IPMS/USA Reviews

Mikael Forslund was born on June 7, 1960 and currently lives in Falun, Sweden. He has worked as a press photographer since 1978 both as a freelancer and as a staff photographer and currently uses Nikon cameras. He has authored over twenty books with his latest book on Spitfire in Sweden celebrating the 80th anniversary of the first flight of the aircraft type on March 5, 1936. His other books include Torpedflyget i Sverige (1998), P-35A, AT-12, and P-66 in Swedish Service as J 9, B 6, and J 10 (2008), Gloster Gladiator and Hawker Hart: In Combat with the Swedish Voluntary Wing F19, Finland 1940 (2009), Saab J 21 / J 21R (2010), Glosterflygpan I Svensk Tjanst: Gloster Aircraft in Sweden Service (2012), Caproni Ca 313 R.P.B./S: B 16A - S16 A T 16A - Tp 16A (2012), Swedish Piston Fighter Colours: 1926-1954 (2012), Night Raiders during the Cold War with J 30 and J 33 Mosquito Venom F 1 in Vasteras, looking to the east (2013), Heinkelflug in Sweden (2014); as well as several that are coming out soon: U.S. Military Aircraft in the Royal Swedish Air Force (2017), Saab 29 Flygande Tunnan (2017), Swedish Jet Fighter Colours (2017). You can see more at his webpage: http://mikaelforslundproduktion.com/ .

Although this book is primarily focused on the fifty Mk. XIX Spitfires acquired by Sweden after the war, Mikael Forslund actually endeavors to cover all Spitfires that have visited Sweden. The first was a Mk. IV Spitfire that the pilot had bailed out of after being damaged by German anti-aircraft fire while searching for the German battleship, Tirpitz. The Spitfire, AB314, flew on before crashing near Lillasvallen in August 1942. Parts of this Spitfire are on display at Morup in the FLC collection.

Sweden had actually been in negotiations with Britain for most of the war trying to procure Spitfires for defense, but as usual, politics on both sides intruded and nothing happened. The US actually delivered 50 surplus P-51D Mustangs in April 1945, which created a brand new political firestorm from the British as the Americans were interfering in their potential market (even though the British still were not ready to part with their Spitfires. Mikael Forslund covers additional Spitfire visits to Sweden that were for the most part promotional on the British part, trying to get the Swedes to come to the Brits' terms.

The Spitfires that Sweden eventually got were the Mk. XIX photo-reconnaissance version, an aircraft that had never seen operational service with the RAF. Most of these aircraft had been delivered and immediately been placed in storage. Politics still ruled the day however, and it wasn't until a contract was finally signed in May 1948, that 50 of the promised 70 Spitfires, designated S 31 in Sweden, began the process of delivery to Sweden. The next 165 pages are devoted to the service of the S 31 Spitfires in Swedish service. Forslund provides never before published photographs to support the S 31 Spitfire's service with Wing F11. He also includes many first person remembrances of the S 31 Spitfire during its service along with descriptions of the S 31 Spitfire's mission, technical description, flights, and sadly, crashes.

Thierry Vallet provides sixteen gorgeous color profiles (1/40 scale) that show the different color schemes, and the migration from the British PRU blue to a darker blue. These profiles also characterize the difference in the national insignia where some were in 'English colors' before eventually going to the standard 'Swedish' national insignia colors. Forslund also provides an extra bit for the avid modeler with comparisons of the real colors on display in the F 11 museum as compared with the 'official' colors they were supposed to be carrying.

Unfortunately, no S 31 Spitfires survived. The last S 31 was s/n 31039 used by the Stockholm Vocational School for mechanic training, but it was scrapped in 1962. The Swedish Air Museum initiated a search to locate a suitable Spitfire for its museum in the 1970s. In the end a P.R. Mk. XIX was located and essentially traded for a J 34 Hunter, a Swedish Skyraider (AD-4W), a Douglas C-47, and three Saab A 32A Lansens. This Spitfire, PM 627, restoration was completed in 1989 and is currently on display at the Swedish Air Museum. Forslund completes his round up of Spitfires in Sweden with coverage of air show visits, privately owned Spitfires in Sweden, and a Spitfire that is being restored to airworthiness in Stockholm.

The Table of Contents includes the following sections:

• Introduction
• The First Spitfire Arrival in Sweden [Page 7]
• Possible Purchase of Spitfires by Flygvapnet, 1943-1944
  • Four of the Swedish RAF Pilots During the Second World War Flew Spitfires
• The Second Spitfire Visit to Sweden
• Visit by RAF 130 Squadron During 1945
• Spitfire F.22 PK684 Demonstrations
  • Spit 22 Visiting Bromma
• Further Swedish Attempts to Purchase Spitfires
• Swedish Aerial Reconnaissance
• Wings F 11
• S 31, Spitfire P.R. Mk. XIX Type 390 in Swedish Service [Page 23]
• Holger Sudden Sundell Reminisces About Delivering S 31's
• Olle Bjorkman Continues
• S 31 Description
• Early 1949
• Photo Reconnaissance [Page 43]
• Axel Careson Speaks About the Reconnaissance Cameras SKa 10 and SKa 12
• Rolls Royce Griffon 66
• Propeller
• Manston - Wing F 11 Spring 1949
  • In the Summer of 1949
  • First Total Loss of an S 31
  • The Final Six S31's Are Delivered
  • Crash
• The Wing Insignia [Page 68]
• No. 1 Squadron Deploys to Karlstad
• The Aircraft Mechanic John Svensson (1930-) Reminisces About the S 31
• "Spy Flights"
• Amending the Propeller Spinner Colours
• Wing F 16 Uppsala Air Show in 1949
• Some 1950 Exercises
  • No. 3 Squadron at Wing F 14 in July and August 1950
  • No. 1 Squadron at Karlstad in the Summer of 1950
  • Group Exercise August / September 1950
  • Centre of Gravity Calculations
• Wing F 11 Runway Extension Work in 1951 and the Squadrons Transferred
  • The S 31 Pilot Bo Hagman (1931 -) Remembers the S 31 at Moholm (Field S) in 1951 [Page 101]
  • Opinions on the S 31 by the Pilot Stig Siljedahl
• Back to Wing F 11 Autumn 1951
• The Aeroplane Technician Soren Wennerberg (Born 1927) Reminisces
• The Former S 31 Pilot Sven Sandberg Reminisces
• Modification
• Some Crashes
  • Sergeant 206-6-48 Bror Sigvard Svensson in Aeroplane Coded 35 Tells About the Incident
  • An Abstract From the Post-Collision Report by Sergeant 86-6-50 Sven Ingvar Svensson, S31 Code 34
  • Sergeant Imbratt
  • Air Traffic Controller Bjarle
  • Air Traffic Controller Lindh [Page 125]
• Sven-Harald Andersson, S 13 Pilot
• Study Visits at Wing F 11
• Lars Craning, S 31 Pilot
• Elon Eurlin, S 31 Pilot
• Late 1953 and a New Wing Insignia [Page 143]
• Solar Eclipse
• Final S 31 Flight
• On Its Nose
• The Nine S 31 Crashes [Page 165]
• Bengt Palmqvist Recalls When He Bailed Out of S 31 s/n 31031 on 15 June 1953
• S 31 Technical Data and Performance Characteristics
• Table (Swedish Spitfires by FV s/n)
• Painting, Markings, Drawings and Colour Profiles [Page 185]
• Wings and Air Bases
• S/N 31051 of Flygvapenmuseum
• Wing F 11 Museum
• Visits and Air Shows by Foreign Spitfires From 1950 Until 2016
• The Two Spitfires of Biltema
• Spitfire P.R. Mk. IV Restoration in Stockholm

Modeler's have been well served by new tool kits in both 1/72 and 1/48 that address the S 31 Spitfire from Airfix. Excellent decals are available from RB Design (by Robert Bergwall, featured in this book) as well as from Flying Colors Aerodecals.

Mikael Forslund has delivered a great history on the S 31 Spitfire that not only covers the operational history, but provides a good basis for the modeler with action and nice detail shots. I especially appreciated the many pilot interviews as they provide a great first person perspective. I counted 498 black and white photographs, 88 color photographs, 16 color profiles, and 18 black and white drawings. A color map of Sweden's Wings and Air Bases is included as well.

My thanks to Mushroom Model Publications and IPMS/USA for the chance to review this great book.

Highly recommended!