Mirage
IV
Les Matérials de l’Armée de l’Air
5
By Hervé Beaumont
Histoire & Collections, ©2007
ISBN 978-2-35250-024-7
Softbound, 64 Pages
Available from Casemate
for $19.95
Reviewed by Chris Banyai-Riepl
The growing series on Armée de l’Air aircraft turns to what I consider to be the most attractive of the Mirage family, the big Mirage IV. Designed alongside the other Dassault delta aircraft, the Mirage IV was France’s sole strategic nuclear bomber. Once that role fell by the wayside, the Mirage IV changed roles and soldiered on as a photo-reconnaissance platform, eventually retiring in 2005 after over 40 years of service.
Like previous titles in this series, this book is entirely in French, so dust off your translation skills. Of course, half the fun of research is learning new languages, and for those interested in this big delta bomber, learning French would be a good thing. The text begins with an overview of the political situation following the Second World War, and the rise of nuclear weapons and France’s position in this arena. The move to a nuclear weapons program required a delivery platform, and the result was the development of the Mirage IV. Following this introduction comes a section on the prototype aircraft and their testing, construction of production machines, and weaponry. The rest of the book deals with the operational Mirage IV, both in the IVA bomber role and IVB photoreconnaissance role.
In addition to the text, the book is thoroughly illustrated with some excellent photographs, both in color and in black and white. A center section provides profile illustrations, although there is not much here to get excited over. The Mirage IV was a rather sedate aircraft when it came to markings, with your choices being either natural metal or green/gray camouflage. There are some rather striking retirement scheme aircraft, but for operational machines, your choices are limited. Still, these illustrations are well done and capture the lines and colors quite well.
Histoire & Collections continues to put out some excellent work, and this title is no exception. If you find yourself drawn towards French aircraft, this series is definitely well worth checking out. My thanks to Casemate Publishing for the review copy.
