Background

I won’t go heavily into the background of the Russian T-34 tank, suffice to say that it is a VERY strong contender for “the tank that won the war”. Certainly, this was so on the Eastern Front of World War Two. It was well suited for the climatic conditions found on this battlefront, with its harsh winters and “muddy season”. Its diesel engine was easier to start in cold conditions than the gasoline engines preferred by the Germans, and its wide tracks allowed it to better handle the muddy and marshy conditions found in much of Russia. It had well-sloped armor that at least in the early days of Operation Barbarossa proved a very tough nut for German anti-tank gunners to crack. And it’s 76 and later 85mm main gun was quite capable of defeating the armor of most German tanks.

The Aircraft

The Heinkel 162 series was a last-ditch effort by the RLM to stop the destruction of Germany’s industries, transportation system and energy distribution by Allied bombing. The project began in September of 1944, with the prototypes first flown in December.

The He-162A versions were mostly wood construction, with the single turbojet engine. It ended up being the fastest jet fighter flown during WW2. The wood construction turned out to be highly problematical, as the glue used was not compatible with the wood, and the second prototype flight ended with one aileron coming apart, and the aircraft crashed, killing the pilot.

The Nakajima Ki27 Type 97 Fighter, code named “Nate” by the Allies, was designed in 1935 to replace the older Type 95 fighter. It served in the Imperial Japanese Army in China beginning in 1938.

Hasegawa has replicated this interesting fighter in fine detail. The parts were crisp with very little flash on the parts or trees. Finely molded rivets cover most of the fighter, and they look very much in scale, and add a lot of realism to the kit.

Assembly of the kit is straightforward, and the fit is good. The one problem area I ran into was where the trailing edge of the wing meets the fuselage. Here, a mismatch between the two requires some filler and sanding. Overall, very little sanding was needed since the parts fit is excellent.

Eduard has re-released its fantastic Spitfire Mk.IXc early version in the Profipack version. When I say fantastic I really mean it. You get 6 sprues (one clear), a set of masks for the clear parts, a fret of prepainted photoetch and decals to finish your airplane with 6 different options (2 in North Africa colors, 4 in European colors) and a small decal sheet with stencils.

Like most airplane models, construction starts with the cockpit. Please note that I used the included Eduard photoetch fret to enhance the cockpit looks. The original cockpit is nicely detailed, with a combination of raised and recessed details, plus decals for the instrument panel, if you choose to go that route. Note: there are no decal seatbelts in this boxing. Actually the in-box decals for the IP –and the IP itself- look so good that I am sure I will use them to improve others kits I have in my stash.

The latest journal of Cross & Cockade International – Winter 2017 Vol 48/4 , features a postcard by G. Hautot showing the Michelin Man, waving a laurel victory wreath at an aerial armada, with the caption, “Our future is in the air.” The postcard was a promotion for the concept of strategic bombing, a “cause” advocated by the Michelin brothers, Andre and Edouard. The year was 1912 and the Michelins organized a series of aviation competitions which included the accurate dropping of bombs. An interesting point to note is that the in the Journal notes about the cover, the Michelin Man is named, that name being, “Bibendum”, a fact of which I nave been unaware since early childhood. Five other postcards in the same series as the that found on the cover of the Journal, appear on the back cover.