FirstRead  

World War Two was really the first large scale mechanized war and to support war of such a nature required a huge range and number of support vehicles. This book provides an account of the development of military transport from 1939 to 1945

When I first received this book I thought it was a reprint of an old Osprey Title I had by the same name. One look inside and I realised that while the format may be similar this was not so.

The Book is a hard bound edition with high quality of images in colour and B&W throughout. It follows a logical layout in well structured Chapters covering:

Introduction

1. Light Utility Vehicles
2. Light trucks (up to 2 tons)
3. Medium trucks (up to 3 tons)
4. Heavy Trucks (over 3 tons)
5. Tank Transporters and Prime Movers
6. Recovery Vehicles
7. Truck Mounted Cranes
8. Fire Appliances and Snow Cleaners
9. Amphibians
10. Ambulances and Medical Vehicles

Appendix

Pat Ware, the Author is well known in military vehicle publishing and is the current editor of Classic Military Vehicles. He has brought his extensive research knowledge to the fore and compiled a very expansive collection of diverse military transport vehicles from World War Two.

The book is lavishly illustrated with many period shots of vehicles in service many of which I have not seen before in other publications (including a previously unseen pic of SAS/LRDG jeeps and a rare restored WASP flamethrower Jeep of Popskis private army).  These are supplemented by beautiful colour shots of restored examples and rare colour wartime shots.  

  Click the thumbnails below to view larger images:

Each Chapter gives a brief rundown by nation of the major types produced and backs these up with good photos. The Author has covered vehicles produced by Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, USA, USSR and has included less well covered producers such as Australia and Canada.

The Appendix lists the major variants in each category and by nations. It gives make, model, description, date, engine capacity and cylinders.  

Despite the title there were very few Halftrack vehicles covered and what were covered were mainly German Prime movers like the Demag  and Famo family. I can’t recall any French, soviet or US models being covered other than a listing for a few more obscure pre war models in the appendix. The M2 US halftrack which was essentially an artillery prime mover was not covered at all.

Despite the lack of Halftrack information and Photos I absolutely recommend this book to modellers, enthusiasts and collectors. It is a great all round reference on a very broad subject and many of the pictures are rare and previously unseen. The print reproduction is sharp and I found the layout and structure well balanced and sensible.

Highly Recommended.

Thanks to DLS Books for the review sample