One of the iconic fighter planes of WWII was the Luftwaffe's Bf-109 series. It was the early versions powered by the DB601 engine, the Bf-109E and Bf-109F that were operational during the the early years of the war and the planes that the Allies met over the battlefield, whether it be the front lines of Africa, Russia or Western Europe. These were the planes that also met the initial bombing raids of the RAF and the USAAF.

The 109 was the Luftwaffe's initial fighter of choice because it was easy to build, fast, and armed well enough to down enemy planes. It was not the most maneuverable aircraft around, having rather high stick forces at high speed, but despite its lack of maneuverability against the opposition, it was able to generally come out ahead in air combat. This was due as much to pilot skill and training as anything else.

This edition of Air Vanguard is a bit different than some of the others in that it is basically a diary of operations of the two types, starting with the beginning of the war and the 109E, going through Norway, Belgium, Netherlands and France, where the opposition was generally of types that were inferior to the 109E. It wasn't until the Battle of Britain that the Spitfire was encountered in any numbers as the RAF did not send any to France, relying on the still capable, but slower Hurricane as the RAF's contingent. It was the Battle that showed the 109s main weakness, and that was a lack of range. While drop tanks were developed, they were generally too late for the majority of engagements.

In 1941 the improved 109F started entering service and it was a more potent aircraft, seeing much of its action in Russia and North Africa. The E model was still being used in these theaters as well as in the Balkans, but its use outside of fighter bomber units was on the wane. Foreign use of the 109E is also covered in this volume as Axis partners flew both it and later the F, mostly on the Eastern Front. With the introduction of the G and its great weight as well as more powerful engine in 1942, the F was soon relegated to second line duties as well.

The author has done a fine job of telling the story of these two planes and the inclusion of some fine period photos and some nice artwork really adds to this volume. The author also made some interesting comments outside the realms of this book when he went on to tell a bit more about later 109 versions and stated that both the 109K-6 and 109K-14 saw action in the later days of the war. This raised my eyebrows as I had read in many sources that the K-6 never saw operational use and the K-14 never got beyond the drawing board. The author also states that the apparently never-photographed Bf-109H was built in small numbers and saw operational service in high altitude recon.

In all, it is a very nicely done book that reads well. It is a book that I enjoyed reading and one that I can easily recommend to you.

September 2015

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