Ceskolovenské Nieuporty

Zdenék Cejka, LHS
published by Historicke Sesity, Praha (aka Prague), 1998.

Available from VAMPS

By Mike Fletcher

Coverage of relatively minor post-ww1 airforces such as that of the Czech Republic are comparitively rare, and especially ones that cover a single type, such as the Nieuport. Therefore this monograph is all the more unusual and appreciated.

Photographs

The only photograph in this monograph (16 pages including covers) that I had seen before was the one on the cover.

The 33 photographs included are extremely interesting, especially to a rabid Nieuport fanatic such as myself. As can be expected, the photographic quality varies considerably, however to the publishers credit all have been reproduced to the highest standards. Only a few types are represented, coverage being concentrated on the scouts, especially the Nie.17 and Nie.21, but this is no doubt due at least partly to their greater numbers. There are also several pictures showing Nieuports being operated alongside American made LWF two seaters, and shots of a relevant Nie.11 and Nie.27. Coverage also extends to a single Ukrainian machine that had a Czech connection, and to several French Nieuports flown by Czech pilots.

Text

The photographs are intersperced with several pages of heavily footnoted Czech text, whose contents I cannot really comment on properly as yet, as I am not fluent in Czech and haven't found an online translator yet. By their volume alone I would suspect that they probably will contribute quite a bit of new information, as soon as I can find a Czech dictionary...

Profiles

The back cover has five colour profiles showing a variety of interesting markings, including some very unusual variations, and includes plan views for marking placement. Each profile is accompanied by a caption, and is covered with a small paragraph on the previous page.

Summary

This profile undeniably fills a hole in my library that is unlikely to be covered elsewhere, and sneaks a peek at archives otherwise unpublished. I will certainly be looking forward to future releases from this publisher.