Osprey's Big Reveal: Elite

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Today's instalment of the Big Reveal looks at the Elite series, which has five new additions coming in 2017.

Vietnam War US & Allied Combat Equipments

Over the eight years of the Vietnam War, US forces used three major types of equipment sets, with numerous modifications for particular circumstances. Different equipments were also used by Special Forces, the South Vietnamese, and other allied ground troops.

Vietnam War US & Allied Combat Equipments offers a comprehensive examination of the gear that US and allied soldiers had strapped around their bodies, what they contained, and what those items were used for. Fully illustrated with photographs and artwork detailing how each piece of equipment was used, and written by a Special Forces veteran of the conflict, this book will fascinate students of military equipment and will be an ideal reference guide for re-enactors, modellers and collectors of Vietnam War memorabilia.

The Modern Russian Army 1992–2016

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia's army has undergone a turbulent transformation, from the scattered left-overs of the old Soviet military, through a period of shocking decay and demoralization, to the disciplined force and sophisticated 'hybrid war' doctrine that enabled Vladimir Putin to seize Crimea virtually overnight in 2014.
Using rare photographs and full colour images of the army in action, profiles of army leaders and defence ministers, as well as orders of battle and details of equipment and dress, this is a vivid account of the army’s troubled history and of its current character, capabilities and status.

World War II German Motorized Infantry & Panzergrenadiers

In World War II Germany's doctrine of mobile warfare dominated the battlefield. By trial and error, the Germans were the first to correctly combine their strength in tanks and in mobile infantry and artillery. This integration of mobile units, equipment and tactics underpinned Germany's successes in the first half of the war. As the war dragged on, the Allies sought to copy German tactics but German armies remained supreme in this type of warfare until their losses had seriously degraded their capabilities.
This study traces the development of the different types of unit that came together in the Panzergrenadier branch from the inter-war years through World War II. Using colour plates to display the changes in uniform, equipment and insignia in all theatres of operations throughout the conflict, this is a complete account of Hitler’s elite armoured infantry.

D-Day Beach Assault Troops

In the early hours of June 6, the first of 1944, over 150,000 Allied soldiers stormed five beaches in Normandy against fierce German resistance. They were specially trained and task-organized in a range of different landing teams depending on their means of transport, their tasks, and the resistance they anticipated. The first assault infantry were accompanied by tankers, combat engineers, and other specialist personnel, to breach German obstacles, knock out defensive positions, and to defend and prepare the beaches for the follow-on waves. On some beaches the plans worked, on others they were disrupted by bad weather, faulty timing, or enemy fire, with consequences that varied from survivable confusion to absolute carnage. This is an in-depth study of the uniforms, equipment, weapons, passage, landings, and tactics of specific US, British and Canadian units during the period from before H-Hour on June 6 to dawn on June 7.

European Counter-Terrorist Units 1972–2017

The Munich Olympics massacre in 1972 provided a shock awakening to the public. In the decades since, European countries have faced a wide range of terrorists (Palestinian, home-grown, and more recently world-wide jihadists), and an equally wide range of threats, so governments have had to invest ever-greater efforts in countering these threats. This book traces the evolution of police (and associated military) CT forces across Europe; their organization, missions, specialist equipment, and their growing cross-border co-operation. While the public may think of these squads simply as 'men in black', there is a surprisingly wide range of uniforms and personal equipment to illustrate, and the author has access to many rare photos.

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