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Squadron/Signal Aircraft in Action #1025
P-38 LIGHTNING IN ACTION-AIRCRAFT NO. 25
11x8 1/4 format--Paperback with full color cover--49 pages--high quality glossy paper--black & white photos with 2 pages of color prints showing variations in decals and lettering specifics.
Paperback
First published October 1, 1979
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June 4, 2025
The P-38 Lightning came from Lockheed, a company that came to be known for aviation innovation. Faced with the long distances that bombers were going in the Wars in Spain and China- Kelly Johnson- the lead designer went with a two engine interceptor idea to muscle the beast to high speeds and ranges. The resulting bird was a classic American WWII fighter - perhaps the best of the first generation - only giving way to the later P-47 and P-51 as the war ended. This was the fighter that got Admiral Yamamoto on a long distance mission of all long distance missions. When this book came out in 1976 it was an amazing resource written by Gene B Stafford with a tonne of b/w photos with great captions and a wonderful center colour section with silhouette schemes by Squadron Signal Publications star artist Don Greer . Today the reader may well find the format dated and tire of the black and white photos- but back in the day- this was as good as it got.
Stafford is one of Squadron Signal Publications' top writers- and a veteran of Aerial picture books. We get the story of the development of the type with good shots of prototypes- and then into production and action. The P-38 is one of the few types to get both all natural shiny aluminum and American Olive Green finishes- so the book makes sure you get a lot of photos. The USAAF kept this type to itself- so there are no lend-lease pics. The P-38 fought in almost every US theatre, so there are a lot of cool pics from a lot of interesting places. I just began to feel the age of the book as page after page rolled by without any colour photos.
There are no adult themes and no graphic injury or combat passages, so this is a good book for the Junior Reader over 10/11 years. For the Gamer/Modeler/Military Enthusiast, the intended audience, this is still a useful resource, just not the godsend it used to be back in the day. The Modeler and Gamer will appreciate the graphic guides to different group markings- but will still tend to prefer more colour options. The Military Enthusiast will like the curated photo collection, a close up look at one of America's Iconic WWII weapons. It may be showing some age- but this book can still educate about America's WWII effort.
Stafford is one of Squadron Signal Publications' top writers- and a veteran of Aerial picture books. We get the story of the development of the type with good shots of prototypes- and then into production and action. The P-38 is one of the few types to get both all natural shiny aluminum and American Olive Green finishes- so the book makes sure you get a lot of photos. The USAAF kept this type to itself- so there are no lend-lease pics. The P-38 fought in almost every US theatre, so there are a lot of cool pics from a lot of interesting places. I just began to feel the age of the book as page after page rolled by without any colour photos.
There are no adult themes and no graphic injury or combat passages, so this is a good book for the Junior Reader over 10/11 years. For the Gamer/Modeler/Military Enthusiast, the intended audience, this is still a useful resource, just not the godsend it used to be back in the day. The Modeler and Gamer will appreciate the graphic guides to different group markings- but will still tend to prefer more colour options. The Military Enthusiast will like the curated photo collection, a close up look at one of America's Iconic WWII weapons. It may be showing some age- but this book can still educate about America's WWII effort.
Displaying 1 of 1 review