Gloster Javelin

Author: Richard Franks
Published: Dalrymple & Verdun Publishing
Price around £16.95 GBP
Soft back; 112 pages; mainly black and white images with some in colour; full colour (mostly all-aspect) profiles for the Gloster Javelin
ISBN 978-1-905414-02-1
Reviewed by Geoff Coughlin (Sep 2013)

Our thanks to Bill at DVP for supplying our review sample. Get this excellent title here now at: Dalrymple & Verdun Publishing

Introduction

This title was first published in 2006 and with the imminent release expected of the all-new tool Airfix Gloster javelin in 1:48 scale it seemed rude not to also bring you a review of this impressive title available from DVP.

The Gloster Javelin is the second in a series of detailed and well illustrated accounts of classic aircraft in service from the prototype to the few remaining preserved examples. This book contains over sixty-five specially commissioned accurate side, 4 view and squadron badge illustrations in full colour, with over 150 photographs in colour and black and white, many previously unpublished. A full listing of all airframes and their histories is also included.

This book is very welcome for scale modellers, not least because so little has been written about the type at all, even less from a scale modelling perspective. This title has now changed that. The whole text is profusely illustrated and because the aircraft date back to the early 1950’s some photos are necessarily in black and white. Several colour images are included though although colour really comes into its own with the inclusion of many all-aspect colour profiles towards the end of the book.

The profiles are inspirational and will give you plenty of scope for choosing an appropriate subject for your Gloster Javelin scale model. The release of the Airfix 1:48 scale kit will doubtless set a new standard for scale models of the type although few kits exist of the Javelin in any form (The Sky Guardians 1:72 kits come to mind…).

There are some fantastic images in the book that will prove invaluable for weathering your Javelin although from the photos in this book the type was clearly kept in pretty good order while in service.

The quality and colouration of the profiles is superb and add greatly to the buy-ability of this book.

Book structure

There are 7 chapters and 4 Appendices:

• Chapter 1 Deciding on the Delta – 8
• Chapter 2 Testing, spinning and super-stalling – 14
• Chapter 3 The ‘Flat-Iron’ goes into service – 22
• Chapter 4 The Javelin abroad – 42
• Chapter 5 Javelin Technical Description & Armament – 48
• Chapter 6 Projects, Proposals and Drawing Board Javelins – 66
• Chapter 7 Camouflage & Markings – 76
• Appendix I Technical Data – 98
• Appendix II Javelin Squadrons – 100
• Appendix III Javelin Production – 102
• Appendix IV Glossary and Bibliography – 111
• Index

Overall

Recommended
As I have said, there is so little relevant and useful scale modelling reference for the Gloster Javelin that this book is going to be a worthwhile addition to the reference library. If RAF Post-War military aviation is your area of interest, buy it! If you like the type, buy it! Basically just buy it! It offers excellent value for money and contains a wealth of useful scale modelling content.
Geoff C.