In 1942 Ian Allan published his first ground-breaking book - abc of Southern Locomotives - and from this initial success a company was formed. Since then the company has gone from strength to strength as a leading independent publisher of books and magazines. In 2002 the company celebrated 60 years in the business. During this time it has grown from a small producer of books for train enthusiasts and spotters to a dedicated transport publisher producing high quality illustrated titles on an enormous range of largely transport related subjects.     Classic Publications, a pre-eminent publisher of high quality aviation titles, was added to our growing cluster of interests in 2002, bringing to the company another imprint firmly established as a principal player in the World War 2 aviation market and complementing ideally the other Ian Allan Publishing imprint disciplines.