The Fiat G.55 is one of those aircraft that you just like the first time you see it. It is sleek, unencumbered by wing pylons and the such, and looks fast sitting on the ground. All of that translated in to one of the finest Italian fighters of WWII. So versatile was the design that the G.55 was used as the basis for the G.59, a Merlin powered postwar trainer. Interestingly, the G.59 was generally a rebuilt G.55 airframe. There is only one G.55 still extant and that one was made by back-dating a G.59 airframe!

Maurizio Di Terlizzi is not exactly a household name in the US, but he has published a number of monographs. He is also a very accomplished modeler and it is that characteristic that makes his volumes so useful. Basically, his books are designed not as a general history of the aircraft, but to be an aid for modelers. This is quite apparent as one reads through his book. It is light on history, but heavy on details of the aircraft, including a number of profiles and closeup shots of the preserved aircraft.

So, you all want to know more about the book, eh? Well first of all, it is about the size of an Osprey book, about 7 x 9 1/2 inches, printed on a high quality semi-matte paper, is 64 pages in length, and is profusely illustrated with both b&w and color images.

The first thing you notice about opening the book is that it is in both Italian and English. There is a two column format on which the Italian is in the left column and the English part in the right. It really is not difficult to read, though it was obviously not translated by someone with English as their first language. This makes for some interesting sentence structure and word usage!

There are four major sections, an appendix, and a color matching chart.

The first section is a historical outline of the aircraft from prototype to final usage. The images used are all very good and clear, including a period color shot or two. Next is a technical description of the aircraft itself. This section uses a number of factory drawings and diagrams as well as close ups of various parts of the preserved G.55.

The third section is on coloring. This is the part that I like best as I have always maintained that my models are basically a canvas for a paint scheme! There are again, a number of period photos, some in color, as well as a nice selection of profiles showing the various color schemes applied to the G.55. The final section is probably the largest. This one is titled 'Modellistic Features'. Actually it is two very detailed kit reviews, again using drawings and period photographs to illustrate any modifications needed to make the kits more accurate.

The two kits chosen for the review are both Italian resin. One is the 1/72 MisterKit G.55 and the other is the RCR 1/48 G.55. There is some mention made of the Supermodel 1/72 and SMER 1/50 kits, but both are very old molds and not considered worthy. The appendix lists all available kits, detail sets and decals for the G.55 at the time of publication (1998).

Frankly, I didn't know what to expect from this book as I have not seen it anywhere in the US. However, after reading it, I am very enthusiastic about it. If you are modeling the G.55, you could not ask for a better guide. This book and other WW2 Italian AF subjects can be obtained direct from the importer at the link below.

Review copy courtesy of  the fine folks at Pacific Coast Models Inc.

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