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Showing results for tags 'angola'.
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A bit late to the party - but my first attempt at a group build where I have actually had a bit of time to stick some plastic together. I am building the excellent Tamiya 1/48 scale kit of the T-55, OOTB with the Star Decals 48B1003 set. I want to represent the Angolan tanks used during the "Bush War" in the 70's and 80's. Depending on time, I hope to put this on a suitable base to represent the type of terrain found in Angola. I have been reading up on the conflict using the Africa@War series of books, specifically the No 34: War of Intervention in Angola, Vol2. There is a nice colour view of the T-55, and a few photos. I am also using a lot of Google image searches to see if there are any pictures of T-55's. Found a few pictures of abandoned or captured tanks and not many others. I'm interested in the configurations of these tanks and what kind of things where carried on the tanks in terms of additional kit. That is where more photos would be really useful. One reference I found suggested that a long tube on the right of the turret was only put on Soviet versions of the tank, and it appears most of the T-55's where from Cuba, or even other Eastern Bloc countries. I have not seen any photos with this tube on - so assuming it is correct to leave it off. What has struck home is the ubiquity of mobile phone cameras and really cheap digital cameras today. That will change the way we can research more recent conflicts vs these times (70's and 80's). Will add photos once I get them uploaded and linked back to a future post. anthony
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War of Intervention in Angola Volume 2: Angolan & Cuban Forces at War 1976-83 ISBN : 9781911628651 Helion & Company via Casemate UK It would seem depressing that throughout the 1970s and beyond that there was some kind of war in Angola. In 1975 the decades long war seemed was still short of any conclusion This was not helped by the fact there were three rebel movements fighting for supremacy with South Africa, America, Zaire, Cuba, and the Soviet Union being involved as well. The South African intervention in Angola, and the Cuban involvement are perhaps the most well known, however the CIA were actively trying to destabilise the country, in part to recoup some prestige following the events in Vietnam. Volume 1 which we reviewed here concentrated on the lesser known period of the final stages of withdrawal by the Portuguese Colonial forces, the build up of the three insurgent forces; and the initial intervention by Cuban forces in the region. Now in volume 2 we look at how the civil war looked decided. The MPLA had established itself in power supported by a large number of Cuban forces, with its opposition split and in disarray; however the war continued to drag on. The MPLA did not defeat UNITA in Southern Angola and then they faced an internal Coup which resulted in a blood letting. Many members were tortured or killed, while others defected to the opposition. The Soviets took advantage of this to increase their presence, and led the South African Forces to resume supporting UNITA and launch further attacks. The book looks at the forces on both sides of the conflict, some history of the region and how the main battles were fought. This volume is A4 soft back in format and 80 pages. There are over 100 rare black and white photographs throughout with 6 main colour maps, and 18 colour profiles. Conclusion This book should provide readers with a more complete understanding of the of the later conflict in Angola. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of -
War of Intervention in Angola Volume 1: Angolan & Cuban Forces at War 1975-76 ISBN : 9781911628194 Helion & Company via Casemate UK It would seem depressing that throughout the 1970s and beyond that there was some kind of war in Angola. In 1975 the decades long war seemed was still short of any conclusion This was not helped by the fact there were three rebel movements fighting for supremacy with South Africa, America, Zaire, Cuba, and the Soviet Union being involved as well. The South African intervention in Angola, and the Cuban involvement are perhaps the most well known, however the CIA were actively trying to destabilise the country, in part to recoup some prestige following the event in Vietnam. This book concentrates on the lesser known period of the final stages of withdrawal by the Portuguese Colonial forces, the build up of the three insurgent forces; and the initial intervention by Cuban forces in the region. The book looks at the forces on both sides of the conflict, some history of the region and how the main battles were fought. This volume is A4 soft back in format and 80 pages. There are black and white photographs throughout with 2 main colour maps, and 6 pages of colour profiles. Conclusion This book should provide readers with a more complete understanding of the of the early conflict in Angola. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of
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My first attempt at a group build here on Britmodeller. The kit is the Eduard, but I was uncertain which kit to use?? This particular plane was crash-landed in open country and has been listed online as both a MF and BIS. I found a comparison between the two types and apparently a noticeable difference is the amount the spine extends into the tail. The BIS extends the most, so the C340 seems to be a BIS! The plane landed with no missiles or anything else underwing, so that makes it a bit simpler. Also thinking of trying to find a suitable pilot for this kit too. Of course, I put my BIS into storage, and left the MF out. First step will be to dig out the BIS. Found an excellent walk-around of this plane here: http://www.primeportal.net/hangar/philip_homann/mig-21mf/ (it is called a MF in this walk-around). Plan to use the AKAH paints, and the Berna decals. anthony
