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Tankette 47-5 is now in the hands of TNT and should be with you soon. This is the last but one from me as Editor. After 10 years I feel it is time to give someone else a go as Editor & Tom Cole has agreed to take over from issue 48-1.

Here is Paul Middletons review of this latest issue.

REVIEW:
TANKETTE Vol. 47/5
Here we are with the penultimate issue of Volume 47 of Tankette, and the news that after 10 years at the helm, Neil Wharton will be stepping down from the role of editor at the end of this year. Originally Neil volunteered to do the job for 5 years, and this seems to have stretched as he enjoyed himself so much. Tom Cole has volunteered to take over with Volume 48 and is already putting material together. As Neil has said within the magazine, if you have an article for Tankette, send it in. It is far easier for the editor if he has a wider choice of material on hand to put together a balanced magazine. MAFVA is an association of model-making friends, and it relies on input from the membership.
The cover of 47/5 has another excellent cover from the lens of John Woolford, this time of the M8 MHC (Motor Howitzer Carriage) seen at the 2012 War & Peace Show. Tamiya released a kit of this vehicle many years ago which is short of a lot of details and interior. An article covering corrections appeared in Tankette Vol. 16/4 written by the current writer. I would imagine that there are plenty of detail kits from the aftermarket guys, but in those days it was down to plastic card and inventiveness.
Inside on page 2 Neil has put together a photo essay of a cut-away Leopard 1 seen during a Friends of the Tank Museum visit to RMCS Shrivenham this year. The colour pages are certainly proving their worth with photos like these. The regular editorial on page 3 gives Neil the opportunity to talk about his work as editor and plans for the future. Hopefully with more time available next year he can put a few articles together for Tankette.
The first article comes from the pen of Belgian member Raymond Surlemont and discusses the use of Soviet tanks and their crews in Spain during the Civil War 1936-39. As many readers will know, the Spanish Civil War was in many ways used by the supporters of each side (The Fascists were supported by Italy & Germany, the Republicans by Soviet Russia) as a laboratory for developing and trialling tank doctrine, ultimately the ‘Blitzkrieg’ tactics. Raymond’s article covers detailed reports of tank action, including their combat against Italian CV-33 Tankettes. Whilst the information is very interesting, the stilted prose could have used a re-write to make it easier to read.
Dick Harley provides the next article, a philosophical look at the way kit instruction sheets have changed since he took his first tentative steps in the hobby. He points out how those of us that were sticking together Airfix kits in the sixties and earlier actually learned the names of the components from the text, whereas now we rely on the text-free multi-national diagrams.
Ed Storey gives us a write up of the unveiling of an M1917 (US copy of the Renault FT that were supplied to Canada in 1940 as training tanks) that has been restored at the Canadian War Museum. The history of the vehicle and its restoration make an excellent read. This is followed by book reviews.
The centre spread for this issue is the German WW2 Landwasserschlepper amphibian drawn by Hubert Cance in four view 1/35th illustrations. Of course this monster is available from both Bronco, Hobby Boss and Dragon in most versions and a variety of scales now, but the drawings certainly help with visualising this vehicle. David Nicholas supports these drawings with an article on the LWS, and I was surprised to find that three were evaluated by the British after capture. Quite fascinating as I was unaware of this (or had probably forgotten….).
Neil Wharton gives us a review of the reprinted Nuts & Bolts book on the Saurer Rk-7 wheel cum track vehicle, released to coincide with the release of the Hobby Boss kit.
John Ham gives us a review of the LM decal range from Greece and refers to the series of article by Fyll Metsovitis on Greek Armour back in Vols 31/4 & 33/6 of Tankette.
Peter Davenport gives us an excellent article on the Citroen Ambulance based on the Camionette TUB with multiview drawings in 1/48th scale including internal views. This is an update of the material from Mick Bell published in Tankette 31/5 made with the addition of more information. As Peter states, it may not be perfect till a volunteer finds and measures a surviving example. The amusing bit for me was the reference to the internal height of the vehicle being based on the average height of a pre-war Frenchman, perhaps that explains why British designs have a greater headroom? In my family most of the French are a lot shorter than the English, Americans and others, so does that design criteria still exist in France, or do they now allow extra height for export models?
John Ham provides a second article returning to his interest in military rail transport with an in depth review of the Retrokit kit of the WD 40 and 45ton Pollwagon. This includes photos of the model and the real thing and provides useful information to kit builders.
Page 18 is given over to a 1/76th set of drawings by Geoff Lacey of the A.E.C. 4x4 Armoured Command Vehicle L.P. (Low Power) as used by the British Army and allies in WW2 and later. Details are included as is the penthouse attachments that fitted on the side to give more ‘office’ space. At least two of these ACV’s survive, one at I.W.M. Duxford, the other at Blandford in the Royal Signals Museum. As an aside, an old school friend told me he had seen an ‘A.C.V.’ on a Divisional HQ vehicle park in Germany during the 1980’s. I wonder if that is a third example, but may have been one of the 6x6 models produced by A.E.C. post-war (as modelled by Dinky & Matchbox).
Both the rear cover and inside are given over to more photographs taken by Neil at the Friends visit to Shrivenham & the Wheatcroft Collection earlier this year. Excellent colour photos of a variety of exhibits both WW2 and modern, German and British, armour and soft skins. To give it is current formal title, the Joint Services Command & Staff College http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joint_Services_Command_and_Staff_College houses a wide variety of exhibits to support training courses. It caused a bit of angst when some WW2 German exhibits such as the Jagdpanzer IV Lang were sold off into the private market, but at least the Henschel turreted King Tiger went to Bovington.
Another excellent and interesting issue of Tankette.
Paul Middleton 1528 21/10/2012