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Product Description
Product Description
This the first of a comprehensive three-volume reference book on the iconic Focke Wulf FW190 - arguably the finest fighter aircraft of World War 2. The books are the product of years of research by two of the leading experts into this complex aircraft to produce the complete work on the FW190. Each volume contains some 400 photographs including those showing factory and manufacturing, close ups of weapons and equipment and operational units as well as numerous facsimiles of Focke-Wulf handbook drawings. Colour artwork will also be included, plus an extensive selection of original manufacturer's technical drawings. When it first appeared in the in the skies over France in late 1941, the pugnacious, radial-engined Focke-Wulf Fw 190 represented a formidable and ominous foe to the RAF. Despite initial technical problems with the engine, as well as with the ailerons, elevators and undercarriage on the early A-1 and A-2 variants, the Fw 190 soon proved itself as a dependable fighter aircraft. The aircraft's considerable armament package blended with manoeuvreability on the ground pleased pilots; the wide undercarriage track of the Fw 190 was an improvement over the Bf 109F, as was the air-cooled engine technology. By June 1942, some 250 Fw 190s were operational in the West. This was a shock to the Allies and provided a new dimension to air combat on the Western Front . The encounters with the USAAF's heavy bombers which would follow over the next three years between the B-17 and the Fw 190 would form some of the most titanic and bitter contests of the air war. Meanwhile, the Eastern Front provided the German fighter force with an abundance of targets and quickly, the Fw 190 known as the Butcher Bird - proved to be the best piston-engined fighter of the war. Many German aces were created flying the Fw 190. Flying over extensive distances often in extreme weather conditions, the Fw 190 also excelled in the ground-attack role, inflicting devastating destruction and damage to Soviet armour and ground defences. This new volume is in the large hardback Classic format, densely packed and illustrated, representing a one-stop reference work to be used by enthusiasts and modellers for easy access to information on the FW190.
About the Author
J. Richard Smith and Eddie J. Creek have been researching Luftwaffe aircraft for over 40 years, publishing their first book, German Aircraft of the Second World War, in 1972. After retiring as an architect in 1991, Eddie established Classic Publications with Robert Forsyth. He again co-operated with Richard Smith in the production of an acclaimed four-volume history of the Me 262, published by Classic, and this was followed by several volumes on the Luftwaffe fighter and bomber units and their markings for Classic.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I ordered this book when it became available on pre-order based on the strength the Author's Me-262 books. This new FW-190 book is simply superb. Some will compare it to Jerry Crandall's FW 190 books but this different, giving more detail on the design and development of the 190. Some of the photos have been seen before but there is a lot of new stuff too and it is all very nicely reproduced in print. There are also high quality colour artworks which would not look out of place in Jerry Crandall's books.
This is an essential reference work for all Luftwaffe aviation enthusiasts and modellers, I cant wait for the next two volumes and hope that there is enough enthusiasm from the readers to persuade the authors to produce the hoped for 4th volume in the future.
It was interesting to read the reviews from the States where a number of copies had been damaged in transit. My inital copy was also ruined in transit, it was bent and creased which takes some doing to a hardback book. Amazon replaced it with a new copy and this one arrived fine.
This is an essential reference work for all Luftwaffe aviation enthusiasts and modellers, I cant wait for the next two volumes and hope that there is enough enthusiasm from the readers to persuade the authors to produce the hoped for 4th volume in the future.
It was interesting to read the reviews from the States where a number of copies had been damaged in transit. My inital copy was also ruined in transit, it was bent and creased which takes some doing to a hardback book. Amazon replaced it with a new copy and this one arrived fine.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I was always going to buy this book and waited patiently for it to appear in print.
Massively well illustrated with excellent photos and line drawings the authors have done an excellent job. The full text needless to say hot of the press it has not been possible to read it all but what I have read reads well and like most who this series of books appeal to the FW190 is no real stranger to me and I am impressed by the quality of the research and thought which has gone into this project.
The large format presents well , it is easy to read tells you what you need to know about the fighter its development and the operational application of the fighter. Having seen smaller scale works on the same aircraft there is simply no comparison to make this is the book you should be buying.
This book covers 1938-43 and it would appear that a second volume will conclude the history of the aircraft sign me up for a copy here and now.
This book deserves to sell well and IMO it does Kurt Tank's fighter a fair and balanced review of what was one of the outstanding aircraft to come out of WW2.
Massively well illustrated with excellent photos and line drawings the authors have done an excellent job. The full text needless to say hot of the press it has not been possible to read it all but what I have read reads well and like most who this series of books appeal to the FW190 is no real stranger to me and I am impressed by the quality of the research and thought which has gone into this project.
The large format presents well , it is easy to read tells you what you need to know about the fighter its development and the operational application of the fighter. Having seen smaller scale works on the same aircraft there is simply no comparison to make this is the book you should be buying.
This book covers 1938-43 and it would appear that a second volume will conclude the history of the aircraft sign me up for a copy here and now.
This book deserves to sell well and IMO it does Kurt Tank's fighter a fair and balanced review of what was one of the outstanding aircraft to come out of WW2.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The rugged Fw 190 was one of the most successful fighters of the Second World War. This book covers the type from its creation up to the Fw-190A-6 in 1943 and is the first of three, possibly four, looking at the aircraft up to the Fw 190D at the end of the war.
It starts with a history of the Fw company and its founders as well as Kurt Tank, the aircraft's designer. It then describes how the Fw 190 prototype created. Tank wanted to create a strong, tough fighter rather than a 'racehorse' like the Bf 109. Initially provided with a large propeller boss and tapered wings it bore a passing resemblance to the Japanese Nakajima Ki 44. The BMW 801 engine and its history are also covered.
The middle chapters look at the Fw 190's introduction into service and initial operations in 1941. The Fw 190A-1, A-2 and A-3 models quickly followed each other, and their differences and numbers produced are all covered. Smith and Creek quote the famous British evaluation of a captured Fw 190 to show how the aircraft out-performed its main opponent, the Spitfire V, in almost every way. But it also suffered from severe engine problems and Fw and BMW seem to have had a very difficult relationship with each blaming the other for faults.
Operations up to the middle of 1943 in Russia, North Africa and against the increasing American bomber offensive are described in varying depth (with few aircraft in North Africa Smith and Creek give an almost day by day account of their very successful fighter-bomber operations there). This is followed by descriptions of the A-4 and A-5 models and their variants. By now even Fw was having trouble keeping track of all the versions proposed or in production.
The last chapters describe attempts to create models with better altitude performance, the Fw 190B with a turbo supercharger and pressurised cockpit and the more successful re-engined Fw 190C. The creation (but not service) of the A-6, F and G models is also covered.
Smith and Creek have produced a thorough history of the early years of the Fw 190 in this book. There is much detail about the different prototype aircraft, variants derived from them, performance data and numbers produced. Their coverage of Fw 190 operations is naturally less detailed given the numbers which saw service but provides a good summary.
Physically the book is a heavy, well produced hardback. It is profusely illustrated, many pages being devoted to photographs which are clearly reproduced and informatively captioned, as are copies of original Fw documents. Many are half or full page. A few colour profiles are provided, usually illustrating aircraft shown in photographs. Unusually for a Classic book there are a few poorly proof-read paragraphs towards its start and unfortunately no index - hopefully there will be one covering all volumes in the final book.
This is a very good book and I will certainly pick up the subsequent volumes if they are up to this standard. Recommended.
(Potential reviewers should also note that amazon's filters will not allow the first name of the Fw company!)
It starts with a history of the Fw company and its founders as well as Kurt Tank, the aircraft's designer. It then describes how the Fw 190 prototype created. Tank wanted to create a strong, tough fighter rather than a 'racehorse' like the Bf 109. Initially provided with a large propeller boss and tapered wings it bore a passing resemblance to the Japanese Nakajima Ki 44. The BMW 801 engine and its history are also covered.
The middle chapters look at the Fw 190's introduction into service and initial operations in 1941. The Fw 190A-1, A-2 and A-3 models quickly followed each other, and their differences and numbers produced are all covered. Smith and Creek quote the famous British evaluation of a captured Fw 190 to show how the aircraft out-performed its main opponent, the Spitfire V, in almost every way. But it also suffered from severe engine problems and Fw and BMW seem to have had a very difficult relationship with each blaming the other for faults.
Operations up to the middle of 1943 in Russia, North Africa and against the increasing American bomber offensive are described in varying depth (with few aircraft in North Africa Smith and Creek give an almost day by day account of their very successful fighter-bomber operations there). This is followed by descriptions of the A-4 and A-5 models and their variants. By now even Fw was having trouble keeping track of all the versions proposed or in production.
The last chapters describe attempts to create models with better altitude performance, the Fw 190B with a turbo supercharger and pressurised cockpit and the more successful re-engined Fw 190C. The creation (but not service) of the A-6, F and G models is also covered.
Smith and Creek have produced a thorough history of the early years of the Fw 190 in this book. There is much detail about the different prototype aircraft, variants derived from them, performance data and numbers produced. Their coverage of Fw 190 operations is naturally less detailed given the numbers which saw service but provides a good summary.
Physically the book is a heavy, well produced hardback. It is profusely illustrated, many pages being devoted to photographs which are clearly reproduced and informatively captioned, as are copies of original Fw documents. Many are half or full page. A few colour profiles are provided, usually illustrating aircraft shown in photographs. Unusually for a Classic book there are a few poorly proof-read paragraphs towards its start and unfortunately no index - hopefully there will be one covering all volumes in the final book.
This is a very good book and I will certainly pick up the subsequent volumes if they are up to this standard. Recommended.
(Potential reviewers should also note that amazon's filters will not allow the first name of the Fw company!)
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
...a minor quibble
I'm not an authority on the FW-190 so am not in a position to say if it is an accurate and definite work. Read more
Published 1 month ago by s
Going to be the definitive history
This is the first volume of a three- or four-part history of the second-best-known German fighter of the WWII.
As far as I can tell, nothing is missing. Read more
As far as I can tell, nothing is missing. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Copyzombie
Excellent !!!!!
This is THE book for all FW190 fanatics.
What a wonderful photographs.Wonderful!
All so clear.
I do miss some nice drawnings with colourful camo schemes. Read more
What a wonderful photographs.Wonderful!
All so clear.
I do miss some nice drawnings with colourful camo schemes. Read more
Published 3 months ago by M. Stout
The Pics are Great but...
The pictures are great but did anyone read the text before it went to print. It gets very repetitive. This is a book that could have done with an editor. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Brian Monaghan
Listmania!
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