photos are in colour. Highly recommended.