[Full title: Embleme der Luftwaffe – Band 1: Nah- und Fernaufklärer] Axel Urbanke, Peter Petrick, Gerhard Stemmer & Ulf Balke, Luftfahrtverlag Start, Bad Zwischenahn, Germany, 2018, ISBN 978-3-941437-30-2. Illustrated, hardcover, published in German & English.
Cover image © by Luftfahrtverlag Start, 2018.
It is likely that this book does not even need a review.
Nor do publisher and author require an introduction, for that matter. For almost two decades, Axel Urbanke and his Luftfahrtverlag Start have created invaluable specialist publications on German military history of the 1939 to 1945 period. Far from simply rehashing previously known material, Luftfahrtverlag Start has thankfully focused on discovering, collecting, and expertly interpreting previously unseen images and, if possible, placing them within a wider context. Moreover, Luftfahrtverlag Start is a publishing house that embraces corrections and amendments to their own published products, routinely featuring such in subsequent publications. In short, this publisher follows an exemplary manner of procedure that should serve as a shining example for others.
Against this background, a team of renowned experts comprising Axel Urbanke, Peter Petrick, Gerhard Stemmer, and Ulf Balke launched, in 2018, a new book series on one of the most fascinating aspects of the former German Luftwaffe: the countless and often peculiar emblems seen on so many aircraft of the service. And precisely because the scope of the topic is almost limitless, the authors are subdividing the instalments of their chronicle in accordance with specific fields of operations. According to the statement on the publisher's website, it is the intention to thus eventually create the most comprehensive guide to the emblems of the Luftwaffe, based on some 20 years of research. Given this initial release, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, it is easy to imagine that they will actually be able accomplish exactly this.
The first book of the series, Embleme der Luftwaffe – Band 1: Nah- und Fernaufklärer [Emblems Of The Luftwaffe – Volume 1: Short And Long-Range Reconnaissance Aircraft], therefore puts the spotlight on photo and weather reconnaissance units. One may be forgiven for thinking that this amounts to a few fringe units, but in actual fact, the resulting book is a substantial publication, at 320 pages, 412 photos, and a format of 24 by 30 cm. The book features an abundance of material, some of which previously unseen. It has been compiled in a clear, pleasing, and well-structured layout, as has become one of the hallmarks of Luftfahrtverlag Start. The emblems are presented by means of drawings (in black & white and colour), photos (also in black & white and colour), and bilingual text (German/English). Occasional colour profiles are interspersed. The text briefly but concisely describes the units and, if any, relevant facts regarding the emblem depicted. The photo reproduction, crucially important given the topic, is crisp and delightfully large.
There really isn't more one could say about this publication, other than that it further underlines the excellent reputation of its authors and publisher. It is a priceless work of reference that, assuming the future completion of the planned series, truly has the potential to supplant all previous studies of this subject area. What a beautiful, beautiful book.