Book Review of
Paradise Afire
Vol. 3: The Sri Lankan War, 1990-1994
Asia @ War Series No. 17, Vol. 3
Author: Adrien Fontanellaz
Helion & Co. Ltd.
ISBN: 978-1-913118-62-4
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright 2020
MSRP: $29.95
ISBN: 978-1-913118-62-4
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright 2020
MSRP: $29.95
HISTORY:
In June 1990, just three months after the Indian Peace Keeping Force withdrawal from Sri Lanka, the war between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the Sri Lankan government resumed and was to continue unabated until another formal cease-fire in the first days of January 1995.
This period of the protracted Sri Lankan civil war, known as Eelam War II, saw not only the LTTE evolve into a fully-fledged semi-conventional force, but also gain the reputation of being one of most innovative and professional armed groups of the time.
The Sri Lankan armed forces were no underdogs however. On the contrary, and despite numerous flaws that plagued their efforts, they were anything but passive, launching multiple offensives which were part of a cohesive and well thought-out strategy, all the while benefiting from the leadership of several extremely gifted officers, foremost Brigadier General Denzil Kobbekaduwa.
The two warring parties that repeatedly fought each other in battles and campaigns of size and intensity thus far unheard of, inflicting telling blows upon one another, but with neither able to gain the upper hand in the long run – until the two sides entered into a new round of negotiations which halted the conflict for just a few months.
THE BOOK:
Helion & Co. is based in England.
This book is soft-cover of 72 pages in 8 ¼” x 11 ¾” page format. Two pages are blank.
The cover art shows a black and white photo of 5 Sri Lankan infantry-men atop a T-55 tank and 2 more men beside it. At the bottom of the page is a color side profile illustration of a F7-BS fighter that was with no, 5 Jet Squadron in 1991.
The back cover has the history of the war at the top, with some book content mentioned, over a color side profile of a Sri Lankan Bell 212 helicopter.
The book contains 51 black and white photos, no color photos, 6 maps, 7 data lists, a chart of a Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) infantry platoon breakdown circa 1992. Abbreviations, photos of Sri Lankan Army (SLA) infantry-men, a SLA Saladin armored car, 2 photos of a SLA Buffel truck, a photo of a Tiger, 2 photos of a SLA T-55, 2 photos of a SLA Type 52, a SLA Type 56 and a BMP-1, a Sri Lankan Navy (SLN) Dvora Mk. 1 Class Fast Patrol Craft, 2 photos of a SLN “Shanhai” Class Coastal & anti-submarine Warfare Patrol Craft.
The color profiles show: a LTTE infantry-man and their insignia badge, SLA Major General Denzil Kobbekaduwa, a SLA Bell 212 helicopter, a SLA Marchetti SF-260TP, a SLA “Percura”, a SLA MI-17 helicopter, a SLA Hawker “Siddeley”and a Shaanxi Y-8 transport, a SLA “Saladin” armored car, 2 illustrations of SLA “Buffel” trucks, 2 illustrations of SLA T-55’s, a SLA Type 85 tank, a SLA Chinese copy of a Soviet BMP-1, a SLA Chinese built Type 86.
This is one neat book about this little known war and the vehicles, ships and aircraft used. It will be of interest to modelers and military historians alike.
I want to sincerely thank Casemate Publishers, the North American distributor of Helion Books. All Helion titles can be viewed on Casemates website at:
This period of the protracted Sri Lankan civil war, known as Eelam War II, saw not only the LTTE evolve into a fully-fledged semi-conventional force, but also gain the reputation of being one of most innovative and professional armed groups of the time.
The Sri Lankan armed forces were no underdogs however. On the contrary, and despite numerous flaws that plagued their efforts, they were anything but passive, launching multiple offensives which were part of a cohesive and well thought-out strategy, all the while benefiting from the leadership of several extremely gifted officers, foremost Brigadier General Denzil Kobbekaduwa.
The two warring parties that repeatedly fought each other in battles and campaigns of size and intensity thus far unheard of, inflicting telling blows upon one another, but with neither able to gain the upper hand in the long run – until the two sides entered into a new round of negotiations which halted the conflict for just a few months.
THE BOOK:
Helion & Co. is based in England.
This book is soft-cover of 72 pages in 8 ¼” x 11 ¾” page format. Two pages are blank.
The cover art shows a black and white photo of 5 Sri Lankan infantry-men atop a T-55 tank and 2 more men beside it. At the bottom of the page is a color side profile illustration of a F7-BS fighter that was with no, 5 Jet Squadron in 1991.
The back cover has the history of the war at the top, with some book content mentioned, over a color side profile of a Sri Lankan Bell 212 helicopter.
The book contains 51 black and white photos, no color photos, 6 maps, 7 data lists, a chart of a Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) infantry platoon breakdown circa 1992. Abbreviations, photos of Sri Lankan Army (SLA) infantry-men, a SLA Saladin armored car, 2 photos of a SLA Buffel truck, a photo of a Tiger, 2 photos of a SLA T-55, 2 photos of a SLA Type 52, a SLA Type 56 and a BMP-1, a Sri Lankan Navy (SLN) Dvora Mk. 1 Class Fast Patrol Craft, 2 photos of a SLN “Shanhai” Class Coastal & anti-submarine Warfare Patrol Craft.
The color profiles show: a LTTE infantry-man and their insignia badge, SLA Major General Denzil Kobbekaduwa, a SLA Bell 212 helicopter, a SLA Marchetti SF-260TP, a SLA “Percura”, a SLA MI-17 helicopter, a SLA Hawker “Siddeley”and a Shaanxi Y-8 transport, a SLA “Saladin” armored car, 2 illustrations of SLA “Buffel” trucks, 2 illustrations of SLA T-55’s, a SLA Type 85 tank, a SLA Chinese copy of a Soviet BMP-1, a SLA Chinese built Type 86.
This is one neat book about this little known war and the vehicles, ships and aircraft used. It will be of interest to modelers and military historians alike.
I want to sincerely thank Casemate Publishers, the North American distributor of Helion Books. All Helion titles can be viewed on Casemates website at:
Highly recommended.