Full title:

Vought F4U Corsair, vol.II
Authors: Tomasz Szlagor, Leszek A. Wieliczko
Series: Monographs, No. 56

The time goes by more quickly than one can imagine. I remember writing the review of the first volume of Corsair monograph as if it was two or three weeks ago. In fact it was more less a year ago... After this time the second volume hit the shelves of the bookshops. Here's my look inside the second part of the F4U monograph from the Kagero Publishing.

Content

Book content is spread into following chapters:
Development Versions
- Vought F4U-4
- Super Corsair - Goodyear F2G
Foreign users
- Great Britain
- New Zealand
Camouflage and markings
- Fleet Air Arm
- Royal New Zealand Air Force
Frontline service (part 2)
- The Marshalls
- The Marianas
- The Palaus
- The Philippines
- At high seas (January 1944 – March 1945)
Endnotes
Selected bibliography
Appendixes
Scale plans
Colour profiles

What's inside?

What is not difficult to guess the second volume continues the story of its predecessor. Having the prototype and early versions described previously authors have focused only on two members of the family: the F4U-4 and F2G. Description of construction is followed by the brief study of the painting instructions of FAA and RNZAF Corsairs, providing data like camouflages, painting styles in particular stages of war, description of changes and modifications as well as sizes of roundels, letters etc. Colours are provided as ANA and FS numbers, while dimensions are in inches and mm's. The largest part of the content is dedicated to the frontline service in different campaigns on the PTO, as listed above. Appendixes comprises of the tables of production batches of F4U-4 and F2G, their basic specifications and performance, including operational possibilities in performance. The same applies to the characteristic of the R-2800-18W and R-4360-4 engines. Those of the readers who are more interested in the British-related part of this history will find three handy tables with the production numbers, time periods, production batches etc of the Corsairs delivered to Great Britain and New Zealand as well as a table with code letters and time periods of FAA squadrons using this fighter type. The next 18 pages are the scale plans and fuselage sections in 1:48 scale. Drawings shows profiles of different Corsair versions, the same as colour profiles and some versions are shown also in the view from front and back. Bombs, bomb racks and rockets are also drawn separately in 1:24 scale. Versions shown on the plans varies from the early birdcage F4U-1 to F4U-1D and Corsairs I, II, III and IV.
Photographs, artworks The same as in the first volume authors provide a good amount of great quality photographs taken in different operational circumstances: in flight, on ground, on carrier deck, starting, landing, taxing and crashing. A very interesting are photos of Japanese airfields and bases photographed before and after air attack, the scale of demolition and number or craters left behind is hard to believe in. These few photos brutally reminds us that this is no more no less but the war machine, no matter in which style we'll paint it as a scale model.

Selection of colour profiles comprises of the following machines:

F4U-1A Corsair No.012 (BuNo unknown) Winnie The Poo-Too, flown by the CO of VMF-321 Hell's Angels Maj. Edmund F. Overend, Guam, the Marianas, October 1944.
F4U-1D Corsair No.600 (BuNo unknown) of VMF-122, flown by Lt. Donald R. Wilson, Peleliu, Palau Islands, 1945
F4U-1A Corsair No.815 (BuNo unknown) Brat III of VMF-225, flown by Capt. Dean S. Harley Jr, Guam, the Marianas, December 1944
FG-1A Corsair No.993 (BuNo 13993) Virgin Jackie of VMF-222, Samar, Philippines, autumn 1944
F4U-1D Corsair No. 110 (BuNo unknown) of VF-84 stationed aboard USS Bunker Hill, flown by Lt(jg) William L. Gerner, 25th February 1945

Are we there, yet?

My general feeling from reading this book is that the third volume is coming. There are too many areas which are still not covered that it would be not possible to ommit them. There is still the ETO/Atlantic section which was not even mentioned yet or the late Corsairs (including post-war service). The only scale plans provided so far are dedicated just to one scale. Scale drawings presents just profiles of the F4U's. There are still two important scales (1:72 and 1:32) to be covered, the same as drawings of the upper and lower surfaces.

Related reviews.

F4U Corsair vol.I – book review by Michał Sindera
Tamiya's 1:32 scale F4U Corsair – kit review by Frank Crenshaw
Build review of 21st Century 1:32 scale F4U-1A/D Corsair by Jon Bius

Please remember, when contacting retailers or manufacturers, to mention that you saw their products highlighted here - on AEROSCALE.