It used to be that mechanized armies relied on wheeled vehicles to perform the scouting task. Often these vehicles were armored cars with all the major powers operating these sorts of vehicles in this role. They were generally lightly armed and lightly armored as they were expected to meet little more than small arms fire.

These vehicles were wheeled as that method allowed fairly high speed, something important for a scouting vehicle. However, they were not able to handle off road situations well, especially if the terrain was rough or wet. For that, you needed a tracked vehicle. In the UK it was realized this sort of vehicle was the way to go and though post war developments like the Ferret and Saladin armored cars were fairly successful, there was the usual requests for designs to meet the CVR(T) (Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked) requirement. This was met by Alvis and evolved into a number of different vehicles based on the same platform. This included the Scorpion, Scimitar, Samaritan, Sultan and Spartan.

This book concentrates on the Scorpion and Scimitar which differed basically by armament. There is a background section which flows into a description of the two vehicles along with the various modifications made. There is a short details section before getting into the foreign use of the vehicle. Then the various conflicts where these vehicles were operating. There is also the usual section of color profiles based on photographs. As with all of these books, there is a fairly large modeling section. All of the build articles use the AFV Club kit. There is also a considerable part of this that covers smaller scale kits (of which there are not may) as well as a fairly good selection of aftermarket items.

This is a nice addition to the series and is the type of book to appeal to enthusiasts and modelers alike. Well worth picking up. 

May 2022

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