Amberley Publishing

Jet Provost: The Little Plane with the Big History

by  Bob Clarke

Reviewed By  Paul Bradley, IPMS# 35554

MSRP: $34.95 ISBN: 9781848680975 Review Copy furnished by Casemate Publishing. Website: www.casematepublishing.com Fads and fashions come and go, even in the military and air forces. One of these was "All Through Jet Training," where students would fly jets from initial screening to squadron posting. Of course, this ended up being impractical and costly, so students once again go through three stages of training on light pistons, turboprop, then light jets……. The Percival/Hunting/BAC Jet Provost was a private venture designed to replace the piston-engined Percival Provost and first flew in June 1954. Over 500 were built for the RAF alone and many more saw service around the world through the eighties; it was replaced in RAF service by the turboprop Shorts Tucano. Many remain airworthy in private hands, including more than a few here is the US. Trainers tend to be a largely ignored facet of aviation history, and in modelling circles; indeed, I do not recall a single book about the Jet Provost, or JP, previously. So this new book from Casemate is most welcome. Written by a former-RAF 'erk', Bob Clarke, this is a fitting tribute to the type - small and unassuming, but with plenty to offer. Clarke starts by putting the JP into context - a brief history of pilot training in the RAF is followed by a discussion of its piston predecessor. Initial development is discussed in depth, as is the entry into service with the RAF and development over the years. Exports are discussed in some detail, as is the COIN-configured Strikemaster version and the book is rounded out by some interesting individual perspectives on the type. Clarke intersperses his tightly-written text with personal reminisces and period quotations, and black and white photos are liberally sprinkled throughout. A selection of colour photos is inserted in the middle of the book. While the book is generally a good read, there are some irksome proofing errors - the odd word is mis-spelled, and there are some annoying grammatical errors. However, this does take only a little gloss off an otherwise well-presented book. This is not a book for the modeller per se, but as a reference, it will be quite useful for those building the 1/72 Airfix or Matchbox kits (and the lovely Obscureco resin cockpit set) or Aeroclub's 1/48 kit. CMR has a 1/72 resin JP due shortly. For those who have an interest in jet trainers, this is an interesting book and is one I can recommend. Our sincere thanks Casemate Publishing to for the review sample.