The Scimitar File by Eric Morgan & John Stevens

ISBN 0-7110-2034-5

Published by Air Britain

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221 packed pages of development and service history, squadron and individual airframe histories but mostly 'I was there' recollections from pilots and maintainers. Highly readable too - not at all dry or hard work to get through. Colour content is limited though - and some of the colour profile drawings have various detail errors so should not be relied upon in isolation. These are about the only minor quibbles I can offer though - overall this is the book on the Scimitar and if you have any interest in the type at all this should be in your collection.

Scimitar - Supermarine's Last Fighter by Richard A Franks

ISBN 978-1-905414-10-9

Published by Dalrymple & Verdun Publishing, 2009

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Excellent softback book with development and service history, lots of photos, detail diagrams and colour profiles, plus a listing of each Javelin with basic history details. Highly recommended.

Scimitar - From the Cockpit by Michael J. Doust

ISBN 0-946958-54-8

Published by Ad Hoc Publications

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Another excellent volume on the Scimitar, at 84 pages somewhat of a 'Scimitar File lite' in that it consists primarily of recollections from pilots and maintainers (at least one of which is reprinted from the Scimitar File) with less of the detail and only the briefest of historical information. Photographs, many of which are also in the Scimitar file, are generally reproduced larger and with better quality in this book, and the selection of colour profiles is much better with all of them showing more detail and attention to differences between individual airframes - still a few errors though, mostly in stencil details (which varied a lot from aircraft to aircraft). Definitely worth getting.

Warpaint No.85 - Supermarine Type 508, 525 & Scimitar by Tony Buttler

Published by Warpaint Books Ltd.

Tony Buttler is name you can rely upon for well-researched material and this volume is no exception. Coverage of the Types 508 and 525 takes up around a quarter of this 40 page monograph, which covers the type's development and service history as well as you could possibly expect in the limited space available. It is packed full of photographs (mostly in black and white) and colour profiles, as is the Warpaint norm. The profiles are beautifully drawn and look to be generally accurate, an improvement on past Warpaint books though the representation of the shorter and more rounded nose on early aircraft is barely different to the standard nose so you need to be careful and check against photos rather than relying on the profiles entirely. Overall, one of the best Warpaint volumes so far and well worth getting hold of.

Scimitar by David Gibbings & J.A. Gorman

ISBN 0 948251 39 5

Published by Society of Friends of the Fleet Air Arm Museum

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A monograph on the Scimitar, with brief squadron histories, development history and so on. A good selection of pictures you won't see elsewhere plus basic camouflage scheme side views for modellers and annotated pictures of the cockpit. Recommended.

Postwar Military Aircraft 7; Supermarine Attacker, Swift and Scimitar by Philip Birtles

ISBN 0-7110-2034-5

Published by Ian Allan

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Was for a good while one of very few tomes on the Scimitar, and even then only devotes around a quarter of the book to it. A good number of photos and a good history of the development and service. Somewhat superseded these days but worth getting if you can find a copy.