Gotterdammerung 1: Luftwaffe Wrecks and Relics ( Number 1 ) (Gotterdammerung S.)
This is the first volume in a series which will prove to be of immeasurable value to all those interested in German aircraft of World War Two and in particular the countless thousands who model this period. The book covers all theatres of the war and aircraft of all types: fighters, bombers, night-fighters, transports and maritime aircraft. Alongside the photographs are detailed captions, the book also contains colour artworks and profiles along with close up views of unit insignia and markings where possible. --David KirkThis unusually named book by the prolific author, Brett Green is in reference to the apocalypse in Norse mythology. Roughly translated to mean "Twilight of the Gods" and is a fitting name once you see the amazing photos of crashed, crushed and otherwise destroyed Luftwaffe aircraft. At first you kind of feel sick for the loss of such fantastic aircraft until you are reminded what they were used for and the cost in lives and treasure needed to destroy them. The end result was the only conclusion that these machines of war could have come to. I have set eyes on a lot of pictures of World War II aircraft. And I mean A LOT! I have never seen about three quarters of the photos in this book. They are simply astonishing! Interpreting black and white photos into color is an art, the supposition of the author and artist are logical and well researched. Speaking of the Artist, Brett wrangled in Tom Tullis, one of the premier aviation artists in the world, to illustrate the color profiles with an emphasis on unusual markings or new schemes not seen before. The color profiles are stunning. Some of the nicest I have seen published. Mr. Tullis is at the top of his field and the addition of his art lends itself well to this book. Mr. Green consulted with some of the foremost experts in Luftwaffe colors before coming to terms with interpreting the photos paint schemes. Brett himself is considered one of the top authorities in this fine art but will be the first to tell you that good research and patience is proving this subject to be an evolving and amazingly complex topic. There is a tantalizing little tag at the bottom of the book which reads "NUMBER 1" below the author's name. Is this telling us that there is a series coming in our near future? I anticipate so. Another little bonus is the Classic Publications catalog of the brilliant Jagdwaffe series on the inside of the front cover with the rest of the series on the inside of the back cover. Now you know what books you are missing from this great publishing company. I found myself pouring over the photos in detail, finding something new each time. I was continually amazed at the quality of the photos and information that is placed in the book in chronological order. Reading the text is easy and very interesting. The color photos are fantastic and very well rendered on high quality paper softbound in the Classic Publications format. At the end of the book you also get some models that are extremely well made and photographed. All of them are inspiring and a real treat for us modelers. I highly recommend this book for researchers, historians and model builders. The color schemes could keep you busy for years. This book is a must addition to your aviation history library. --By Kelly JamisonAs someone who is very interested in and collected alot of books on luftwaffe operations/aircraft i was surprised to see so many previously unpublished photo's of abandoned late war aircraft. The photo's are very good quality and the captions very informative and intelligent. I have been waiting for some time for a book on Ju 88G's and their camo. schemes and this book contains alot of photo's of late war ju 88G's so it was a welcome addition to my luftwaffe collection. the only niggle i have is it starts with some early war pictures of shot down Me-109e-3's in the battle of britain that have been preivously published numerous times and so should not have been included in a specialised book such as this. But otherwise a great book --By pat