Luftwaffe Colours, vol. 1, sec. 3, Jagdwaffe: Blitzkrieg and Sitzkrieg: Poland and France, 1939–1940, by Eric Mombeek with J. Richard Smith and Eddie J. Creek. Classic Publications (http://www.classic-books.co.uk), Friars Gate Farm, Mardens Hill, Crowborough, East Sussex TN6 1XH, England, 2000, 93 pages, £12.95.

Well-known Belgian researcher and author Eric Mombeek and Classic Publications of England have produced a series of books about aircraft markings of the Jagdwaffe, the Luftwaffe’s fighter arm. If Blitzkrieg and Sitzkrieg is any indication of the quality of the other books in this series, it will likely be a very profitable endeavor.

Although this 93-pager contains hundreds of pictures, drawings, and color plates, it is by no means a coffee-table book. Mombeek takes the reader on a fast but enjoyable trip inside the Luftwaffe during part of the period before the invasion of Poland- the so-called Sitzkrieg in France. He adds combat reports, personal accounts, the birth of night-fighting units, serviceability rates, and breakdowns of the Luftwaffe’s organizational and command structure, all of which make the book both informative and interesting. For those of us who have never heard of it, Mombeek also discusses the history of the Kunstflugstaffel- the German national aerobatic team, formed in 1938.

The publisher has spared no expense in printing very rare and seldom-seen photographs throughout the book. In addition to pictures of Luftwaffe personalities, pilots, and crews, the book includes photographs and color plates of Luftwaffe aircraft; rare unit, national, and individual aircraft markings; and unique camouflage patterns that disappeared before the Battle of Britain. It was refreshing to see these markings in color for the first time, bringing to life images seen only in black and white for the past half century.

Blitzkrieg and Sitzkrieg does an excellent job of filling a specialized niche in the literature- perhaps better than any other book of its type. Artists and modelers will be especially happy with the information they find here, as will readers looking for unique pictures, accurate color schemes of Luftwaffe aircraft, and markings of units and/or individual aircraft. This is a first-rate effort, and I look forward to reading the other books in this series.

Lt Col Robert F. Tate, USAFR
Maxwell AFB, Alabama