Bristol Beaufighter Mk VIc, Mk X and Mk XI in NW Europe: Wingleader Photo Archive Number 14

An introduction to the NEW Wingleader Photo Archive Series.‍

For quite a few years, Simon Parry and Mark Postlethwaite have been building up a huge library of original WWII aviation photos, partly as a hobby but mainly to help provide photos for the books that they publish.  With over 30,000 now in the collection, they realised that they had more than enough to produce a series of photo books on individual aircraft types and sub-types.  They set out to make the series as ideally suited to modellers and artists as possible, so large photos, using A4 landscape format, and minimal text except for extended captions.  Effectively their aim is to produce a 21st Century version of the Profile Publications series of books from the 1960s, using the latest technology to reproduce their wartime photos to the highest standard possible.

This series is unique in that it will be able to provide large format ORIGINAL photos up to full A4 landscape format width, which is at least 50% larger than any standard book can deliver.  Combined with the specialist knowledge of a team of historians and contributors, each book should provide unbeatable and accurate references for any modelling or painting project.

Following our first volume on the Beaufighter which covered the early Mks and was predominantly about the night fighter versions, this volume covers the later wartime Mks and is mainly concerned therefore with the strike fighter versions. ‍

The UK based Beaufighter Strike Wings caused havoc to shipping from Norway to France, with the heavily armed Beau perfectly capable of firing bullets, cannon shells and rockets at you, not to mention dropping torpedoes, depth charges and bombs to really ruin your day!‍

In this book, renowned Beaufighter expert Terry Higgins and modelling legend Neil Robinson share their deep knowledge of the subject and identify the various modifications, paint schemes and upgrades that were applied to the Beau during this period.  It was a very complicated task which took them over a year to complete.

As always, we’ve optimised every photo to help the reader look deep into the shadows to see these features and have labelled them where necessary. ‍

We hope you enjoy the results of Terry and Neil’s hard work!