Compared to the People’s Liberation Army Air Force and Naval Aviation, the PLA’s Army Aviation is the least known and understood of the country’s air arms. Its formation was only approved in 1986 and it was established as the Army Aviation Corps in January 1988, using helicopters inherited from the Air Force. Beginning as a single regiment, the first true Army Aviation brigade was formed in 2009 and the force has now expanded to around a dozen frontline units operating hundreds of different helicopters. In its current form, Army Aviation has established itself as a major force in support of the PLA Ground Forces.

In April 2017 – and in parallel with China’s other two air arms – the Army Aviation began a dramatic reorganisation. The former PLA Group Armies were restructured, and the aviation units have undergone major changes. This trend has included not only the introduction of larger numbers of more modern helicopters, but also the establishment of newly numbered aviation brigades. Consequently, while the PLA Ground Forces generally face a reduction in numbers, the Army Aviation brigades will probably see expansion, not only in size but also in operational importance.

Complementing Harpia’s two fully revised volumes dedicated to the PLAAF and Naval Aviation, this uniquely compact yet comprehensive directory provides a magnificently illustrated, in-depth analysis and directory of modern Chinese Army Aviation air power. It is organised in four parts: the most important military aircraft and their weapons in service today; aircraft markings and serial number systems; recent modernisation efforts and structural reforms and orders of battle for the PLA’s Army Aviation.

As America’s expeditionary force-in-readiness, the US Marine Corps operates an eclectic mix of fixed-wing, rotary-wing, tiltrotor and unmanned aircraft to support the marine rifleman on the ground. The first two decades of the 21st century have seen an almost complete transformation of the marine air wings, as Cold War-era legacy aircraft yield to digital-age replacements. In Harpia’s first book dedicated to a North American air arm, Joe Copalman explains the significance of each aircraft transition in the Marine Corps over the previous 20 years – community by community – on the Marine Air-Ground Task Force and its ability to conduct amphibious and expeditionary warfare.

While some of these transitions, like that of the KC-130T to KC-130J and AH-1W to AH-1Z, have been incremental, evolutionary steps up, others like the tandem-rotor CH-46 Sea Knight to the tiltrotor MV-22 Osprey and the introduction of the F-35 Lightning II to replace all three of the Marine Corps’ tactical jets have revolutionised the way the service fights. In addition to introducing newer, vastly more capable and connected aircraft into its air wings, the Marine Corps has also invested heavily in keeping its remaining legacy fleets at the cutting edge of lethality and survivability throughout the final days of each type’s service.

Utilising a before-and-after approach, Copalman guides the reader through every transition in Modern USMC Air Power, examining what each legacy aircraft brought to the fight, and how the service’s newer platforms have improved upon those capabilities, especially when aided by new constructs like precision-guided ordnance and digital interoperability.

The international community has not only acknowledged China’s continuing rise as a world power but has also closely observed Beijing regain its place in the international community and grow to become a dominant player in the Far East. Despite the difficulty in obtaining relevant information, Harpia’s Modern Chinese Warplanes series has filled an important void in recent years, focusing on the current situation, the structure of this growing force, its order of battle, and the latest types in service and under development.

Now, and in order to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force on 11 November 2019, this new book turns its attention to the history since Mao’s Communist Party took control of the country in 1949. Chinese Air Power in the 20th Century examines the different periods, explains the political events behind them and they connect to military developments, individual structure and capabilities.

The title also includes an assessment of how the political climate influenced the design and development of the country’s major military aircraft including the fighters, attack aircraft and bombers created by the Chinese aviation industry after World War II. This also includes a number of design proposals which, for various reasons, were rejected or abandoned. This comprehensive directory provides a lavishly illustrated, in-depth analysis and overview of the historical gestation of the PLAAF and its path to becoming the modern air arm we know today.

Russian military aviation has undergone several upheavals in the post-Soviet era. There have been two driving forces behind these changes. First, the Russian experience of air power in conflicts has led to an increasing integration of the various branches of the armed forces. Today’s VKS was created as a result of the absorption of the Air Defence Troops (VPVO) by the Air Force (VVS) in 1998, and then a merger of the Air Force with the Aerospace Defence Troops (VVKO) in 2015.

Meanwhile, Russia has adapted to financial realities, with insignificant defence spending throughout the 1990s followed by rapid expansion as the global price of oil increased since the beginning of the 21st century. Mass purchases of aircraft and helicopters began in 2009, and the proportion of modern equipment in Russia’s Aerospace Forces now exceeds 75%. The fourth title in Harpia Publishing’s series on Russian military aviation details all fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and other aerial vehicles operated by Russia’s military air arms.

Like the previous volumes, Flashpoint Russia is a comprehensive reference work, presenting organisational structure and the quantitative potential of Russian military aviation. The centrepiece of the book describes the current order of battle of the Aerospace Forces (VKS) and other operators of military aircraft in Russia and includes all the country’s aviation units. Other chapters cover Russia’s approach to purchases of arms and military equipment, and priority air programmes for the next decade.