Osprey Publishing

British Airships 1905-30 - New Vanguard 155

by  Ian Castle

Reviewed By  Mike Hinderliter, IPMS# 45124

MSRP: $17.95 ISBN: 978-1-84603-387-2 Review copy courtesy of Osprey Publishing: www.ospreypublishing.com Format: Paperback 9.6 x 7.1 Pages: 48 with 41 B&W and 1 color photos. and 8 color plates. Osprey Publishing’s newest book in the New Vanguard series is about British Airships from 1905 – 1930. It starts off with the first successful flight by Stanley Spencer to the crash and explosion of the R101, which ended the airship’s life in Britain. This is a small book but it is jam packed with photographs. A couple of things that I really liked is the 2 page color plate of the cut away view of the R34 and technical data. Everything you ever wanted to know about what makes up an airship. The other was a data table that has all of the airships technical data in the order that they were built. It is divided into 3 sections; non-rigid, semi-ridged, and rigid airships. It includes the envelope capacity, overall length, engines, disposable lift, and top speed. This book even has a bibliography so that the curious, like me, can go and get more detailed information on them. The book is divided into 13 sections: Introduction. Airship Types. Army Airship Organisation. The Army Airships. Early Navy Airships. Early War Service. Naval Airships 1914-18. Semi-Rigid (SR) Airships. Rigid Airships. British Airships at War. Summary. Select Bibliography. Index. I highly recommend this book because I had a great time reading about the airships and their history. It not only gives the history of how they were built, but also stories of the men that flew them and how they dealt with the problems of the flying and repairs that seemed to pop up at the worst times. Can you imagine being held under one of these hydrogen-filled bags attacking a U-boat in WW1 or being outside of the craft , standing on a 2 ½ inch strip of wood, trying to start a stalled engine at 1500 feet with a 15 knot wind. Thank you to Osprey Publishing and IPMS USA for letting me enjoy and review this very informative book. It will make a wonderful addition to my library.