MMP Books seems to be on a campaign to provide camo and markings enthusiasts with a nice line of quality books on those air arms or subjects that have not been all that well covered. Finland got into the jet business as soon as finances would allow. Since the choices were fairly limited, they started off with something that was fairly easy to maintain and provided the service that they needed, which was the deHavilland Vampire.

As technology was advancing at quite a clip during the 1950s, once a plane was in service, it was time to start thinking about a replacement. This led to the Folland Gnat to replace the Vampire. Trainers were also deemed to be important and while some Vampire trainers were purchased, a major purchase was the Fouga Magister.

Finland was forbidden by treaty to have dedicated bombers, but the air force needed a large plane for target towing and other secondary tasks so bought a small number of IL-28, which were obsolete for their primary task at that time. This also led to a small purchase of MiG-15 UTI trainers and eventually to both the MiG-21F and MiG-21bis fighters.

During this time, the Magisters were replaced by Bae Hawks and the IL-28s by Lear 35s. The MiG-21s were supplemented by Saab Drakens and the most recent purchase to replace the MiGs and Drakens is the F-18C/D Hornet.

Camouflage for the most part consisted of silver or unpainted metal for some of the types with various camouflage schemes carried by the rest. The camouflaged schemes were, at time, not specifically Finnish shades but those the manufacturer thought was close. As Finland generally assembled the majority of an aircraft order locally, these off-tone schemes were usually quite limited. Of course, at the 21st century came around, greys took over with a reduction in both insignia and markings. Like all nations, there were some special paint schemes and other deviations from the norm, which is all covered.

A real plus is that Finland has always had quality photographers on hand to photograph their equipment, something that is very much appreciated by those researching subjects. In line with other books in the series, There are superb full page color profiles based on photos of the aircraft in question.

This is all put together in what is an outstanding reference and inspiration for the modeler. Like other books in this series, I can easily provide my highest recommendation.

February 2019