Military Model Scene

Title: Soviet Motor Torpedo Boats of WWII
Author: Przemyslaw Budzbon
Publisher: Osprey
ISBN: 978-1-4728-6660-8

Number 336 in the New Vanguard series from Osprey, a 48-page soft-cover book.
Written by a former Soviet naval architect this is the first English book on the subject and along with illustrations by Waldemar Goralski and Piotr Forkasiewicz. The artwork includes 3/4 views of a number of boat variants, cutaway illustration of the G5 boat plus some battlescenes. Influenced by the success of the British Thorneycroft designed CMBs (Coastal Motor Boats) in 1919 at Kronshtadt during the Russian Revolution, the Soviets wanted this style of fast torpedo boats. They faced problems over material, as they didn't have access to mahogany and didn't have the expertise in boat building to make the planned 50 knot boats. I hadn't known they turned to the aviation industry and it ended up with Andrei Tupolev designing them. Using duralumin hulls, which had corrosion issues with seawater and difficulty getting suitable engines, it leads into the building of the G5 series. Used particularly in the Baltic and the Black Sea, they were used for multiple roles, landing troops, minelaying and even fitted them with Katyusha rocket launchers. As well as the development story, the final section goes through their war service, and the addition of Lend-Lease boats as well. In addition to the artwork there are plenty of archive photos throughout the book. I found this one particularly interesting and learnt a lot more about these aerodynamically designed fast boats.
Thanks to Osprey for the review copy.

Robin