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The German Heavy Cruiser Prinz Eugen Kagero TopDrawings No. 86 via Casemate UK ISBN : 9788366148734 The Prinz Eugen was the third ship of the Admiral Hipper Class of German WWII Heavy Cruisers. While allegedly designed to meet the terms of the Anglo-German Naval Agreement at 10000 tons she was in fact over 16000 tons. With a length of 207m, a beam of 21.7 and a draught of 7.2m she was a formidable cruiser armed with eight 20.3cm guns in four turrets. In addition to these there were 12 x 10.5cm, 12 x 37mm guns, and 8 x 20mm guns. A pair of 533mm torpedo tubes were fitted. Three Ar 196 aircraft were also carried, Laid down in 1936, she was launched in 1938 and commissioned in August 1940 after a slight delay due to damage suffered in an RAF raid. In May of 1941 along with the Bismarck they transited through the Denmark Straights shadowed by Royal Navy Vessels HMS Suffolk & Norfolk. The RN had sent HMS Hood and HMS Price of Wales out to intercept the ships and they met on the 24th May. At 0600 HMS Hood was hit by a Salvo from Bismarck and exploded. Bismarck would then be sunk on 27th May and Prinz Eugen made for Brest for repairs, She would then take part in the "Channel Dash" before going on to serve in the Baltic. She was one of a few large German vessels to survive the war, and was awarded to the US as a war prize., while the US did not really want her, the alternative was the USSR which they did not want even more. As the USS Prinz Eugen it was found increasingly difficult to keep her operational once the German crew were repatriated. She was towed to the Pacific and used in Atomic Bob testing where she survived two explosions. After being decommissioned in 1946 she capsized and sank at Kwajalein Atoll. In 2018 the USN removed all the fuel oil from the wreck as it was starting to leak. The USN Museum still holds the ships bell while one propeller was salvaged and is in place at the Laboe Naval Memorial in Germany, This is the latest book from Kagero in their Top Drawing series, and like the previous books it has a brief history and the ships specifications at the beginning. The rest of the 27 pages are filled with beautifully drawn diagrams of almost every piece of equipment on the ship. Unusually for this series there aren’t any drawings of the hull, the largest section being covered is the superstructure. The main reason for the book is the double sided A2 foldout sheet, with line drawings scrap view of the ship on the other side. Conclusion This is another good book in the series. The pullout sheet is also wonderful to see. This is certainly a very useful book for all modellers. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of