EDITOR of this No. 217.
Another big number of PLANES than this one! If articles like those on such famous subjects as the Japanese Imperial Army or the Grumman F6F Hellcat are prime pieces, we have chosen to introduce you to the history of two gigantic aircraft Mysterious: the Messerschmitt Me 321 heavy glider and its tug Heinkel He 111 Z, a kind of Frankenstein monster coupling two He 111 H-6 bombers and equipped with five engines! The career of these two giants is all the more interesting because half of it took place on the eastern front and half in the sky of France, which is too often ignored. The following pages are for you to learn more ...
You will probably appreciate other French subjects, such as the recent interception by our Air Force of the last Russian supersonic bomber Tu-160 "Blackjack", the unpublished biography of Pierre Malvoisin, the best fighter pilot of the Navy In 1914-1918 or the strange seaplane designed in the early 1920s by the "hussar of Death" Charles Nungesser. And if you miss the mediterranean sun, let yourself be tempted by the Spanish adventures of the Henschel Hs 126.
I will conclude by giving you unreserved advice on our next Special Edition devoted to the loss of the Messerschmitt Me 262 during the Second World War, an exceptional work, never yet done, even in English or German. This work, due to the talent of Philippe Saintes, will appear next June; It will include 35 color profiles and more than 250 photographs, as well as biographies of pilots, numerous testimonials, annexes on all the units that have used the "Schwalbe" as well as the complete list of the demands of Me 262 from the pilots Hunting and reconnaissance and the Commonwealth.
Christophe Cony
Summary:
- The twilight of the giants: the Arbeitsstab Hptm Pöhl (full story). By Jean-Louis Roba, with the participation of Christophe Cony and Daniel Gilberti.
- ARAWASI: the "wild eagles" of the Japanese Imperial Army
(Part I). By Bernard Baëza.
- News: The Tu-160 "Blackjack" plays Russian roulette. The Air Force chooses the Pilatus PC-21 as a new training aircraft. By Jan Bedrich.
- The underside of history. 1923: the funny bird of Nungesser (full story). By Christophe Cony.
- The Grumman F6F Hellcat in the Second World War, 7th part: 1944, the decisive year. By Michel Ledet.
- Pierre Malvoisin, The first fighter of the "naval air" (full story). By Christophe Cony.
- The Henschel Hs 126 in Spain, from the baptism of fire to the end of a species (2nd and last part). By José Miguel Sales Lluch and Juan Carlos Salgado.
- Info-Recreation. By Michel Ledet and Christophe Cony.
In front page
A Heinkel He 111 Z of the Arbeitsstab Hptm Pöhl in flight over France mid-1943, towing a heavy glider Messerschmitt Me 321. (painting by Lionel Labeyrie).
