RAF Fast Jets in Colour: The Cold War and Beyond
By Chris Banyai-Riepl
Author: Philip Birtles
Publisher: Fonthill Media
ISBN: 978-1-78155-947-5
Binding: Softcover
Pages: 192
Sometimes a book title really does say it all, and this is just such a book: RAF Fast Jets in Colour. The book concept is simple: give a chapter to each jet and fill it full of color photos showing the aircraft in its element. The Royal Air Force has had an impressive range of jet aircraft over the years, from the Gloster Meteor to the Lockheed Martin F-35. That long timeframe also brought about a lot of different camouflage schemes as well as squadron markings. The photos help showcase all of that in full color, including several special scheme subjects.
While the title does say fast jets, the first section covers the early Cold War jets, including the Meteor, Vampire, Venom, Swift, and Javelin. These first jets of the RAF both proved the value of jet aircraft and highlighted the rapid evolution of their weapon technology. By the time the Javelin came around, The World War Two-era standard of cannon armament and eyeball detection had changed to guided missiles and radar systems. While the multiple subjects means fewer total photos for each type, the text adds a welcome history covering all of these aircraft and the early Cold War period they served.
The remaining chapters all focus on one aircraft each, starting with the Hawker Hunter and moving through the BAC Lightning, Hawker Harrier, McDonnell Douglas Phantom, Blackburn Buccaneer, SEPECAT Jaguar, BAe Hawk, Panavia Tornado, Eurofighter Typhoon, and Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning. Each of these chapters has a written history, some short (like the F-35, which is new to the RAF), others longer (like the Hunter and Tornado), but all have a great selection of color photos spanning all the years of each type’s service with the RAF. The photos are nicely printed, being large enough for details but small enough to allow for plenty of each type.
For those wanting a good photo book on RAF jet fighters, this hits all the checkboxes. My thanks to Casemate Publishing for the review copy. Visit their website for this and other interesting titles on RAF aircraft.