Swedish Fighter Colours 1925-1954
By Chris Banyai-Riepl
White (Rainbow) Series No 9117
Authors: Mikael Forslund & Thierry Vallet
Publisher: Mushroom Model Publications
ISBN: 978-83-61421-72-6
Binding: Hardcover
Pages: 264
As a long-time fan of the Swedish Air Force, when I heard this book was coming from Mushroom Model Publications I was excited to say the least. Now that it's here in hand, I can say that it lives up to the anticipation. The Swedish Air Force has had an interesting blend of indigenous designs and foreign aircraft throughout its history, and that eclectic mix is what initially attracted me to the Flygvapnet. This book covers just the fighter aircraft (denoted by the "J" prefix in the Swedish aircraft designations), and the cutoff of 1954 means that there are no jets in this title. Hopefully there will be a second volume covering the jets in the near future.
While many books on a nation's fighter colors talk about colors in general, the wide variety of Swedish Air Force aircraft from all over the world means that the colors are not homogenous. Therefore the book takes a detailed look at each aircraft and the colors worn by those specific planes. Thus the book begins with the first fighter, the J 1, and continues on through to the J 30. This is not a continuous list, as there are gaps, but overall there are sixteen aircraft covered, with several appendices completing the book.
J 1 Phönix D.II
J 2 Nieuport-Delage Ni-D 29
J 3 Fokker CV-D
J 4 Heinkel HD 19
J 5 Svenska Aero SA 11 Jaktfalken
J 6 SA 14 (ASJA) Jaktfalken
J 7 Bristol Bulldog II, IIa
J 8 Gloster Gladiator
J 9 Seversky EP-1-106 (P-35A)
J 10 Vultee 48C Vanguard
J 11 Fiat CR.42
J 20 Reggiane Re 2000
Saab J 21A
FFVS J 22
J 26 North American P-51 Mustang
J 30 de Havilland DH98 Mosquito NF Mk XIX
As you can see from this list, Sweden flew fighters from just about every major aircraft producing nation, including Germany, France, Britain, Italy, and the United States. Each aircraft is covered with a detailed operational history of the type in the Flygvapnet, followed by a table of individual aircraft histories (except for the J 10, which was never actually delivered). These aircraft histories are fascinating to read, especially during the wartime years, as Sweden remained neutral but routinely intercepted aircraft from both sides.
While the text is a good read, what really set this book apart are the visuals. The book is simply packed with incredible photographs, both color and black and white. There is extensive use of personal collections here, as well as museum collections, and the result is very likely the most thorough coverage of Swedish fighters in print today. Complementing the photos are the color profile illustrations, of which there are over eighty. These show not only the highly varied color schemes worn by Swedish fighters, but also many of the interesting unit and personal markings.
Overall, this book is excellent and I, for one, would love to see further expansion of Swedish Air Force coverage in this series. A second fighter volume covering the jets would be nice, and I would love to see one covering Swedish bombers and trainers as well. Many thanks to Mushroom Model Publications for this review copy.