Special Ops Volume 36.
Contains one article entitled “Task Force Baghdad, With the 1st Cavalry (First Team) in Iraq”

Reviewed by Frank De Sisto

Summary

FirstRead

While the names of the authors of this latest book are nowhere to be seen anywhere between the covers, Concord’s web site does indeed state that this is a product of the intrepid duo of Mr. Debay and Mr. Schulz. These men are always in the thick of things and we, who sit at home, can get a better appreciation of this conflict thanks to their efforts. This is especially apparent in the text, as it is full of anecdotes by participants, which not only lends this book a degree of immediacy, but also makes it a very interesting read. The text also includes background information on organization, mission and equipment, backed up by a list of acronyms, an order-of-battle listing and a small table describing aviation losses for a period in 2004. All of which represents “tasty” and interesting stuff.

There is a very wide selection of AFVs, soft-skins and aircraft covered in the 198 excellent color photos, as well as ordnance, uniforms and individual weapons. The “big stuff” includes: M1A1 AIM, M1A2 SEP, M2A2 Bradley ODS, M2A3 Bradley, M4 C2V, M9 ACE, M88A1, M88A2 Hercules, M102 105mm light howitzer, M109A6 Paladin, M113A3, M992A2 FAASV, M1037 Avenger, M1068A3 SICPS, OH-58D(I) Kiowa Warrior, UH-60L Blackhawk, AH-64D Apache Longbow (plus earlier version without Longbow radar, which is consistently mis-captioned as being the Longbow version), Shadow 2000 TUAV, HEMTT, HETS, HMMWV, and Buffalo MPCV. There is a huge amount of variety in fittings seen on the vehicles and aircraft, including weapons and surveillance gear. Uniforms include infantry, armor and flight crew items, including the unique traditional black Stetson hat worn by aviators. The captions are extensive and informative, as is to be expected.

There is literally tons of stuff between these covers of interest to modelers of several disciplines. This book is also, in my opinion, one of the finest from Concord dealing with the on-going war against terrorism. Modern-era modelers MUST get this one!

Highly Recommended

Reviewer’s note: Since May of 2005, I have been working on books for Concord Publications. The reader may wish to take this into consideration. For my part, I will attempt to maintain an objective viewpoint when writing these reviews.

 

Concord Publications are available from retail and mail order shops, or from the publisher at: http://www.concord-publications.com