Albatros Publications

Handley Page O/400 Volumes 1 & 2 Windsock Datafiles #116 & 121

by  Colin Owers

Reviewed By  Paul Bradley, IPMS# 35554   and  John Ratzenberger, IPMS# 40196

MSRP: GBP 10.50 (Vol.1), GBP 10.75 (Vol.2) ISBN: 1902207815 (Vol.1), 1902207904 (Vol.2) These books are obtainable directly from Albatros Publications at their website www.windsockdatafilespecials.co.uk . Please note this is a new internet address, although prior ones still appear to work at this time. This latest, and certainly long-awaited, in the Windsock Datafile series focuses on Britain's first real strategic bomber, the Handley Page O/100 and O/400, often referred to as the "Bloody Paralyser," after what it was supposed to accomplish. Design work on the O/100 was actually started in 1914, and the first machine flew in December 1915. Entering service in early 1917, the O/100 brought a new dimension to Britain's war effort. Interestingly, the RNAS, not the RFC, flew the O/100 until amalgamation of the RFC and RNAS into the RAF in April 1918. The O/400 was in essence an O/100 with bigger and better engines, and this machine entered service just prior to the conclusion of World War I, but was superceded by the Vickers Vimy as Britain's main post-war bomber. Visual differences between the O/100 and O/400 are nacelles, propellers, and side windows, while internal differences are numerous. While Volume One focuses on the developmental and operational history, Volume Two is an in-detail look at the construction of the O/400. The text is very readable and the extensive photos support the text. It is fascinating to look at the size of these aircraft (as with the Gothas and Staakens) and the construction techniques employed and realize this was just a dozen years after the First Flight! These Datafiles follow the standard, well-established format. Both volumes contain 36 pages and covers. Volume One has 64 photos, 3 color profiles, 7 sketches, and 6 pages of 1/72 plans. Volume Two has 133 photos, 3 color profiles, and 8 pages of 1/48 plans. There is some duplication of information in the plans (a 3-view is a 3-view), but each plan contains much different detail information. There being no surviving examples, all photos are from the period, and it is fortunate there is an extensive collection of period information to draw from. At the end of Volume 2 there is a great photo of a crashed O/400 with the caption "'Alone I done it' - O/400 D9687 in an embarrassing pose with the pilot(?) posing nonchalantly for the camera." It alone is worth the price of the book.

To this point, the only model of the Handley Page has been the ancient Airfix kit, but there is always hope that the modern champion of WWI kits, Roden, might make this one of their future releases. The text, photos, and plans in these two volumes will be extremely useful to the modeler. Certainly, Windsock Datafiles are the must have books for most all WWI modelers and historians and this series is no exception. Our sincere thanks to Albatros Publications for the review samples.

Editors Note: How this became a joint review of two volumes is probably best left unstated, suffice it to say that we owe Albatros an apology for any delay in these reviews.

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