The B-25 Mitchell is one of America's iconic medium bombers. Brought to fame in the daring Doolittle raid of early 1942, it went on to be a major force in the USAAF's medium bomber force in North Africa, the Pacific, the CBI, and the European theaters of operations. It was also sent as lend lease to the Soviet Union as well as Britain and Commonwealth forces.

The Mitchell had its gestation as the NA-40 a competitor to the Douglas A-20 and while it did not win the competition, it was soon developed into a most potent medium bomber, capable of carrying 3,000 pounds of bombs a minimum of 1,300 miles (different variations had even greater range). In its use in the Pacific, the Mitchell was soon turned into a very potent gunship. It was found that most Japanese targets were small enough so that concentrated machine gun fire was enough to do the job. Later, two dedicated 75mm cannon armed variants were developed that provided even more punch. 

As a plane that was ordered before the first aircraft flew, the B-25 was relatively trouble-free, though small changes in the airframe were constantly made as war experience dictated a need for the addition or removal of equipment. Even after it was no longer considered a viable weapon, it was converted to a trainer or VIP aircraft and used in a variety of tasks well into the 1950s.

In this book by David Doyle,  we go from the inception of the aircraft, through the initial versions, to early unit operations, to full deployment and the final variants. All the while, showing the changes between versions and any specialty aircraft developed from the base airframe. I found that the majority of the coverage was on the early types up through the B-25C/D. The latter third of the book concentrates on the B-25G and B-25H gunships with the most produced variant, the B-25J getting in on the last ten of 72 pages. The book also covers the US Navy's PBJ versions; the majority of which went to the US Marines for use in island support campaigns.One thing that delighted me was the goodly number of images that were new to me. Always a nice treat.

Considering the era in which this plane flew, there are a considerable number of color photos as well as the usual excellent choice of B&W photos and well drawn color profiles. It is a book that you will be going over again and again, not only just to browse, but to use for references for model building. It is a book that I can quite easily give my highest recommendation. Grab yours while the getting is good.

April 2011

Thanks to Squadron Products for the review book. Get yours at your local shop today.

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