Dragons
on Bird Wings, Volume I |
Book
review by Aleksandar
Šekularac
on Sept 14 2007 |
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“To
the right and slightly above, I caught a sight of tongues of flame. I
turned my head – pieces of burning Yak, like in a fantastic frightening
dream, were flying in all directions and tumbling towards the earth. Not
far from me, somersaulting slowly, fell a tail section with a red star on
it. Who was the pilot? What happened to him? But just after a moment’s
glance out in space, my lead banked his aircraft and gritting my teeth, I
pushed the throttle forward until my hand grew numb…”
–
Ivan
Fedorov, pilot of the 2nd squadron 812 IAP
The
above excerpt is one of many tales from a book that I can best describe as
a new type of “Russian Classic”. As a matter of fact, at the point of
this writing the book is fresh from the printers and yet to become a
classic, but I am certain it will obtain this status, and sincerely hope
that more will follow, so that we can acquire a complete series of such
excellent historic references. |
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“Dragons
on Bird Wings” is a trailblazing soft-cover published by a new name in
this industry, “AVIAeology” (I dare you to say this backwards).
Researched and written by, Vlad Antipov and Igor Utkin, and published in
English language by Terry Higgins and company, this book tells a
captivating story of 812th Fighter Air Regiment (IAP), a Yak flying unit
on its momentous journey through the battlefields of Great Patriotic War (GPW),
or more precisely above them.
Volumes
about unit history are probably not unusual in the realm of German
Luftwaffe or USAF, but Soviet Air Force during the GPW is indeed a great
unknown. Misconceptions, prejudice and Cold War half-truths have all a lot
to do with our blurred vision of events that took place in this crucial
and brutal chapter of WWII. “Dragons on Bird Wings” is a perfect tonic
for this condition. |
This
is what I call a “serious” history book, one that transcends the level
of hobby reference not only by its content but also by its make. Unlike so
many other books on my shelf it begins with “Table of Contents” and
ends with “Index”. Sounds plain enough, but these tools are often
overlooked yet extremely helpful, when navigating for some particular
information; and there is plenty to navigate through these pages. I wish
all the authors and publishers had such discipline.
The
content itself is multi-layered and dense. I would advise against trying
to swallow everything at once. This text will lend itself to multiple
visitations.
Four
forewords introduce the book: one by publisher, one by a historian, Von
Hardesty, Curator of Smithsonian NASM, one by the veteran pilot, Kapitan
Aleksandr Ivanov, the last surviving fighter pilot of the 812th
IAP, and one more from the authors. All are more than worth reading, as
they set the stage for what will unravel, as well as offer different
perspectives on this history.
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Click on
images below to see larger images
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History
“Dragons
on Bird Wings, volume I” is above all a historic almanac of the 812 IAP
from its formation in March 1942, through the battles for Moscow and
Stalingrad, “Meat Grinder” of Kuban, to the actions in South Ukraine
and liberation of Crimea. As the title suggests, this is first of the two
volumes, where the second one will continue the story and follow this unit
to the final victory and Berlin.
Detailed
material that the authors provide is impressive to say the least, even
overwhelming at places. Day to day reports of the battles, losses and
victories, personal accounts and anecdotes, photographs, maps and tactical
graphics are all there. Apart from the 812th own turbulent
warpath this book comments on the larger formation movements and general
conditions on the front.
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Advance
of the troops, structuring and restructuring of the units is often a very
complex matter to follow, and to help the reader the authors offer a
multitude of local maps and diagrams. But instead of peering into some
yellowed, half faded piece of paper, all these graphics are rendered anew
in color, based on actual period documents. Very well done indeed. I’d
say that the only thing missing is an overall, large scale map, maybe a
foldout, which would show complete course of 812th through the
war with all the major battles and places marked. I think this would be
helpful especially for readers who are perhaps less acquainted with the
vast terrain of the USSR. Maybe something to expect in volume II? |
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The
most captivating part of the book for me is the pilot’s recollections,
and anecdotes. Like the one quote at the very beginning of this review,
there are countless other personal accounts of the participants in these
epic air battles. They bring the human element to this story and a full
range of vivid emotions, from fear and anxiety, to exhilaration and rage.
This is where one gets to understand how a human being can feel, caught in
a moment in the most extreme conditions and under tremendous psychological
and physical stress. Quite amazing. |
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“The
Yak Book”
In
my conversation with Terry “the publisher” I used the name “Yak
Book” to describe this volume, which he found amusing, unlike the
authors would probably. This is of course a scale-modelers perspective,
but also another strong point of this publication. There are 26 beautiful
color profiles and most of them are Yaks 1s, 7s and 9s. There’s also
some foes: a Stuka, a couple of Hs-129s, FW-190 and five Bf-109s,
including Hartmann’s plane, captured by the 812th. As the
unit in question flew almost exclusively Yaks, they naturally receive most
attention. Profiles are well drawn and detailed, accurately painted,
beautifully shaded and finally very professionally printed. One could
easily frame these and hang them on the wall. I hear that the graphic
artist is a good friend of the publisher, from the other side of the
mirror. Yes, Terry Higgins again. |
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To
provide for the grand finale, the last few pages of the book are devoted
to detailed 1/48-scale drawings of all Yak variants from Yak-1 to Yak-9T.
The only ones missing are 9K, 9U and Yak-3, but these are coming in the
volume II. Alexander Rusetski expertly made these line drawings. Comparing
them against my other references I feel comfortable in saying that these
are to date the most accurate published drawings of this aircraft type. |
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Final
Thoughts
I
am finding it hard to say anything that is not superlative about this
tome. If pushed, I’ll state the following: I would prefer to have it as
a hardback, but this would undoubtedly increase the cost. One could also
say that there are not enough period photographs of the airplanes
themselves. As I understand this not due to the lack of research material,
rather it is a timing and acquisition of rights problem. Something they
are working to amend in volume II.
This
book is zealously researched, well written, beautifully illustrated, and
very well designed and printed. I can only congratulate the whole team for
bringing this project to life, and extend my special thanks to Terry for
sending me a review copy.
AVIAeology
is here to stay, no matter how difficult it is to pronounce. Even decals
from these people come with extensive and well-researched information, so
I am confident that every new release will also have a pedigree. I hear
that a set of waterslides will soon cover most interesting aspects of this
book too. Once these are released it would be nice to see them offered
with the book. But more importantly, now that we have accurate Yak
drawings, a new generation of accurate Yak kits is due. |
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And
there are other very interesting titles announced by AVIAeology. Apart
from “Dragons” volume II, they promise “Hawker Hurricanes in Soviet
Skies”, and “Griffons over Afghanistan”. This last title is another
terra incognita, a fascinating subject dealing with MiG-23s during the
Soviet war in Afghanistan. How many books on this topic do you have in
your library? I had pleasure of seeing a sample artwork being prepared for
this book and can only say that it will as well be something beautiful.
“Dragons
on Bird Wings, Volume I” can be purchased directly from the publishers
web site, at: http://www.aviaeology.com/,
or from a growing number of retailers worldwide.
And
the final question: is there a special meaning behind the title “Dragons
on Bird Wings”? I’ll let you discover the answer on your own, while
leafing through the book…
Aleksandar |
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Photos and text © by Aleksandar
Šekularac
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