My Article, Part 2
Mar. 2nd, 2007 04:46 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
frustratedpilotAN APPRAISAL OF AIRCRAFT FOR FLAMES OF WAR: PART 2
From here, we now get into the plastic model kits that are on the market. The principal brands to look for are Minicraft (many of whose products are also made by Trumpeter under the name "Mini Hobby Model") and ARII (a.k.a. MicroAce), although some may be available from Revell-Germany too. Several of the subjects mentioned in the diecast article are also made as plastic kits by these and other manufacturers. So as to not repeat myself, I'll instead forge on to aircraft that haven't been mentioned yet.
* Hawker Tempest--This fighter was developed from the follow-on to the Hurricane, the Typhoon. This model can also proxy for the Typhoon; they look very much alike. The Typhoon has the gun firepower of a Hurricane IIC and double the bomb load, and is the principal ground-attack plane for late-war British in Europe.
* B-26 Marauder--A medium bomber that was used by mid-war and late-war Americans and also briefly by the British in North Africa. Like the B-25, later models had gun packs on the sides of the fuselage for strafing attacks.
* Junkers Ju88--The premier Luftwaffe medium bomber of the War. The bomber version would have been used by early-war and mid-war Germans; there was also a gunship version (developed mainly for night interception of bombers) for ground attack missions on the Russian Front, but by late-war, almost all Ju88s were in the hands of other armies: the Italian Fascists/RSI, the Hungarians, the Rumanians, the Finns--and the Free French, whose partisans captured a factory in the South of France in 1944!
* Heinkel He 111H Spaten ("Spade")--Like the Ju88, the He111 was one of the mainstays of the Luftwaffe bomber force. In first-line combat early-war and mid-war, by late-war the Spaten's role (in tactical terms) had changed to priority transport--making supply drops of ammo and rations to troops on the frontlines.
* Mitsubishi G4M "Betty"--The main heavy bomber for the Japanese Navy early-war and mid-war, and this model can proxy for the Japanese Army's Ki-67 "Peggy" bomber (late-war). While it could carry a large bomb load, and go a long distance with it, the Betty had a major problem--it didn't take battle damage very well. The Peggy was a bit tougher than the Betty, but there weren't enough of them to go around, and by then, the air superiority situation had changed for the worse.
* Grumman (GM) TBF (TBM) Avenger--Created as a replacement for the obsolete Devestator torpedo bomber, the Avenger first saw action at Midway...and became a staple light attack plane for mid-war/late-war American forces in the Pacific. General Motors built most of the Avengers made. The Avenger model can also be used as a Vultee Vengeance--a dive bomber used by mid-war/late-war British in the Far East.
* Kawasaki Ki-61 Hien "Tony"--The Ki-61 was the main supplement/replacement of the early-war Hayabusa in the Japanese Army. "Tony" was dubbed by the Allies because it was initially believed to be an Italian Fiat or Macchi fighter built under license (and the model can proxy Fiat G.55 or Macchi MC202 or MC205 for mid-war/late-war Italians), but in fact was an original Japanese design. The Ki-61 was strictly a counter-air fighter; no bomb racks--the Fiat was the same way. The Macchi had the forward guns of a Stormovik and the bomb load of a P-40.
* Aichi E13A "Jake"--This model is often a shelf-warmer. After all, what good is an unarmed seaplane in Flames of War?--"Jake" is a super-proxy! If you leave off the seaplane floats, Jake will double for a number of early-war strike planes! British--Blackburn Skua. French/American--Vought Vindicator. Soviet--Sukhoi Su-2. Eastern Front Axis (Hungary, Rumania, Spanish "volunteers")--Heinkel He 170. All of these have respectable bomb loads; Skua, Vindicator and Su-2 also pack four forward-firing machine guns...twice the forward firepower of early Stukas!
* Aichi B7A Ryusei "Grace" & Nakajima C6N Saiun "Myrt"--Late-war Japanese Navy planes. The Ryusei was a dive-bomber (replacing the Pearl Harbor-era D3A "Val"), Saiun was a recon aircraft. Like Jake, "Grace" and "Myrt" can also proxy for other nations' dive-bomber types.
* Nakajima Ki-44 Shoki "Tojo"--Interim type between the Hayabusa and the Hayate (see Part 1). Like the Hayate, the Shoki can proxy for Soviet Lavochkin or Mikoyan fighters. Mid-war and late-war Japanese Army.
* Kawanishi N1K2 Shiden-Kai "George"--The main fighter-bomber available to Japanese mid-war/late-war Japanese Army forces. About the same firepower as a Hurricane IIC.
* Bell P-63 KingCobra--The ultimate development of the early-war Bell P-39 AiraCobra. Both Cobras combined a 37mm antitank gun in the nose with four machine guns in the nose and wings. The Soviets received large numbers of Cobras through Lend-Lease and used them extensively on the Russian Front from mid-war on. Cobras were also Lend-Leased to the Free French and the Italian Co-Belligerents.
* Curtiss SB2C Helldiver--Mid-war replacement for the Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bomber. Mostly saw action in the Pacific, though some were supplied to the Greeks, who used them in the Balkans late-war.
* Grumman (GM) F4F (FM) Wildcat--Early-war/mid-war American Navy fighter. About the same firepower as a P-40. Like with the Avenger, General Motors built large numbers of the Wildcat (so Grumman could work on the Hellcat).
* Aichi D3A "Val" & Nakajima B5N "Kate"--Along with the Zero-sen, these two bomber types were the principal combat planes of the Japanese Navy carrier forces at the start of the Pacific War. It was the two-edged sword of Kate's versatility (the fact that it could carry torpedoes or bombs) that wound up costing the Japanese dearly at Midway. By mid-war, both bombers were in the midst of being phased out in favor of more modern planes.
* Nakajima A6M2-N "Rufe"--A Zero-sen fighter fitted with pontoon floats as a seaplane.
More To Come.
From here, we now get into the plastic model kits that are on the market. The principal brands to look for are Minicraft (many of whose products are also made by Trumpeter under the name "Mini Hobby Model") and ARII (a.k.a. MicroAce), although some may be available from Revell-Germany too. Several of the subjects mentioned in the diecast article are also made as plastic kits by these and other manufacturers. So as to not repeat myself, I'll instead forge on to aircraft that haven't been mentioned yet.
* Hawker Tempest--This fighter was developed from the follow-on to the Hurricane, the Typhoon. This model can also proxy for the Typhoon; they look very much alike. The Typhoon has the gun firepower of a Hurricane IIC and double the bomb load, and is the principal ground-attack plane for late-war British in Europe.
* B-26 Marauder--A medium bomber that was used by mid-war and late-war Americans and also briefly by the British in North Africa. Like the B-25, later models had gun packs on the sides of the fuselage for strafing attacks.
* Junkers Ju88--The premier Luftwaffe medium bomber of the War. The bomber version would have been used by early-war and mid-war Germans; there was also a gunship version (developed mainly for night interception of bombers) for ground attack missions on the Russian Front, but by late-war, almost all Ju88s were in the hands of other armies: the Italian Fascists/RSI, the Hungarians, the Rumanians, the Finns--and the Free French, whose partisans captured a factory in the South of France in 1944!
* Heinkel He 111H Spaten ("Spade")--Like the Ju88, the He111 was one of the mainstays of the Luftwaffe bomber force. In first-line combat early-war and mid-war, by late-war the Spaten's role (in tactical terms) had changed to priority transport--making supply drops of ammo and rations to troops on the frontlines.
* Mitsubishi G4M "Betty"--The main heavy bomber for the Japanese Navy early-war and mid-war, and this model can proxy for the Japanese Army's Ki-67 "Peggy" bomber (late-war). While it could carry a large bomb load, and go a long distance with it, the Betty had a major problem--it didn't take battle damage very well. The Peggy was a bit tougher than the Betty, but there weren't enough of them to go around, and by then, the air superiority situation had changed for the worse.
* Grumman (GM) TBF (TBM) Avenger--Created as a replacement for the obsolete Devestator torpedo bomber, the Avenger first saw action at Midway...and became a staple light attack plane for mid-war/late-war American forces in the Pacific. General Motors built most of the Avengers made. The Avenger model can also be used as a Vultee Vengeance--a dive bomber used by mid-war/late-war British in the Far East.
* Kawasaki Ki-61 Hien "Tony"--The Ki-61 was the main supplement/replacement of the early-war Hayabusa in the Japanese Army. "Tony" was dubbed by the Allies because it was initially believed to be an Italian Fiat or Macchi fighter built under license (and the model can proxy Fiat G.55 or Macchi MC202 or MC205 for mid-war/late-war Italians), but in fact was an original Japanese design. The Ki-61 was strictly a counter-air fighter; no bomb racks--the Fiat was the same way. The Macchi had the forward guns of a Stormovik and the bomb load of a P-40.
* Aichi E13A "Jake"--This model is often a shelf-warmer. After all, what good is an unarmed seaplane in Flames of War?--"Jake" is a super-proxy! If you leave off the seaplane floats, Jake will double for a number of early-war strike planes! British--Blackburn Skua. French/American--Vought Vindicator. Soviet--Sukhoi Su-2. Eastern Front Axis (Hungary, Rumania, Spanish "volunteers")--Heinkel He 170. All of these have respectable bomb loads; Skua, Vindicator and Su-2 also pack four forward-firing machine guns...twice the forward firepower of early Stukas!
* Aichi B7A Ryusei "Grace" & Nakajima C6N Saiun "Myrt"--Late-war Japanese Navy planes. The Ryusei was a dive-bomber (replacing the Pearl Harbor-era D3A "Val"), Saiun was a recon aircraft. Like Jake, "Grace" and "Myrt" can also proxy for other nations' dive-bomber types.
* Nakajima Ki-44 Shoki "Tojo"--Interim type between the Hayabusa and the Hayate (see Part 1). Like the Hayate, the Shoki can proxy for Soviet Lavochkin or Mikoyan fighters. Mid-war and late-war Japanese Army.
* Kawanishi N1K2 Shiden-Kai "George"--The main fighter-bomber available to Japanese mid-war/late-war Japanese Army forces. About the same firepower as a Hurricane IIC.
* Bell P-63 KingCobra--The ultimate development of the early-war Bell P-39 AiraCobra. Both Cobras combined a 37mm antitank gun in the nose with four machine guns in the nose and wings. The Soviets received large numbers of Cobras through Lend-Lease and used them extensively on the Russian Front from mid-war on. Cobras were also Lend-Leased to the Free French and the Italian Co-Belligerents.
* Curtiss SB2C Helldiver--Mid-war replacement for the Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bomber. Mostly saw action in the Pacific, though some were supplied to the Greeks, who used them in the Balkans late-war.
* Grumman (GM) F4F (FM) Wildcat--Early-war/mid-war American Navy fighter. About the same firepower as a P-40. Like with the Avenger, General Motors built large numbers of the Wildcat (so Grumman could work on the Hellcat).
* Aichi D3A "Val" & Nakajima B5N "Kate"--Along with the Zero-sen, these two bomber types were the principal combat planes of the Japanese Navy carrier forces at the start of the Pacific War. It was the two-edged sword of Kate's versatility (the fact that it could carry torpedoes or bombs) that wound up costing the Japanese dearly at Midway. By mid-war, both bombers were in the midst of being phased out in favor of more modern planes.
* Nakajima A6M2-N "Rufe"--A Zero-sen fighter fitted with pontoon floats as a seaplane.
More To Come.
