Stratus / MMP Books
Polish Wings 16:
Supermarine Spitfire XVI

Reviewed by Brad Fallen

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With its Packard Merlin engine, bubble canopy and in many cases clipped wings, the Spitfire Mk.XVI is amongst the most aesthetically appealing of all Spitfires.  The Mk.XVI was also a numerically important RAF fighter during the last months of World War 2 and the first years of peace, with just over 1,000 examples built during a 12-month production run from September 1944.

One of the units equipped with Mk.XVIs was No.131 Wing of the 2nd Tactical Air Force, comprising three of the eight Polish Air Force day fighter squadrons – Nos. 302, 308 and 317 – which were at the time fully integrated with the RAF.  These squadrons flew Mk.XVIs between early-mid 1945 and their disbandment in late 1946, and their aircraft are the main focus of (appropriately enough) Volume 16 of Stratus/MMP’s long-running ‘Polish Wings’ series.

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This is the first book in the series I’ve had the opportunity to examine, and I like the balance the author has struck between detailed photographic descriptions of individual Spitfires, and the background information that’s needed to put these photos in context.  The result is a series of photo essays in the following order:

• No.131 Wing HQ/No.302 Squadron/No.308 Squadron/No.317 Squadron.  This section takes up 60 of the book’s 88 pages and provides a wealth of information about the Wing’s aircraft, particularly during the immediate post-war period when the unit was based in Germany.  

• Warsaw – this brief but fascinating section describes 131 Wing’s efforts to send two Mk.XVIs to an RAF exhibition in Warsaw in October 1945.  Sensitivities between the UK and Russia meant that Polish pilots weren’t able to fly the Spitfires into Poland, and even then the first aircraft selected for the task – flown by British pilots – were turned back before reaching Warsaw.  Two different Spitfires then made the journey successfully, and were subsequently donated by the RAF to the Polish Military Museum (only to be destroyed by the Polish communist government several years later).  Detailed photographs of all four Spitfires involved in this effort are included.

• Mk.XVIs flown by Polish pilots in the RAF between 1945 and the early 1950s.  This section is a miscellany of aircraft from different units that neatly captures the Mk.XVI’s transition from front-line fighter to rear echelon workhorse during this period.  The most striking images are of some No.17 Squadron aircraft painted with German markings – including Balkenkreuz, Hakenkreuz and yellow spinners and forward engine cowlings – for a display at Farnborough in July 1950.  Now that would make for a different looking Spitfire Mk.XVI model!

• A short postscript that describes how the Polish Aviation Museum in Cracow obtained a Mk.XVI (SM411) from the RAF Museum Hendon in 1977, in exchange for the only surviving AMC D.H.9a.  A number of photos show SM411 at various stages in its career, including colour images from the museum at Cracow.

MMP’s website states that the book contains almost 200 photographs, nearly half of which are previously unpublished.  I can’t vouch for the accuracy of this claim, but the photos are definitely the stars of the book.  While not all are of excellent quality – some are definitely showing signs of age – they are all interesting and worthy of inclusion. 

The photos are supplemented by over 30 full colour port or starboard profiles, and two beautiful illustrations of Polish Spitfire XVIs in flight (which are reproduced on the book’s front and back covers).

You should seriously consider this volume if you have any interest in either the Spitfire Mk.XVI or World War 2 Polish aviation.  If you’re planning a Mk.XVI model build – particularly of the 1/32 Tamiya kit – the book will provide all of the walkaround photos you need, as well as numerous tempting schemes in which to finish your model.

Highly recommended.

Thanks to MMP Books  for the sample.

All MMP Publications books are available direct from the publishers, who now accept credit cards (Visa, MC, Amex, Switch)  

North American distributors are MMD, Australian distributors are Platypus Publications. In Europe, the books are available from any good bookshop (via our UK distributors, Orca). Contact MMP direct in case of difficulties. 

Thanks to Roger at MMP Books  for the sample.

Review Copyright 2013 by Brad Fallen
This Page Created on 18 September, 2013
Last updated 18 September, 2013

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