Dennis Oliver

During the spring and summer of 1944 a series of Soviet offensives, culminating in Operation Bagration which was launched on 22 June, threatened to destroy the entire German army on the Eastern Front. As infantry units scrambled to hold makeshift defensive positions the mobile Panzer battalions were the only formations that were able to plug the increasing number of gaps in the frontline. One of the most important weapons in the Wehrmacht''s arsenal at that time was the Pzkpfw V Panther tank which had gone into combat for the first time in July 1943. Armed with a powerful 7.5cm main gun, these tanks were capable of penetrating the armour of the strongest Soviet designs and it was planned that every Panzer regiment would eventually contain a battalion of these impressive vehicles. In his latest volume in the TankCraft series Dennis Oliver continues the story of these remarkable vehicles using archive photos and extensively researched colour illustrations to examine the Panther battalions that fought to hold back the Red Army''s push to the borders of Germany during 1944. A key section of his book displays available model kits and aftermarket products, complemented by a gallery of beautifully constructed and painted models in various scales. Technical details as well as modifications introduced during production and in the field are also examined providing everything the modeller needs to recreate an accurate representation of these historic tanks.

From their introduction in 1940, the Wehrmacht''s Sturmgeschütz assault guns played an essential role in the campaigns of the Blitzkrieg era, the titanic struggles in Russia and the final defensive battles of the war. Evolving from a mobile bunker-buster, armed with a short-barrelled howitzer, the Sturmgeschütz was up-armoured and up-gunned and by 1943 it was increasingly employed as a tank killer. In 1944, largely as an emergency quick-fix, the Sturmgeschütz IV entered service and over 1,000 examples had been built by the end of the war. As the Wehrmacht’s resources continued to decline the assault guns were thrown into every operation and increasingly substituted for gun tanks in official unit establishments. In the third volume in the TankCraft series to examine the Sturmgeschütz, Dennis Oliver employs official documentation and unit histories to investigate the formations that operated the Sturmgeschütz IV and uses archive photos and extensively researched colour illustrations to examine the markings, camouflage and technical aspects of the vehicles that served on the Eastern Front during the last months of the campaign. A key section of his book displays available model kits and aftermarket products, complemented by a gallery of beautifully constructed and painted models in various scales. Technical details as well as modifications introduced during production and in the field are also examined, providing everything the modeller needs to recreate an accurate representation of these historic vehicles.

From their introduction in 1940, the German army''s Sturmgeschütz assault guns played a vital role in the campaigns of the Blitzkrieg era, the gargantuan struggles in Russia and the final defensive battles. Evolving from a mobile bunker-buster, armed with a short-barrelled howitzer, the Sturmgeschütz III was up-armoured and up-gunned and by 1943 its tank killing abilities were widely recognised. In 1944, largely as an emergency quick-fix, the Sturmgeschütz IV entered service and over 10,000 examples of both versions had been built by the end of the war. Although not as well known as the Tiger or Panther tanks, they were among the most frequently encountered German armoured vehicles and as the Wehrmacht’s resources continued to decline, the assault guns were thrown into every operation and increasingly substituted for gun tanks in official unit establishments. In the second volume in the TankCraft series to examine the Sturmgeschütz, Dennis Oliver employs official documentation and unit histories to investigate the formations that operated these vehicles and uses archive photos and extensively researched colour illustrations to examine the markings, camouflage and technical aspects of the Sturmgeschütz III and Sturmgeschütz IV that served on the Eastern Fronts during what was almost certainly the pivotal year of the campaign. A key section of his book displays available model kits and aftermarket products, complemented by a gallery of beautifully constructed and painted models in various scales. Technical details as well as modifications introduced during production and in the field are also examined, providing everything the modeller needs to recreate an accurate representation of these historic vehicles.