- Author
- Jon Diamond
Jon Diamond has assembled a selection of good quality photographs embedded in 5 chapters of text .The book runs to 208 pages and as ever Pen & Sword print to a good standard
The text is without index, bibliography or any Orbats The latter leads to some confusion when trying to identify what constitutes the relevant formations. Furthermore , there are inaccuracies in titles, eg 9th Gurkha Rifles become 9 Gurkha Regt. At the time of battle Wavell was a General not a Field Marshall.
The standard remarks about Force Z and air cover are made, including a reference to Taranto . But at the time the task force sailed no capital ship at sea had ever been sunk by unsupported air attack.
There is a reference to jungle and plantations affecting the going , but the author did not pick up that much of the acreage that defence plans had viewed as jungle had in recent years been cleared to plantation.
Photo captioning shows a few errors; The “Lanchester“ armoured cars (p51) are Marmon-Herringtons. One“ Bren Gun“ looks suspiciously like a Vickers Berthier.The Blenheims “over Tengah“ strangely show a squadron marking for 614 Sqn or 54 OTU who were both in the UK. The AA gun on page 41 is probably not a 3.7“ .
As for Japanese kit, the “Type92“ tank (p135) is almost certainly a type 89
Perhaps a future volume will tidy up these anomalies
The text is without index, bibliography or any Orbats The latter leads to some confusion when trying to identify what constitutes the relevant formations. Furthermore , there are inaccuracies in titles, eg 9th Gurkha Rifles become 9 Gurkha Regt. At the time of battle Wavell was a General not a Field Marshall.
The standard remarks about Force Z and air cover are made, including a reference to Taranto . But at the time the task force sailed no capital ship at sea had ever been sunk by unsupported air attack.
There is a reference to jungle and plantations affecting the going , but the author did not pick up that much of the acreage that defence plans had viewed as jungle had in recent years been cleared to plantation.
Photo captioning shows a few errors; The “Lanchester“ armoured cars (p51) are Marmon-Herringtons. One“ Bren Gun“ looks suspiciously like a Vickers Berthier.The Blenheims “over Tengah“ strangely show a squadron marking for 614 Sqn or 54 OTU who were both in the UK. The AA gun on page 41 is probably not a 3.7“ .
As for Japanese kit, the “Type92“ tank (p135) is almost certainly a type 89
Perhaps a future volume will tidy up these anomalies
