Author: greatwarplanes_qv52wz

Posted on by — Leave a comment

New Miniatures: The Phönix D.I

Orders for the Phönix D.I arrived in March 1917, but it wasn’t until October that the first batch was accepted, and the planes trickled in all the way through May of 1918. There were three series built, Series 128, 228, and 328, differentiated mainly by the manufacturer of the 200hp Hiero engine. The machine guns were mounted well-forward and unfortunately out of reach in case of a jam. Flight reports said it was faster than an Albatros D.III(Oef) and better in flight than the Aviatik D.I. Reaching the front in Winter/Spring 1917-18, it flew with at least eleven Fliks.

Forty D.I series 128 were sent to the K.u.K Naval Air Service to defend Trieste and Pola in 1918, where they were renumbered J.1-40 and brightly repainted, usually fighting Italian flying boats and bombers. Reportedly they were fast and climbed better than a Camel, but they were a little too stable.

Three new full-color 1:144 Phönix D.I miniatures and one paintable miniature are now available at Great War Planes by Reduced Aircraft Factory.

Computer render
Computer render
Posted on by — Leave a comment

New Miniatures: The Fokker E.I and E.II

The Fokker E.I as Germany’s first fighter aircraft, with a synchronized machine gun firing through the propeller arc. Its successor, the E.II, featured an upgraded 100hp Oberursel U.I engine to give a bit of extra power over the original 80hp U.0. Many of Germany’s top aces started on the E.I or E.II or their more-common successor the E.III.

Six full-color 1:144 Fokker E.I and E.II miniatures are now available from Great War Planes by Reduced Aircraft Factory. They make great additions to an early-war collection for WWI airplane gaming.

Computer render
Computer render
Posted on by — Leave a comment

New Miniature: The Breguet-Michelin 4

The Breguet-Michelin 4 (BM4) was developed from a 1915 design, but production delays and problems in testing delayed its debut until April 1916. Being somewhat obsolete by 1916, they were not well-liked by their crews. But that did not prevent 200 of them from being built and deployed and used extensively until they could eventually be replaced by Breguet 14’s or late-model Voisins. Remarkably, it was not until May 1918 that the last unit gave up their BM4’s.

While it started as a day bomber, its limitations rapidly became evident, and it was soon relegated to night bombing.

A paintable 1:144 Breguet-Michelin 4 is now available from Great War Planes by Reduced Aircraft Factory.

Computer render
Computer render
Posted on by — Leave a comment

New Miniatures: The Airco D.H.4

The Airco D.H.4 was one of the great planes of World War One. Serving widely and in great numbers, its excellent Rolls-Royce engine gave it speed enough to outrun many enemy fighters, and power enough to overcome the drag lost through maneuvering. DH4s served from March 1917 through to the Armistice, performing bombing, observation, photography, anti-Zeppelin, and anti-submarine duties.

Overall, the D.H.4 was one of the great designs of World War One. It served on the Western Front, Italy, Aegean, Macedonia, Palestine, Mesopotamia, and during the Russian Revolution. An RNAS DH4 took down Zeppelin L.70 in August 1918. Belgium equipped six escadrilles with D.H.4s.

The D.H.4 also has the distinction of being the only fully American-built landplane to see action, serving with the U.S. Air Service starting in July 1918. American D.H.4s used twin Marlin/Browning synchronized machine guns, twin flexible Lewis guns, and the 400hp Liberty engine.

Three paintable Airco D.H.4s are now available from Great War Planes by Reduced Aircraft Factory: a standard version, and R.N.A.S. version with twin fixed Vickers, and a Liberty-engined American D.H.4.

Computer render
Posted on by — Leave a comment

New Miniatures: The L.V.G. C.VI

Now that my informal “Naval Aircraft Month” is over, time to get back to the normal work of restoring full-color miniatures to availability.

Luft-Verkehrs Gesellschaft m.b.H. (L.V.G.) produced aircraft throughout the war, including the excellent L.V.G. C.V of 1917. The LVG C.VI was a refinement of that aircraft, using the same Benz Bz.IV engine. Servicing was simplified and the view from the cockpit was improved. It was found to be an excellent two-seater, and roughly 1,000 were produced. 400 were in service in August 1918. By the end of the war, it was on track to become the most common German two-seater.

Three full-color 1:144 miniatures and one paintable miniature are now available for the L.V.G. C.VI at Great War Planes by Reduced Aircraft Factory.

Computer render
Computer render

.

Posted on by — Leave a comment

New Miniature: The Friedrichshafen FF.33e

The Friedrichshafen FF.33e was another in the long line of seaplanes, this one using the reliable 150hp Benz Bz.III engine. It is the first FF.33 model with a rear under-fin rather than a rear float. Like about half the FF.33 models, this plane was fitted with a radio (transmitter only) rather than a rear gun, though sometimes the radio was replaced with a rear flexible Parabellum. The FF33 was said to be easy to fly and it handled well on the water as well, and the FF.33e was the most common of the Friedrichshafen seaplanes.  The most famous FF.33e was number 841, the Wölfchen, which accompanied the SMS Wolf on its long raiding voyage through the Pacific and Indian oceans of November 1916 through February 1918.

The first three prototypes, where were ordered in March 1915, were originally named the Friedrichshafen FF.33c, but they were subsequently renamed as FF.33e’s as the production run began. In May 1917, 121 FF.33e seaplanes were in service.

A paintable 1:144 Friedrichshafen FF.33e miniature is now available from Great War Planes by Reduced Aircraft Factory.

Computer render
Computer render
Posted on by — Leave a comment

New Miniatures: Curtiss HS-1L and HS-2L Flying Boats

The Curtiss HS flying boats were operated with great success by the US Navy during WWI, starting with the Curtiss HS-1L. They were powered by the 330hp Navy Liberty engine (providing the “L” in the name). HS-1Ls operated out of several bases in France as well as seeing extensive use in the States.

In order to increase the bomb load, the six-foot panels were added to each wing, the rudder was enlarged, and minor changes were made, creating the Curtiss HS-2L. The HS-2L was deployed near the end of the war, and it saw extensive use afterwards. Most HS-1Ls were eventually converted to HS-2Ls.

The original HS-1 (without the Liberty “L”) was driven by a 200hp Curtis VXX engine. The first to be reassembled and flown in the European theatre were on 13 June 1918. Gradually they replaced the Tellier T.3s previously in use by the US Navy in Europe. Mainly they were used for anti-submarine patrol, but they also performed mine-spotting and convoy escort.

Some HS-1Ls and HS-2Ls were flown by the US Marines out of Ponta Delgada in the Azores on anti-submarine duties. HS-1Ls and HS-2Ls formed the backbone of the newly-formed Royal Canadian Naval Air Service, with patrols flying out of Nova Scotia.

Paintable 1:144 miniatures for the Curtiss HS-1L and HS-2L are now available from Great War Planes by Reduced Aircraft Factory.

Computer render
Computer render
Posted on by — Leave a comment

New Miniatures: Short 184 Seaplanes

The Short Seaplane, Admiralty Type 184 was designed to carry a torpedo. Long folding wings and the characteristic large fin of the Short seaplanes make it quickly recognizable. In the Dardanelles campaign, it became the first plane to sink an enemy ship with a torpedo when a Short 184 attacked a Turkish steamer on 12 June 1915. The weight of a torpedo, however, severely limited the plane’s range and operating conditions. More often the Type 184 ran patrol, bombing, and even anti-Zeppelin missions, including the Battle of Jutland. While most served in the North Sea and from seaplane-carriers, a few were sent to Mesopotamia in February 1916. As the war progressed, the original 225hp Sunbeam engine was replaced with more powerful Sunbeams and Renaults.

While Short Bros. produced many 184’s, a large number were subcontracted to other firms, including Mann Egerton, Phœnix Dynamo, Sage, Saunders, and Westland. They were still in production at the end of the war, but they were starting to be phased out by Fairey Campanias, Fairey IIIBs, and other types. During its long service life there were many experiments with alternative engines, wing adjustments, float shapes, and armament.

Their missions ran from anti-submarine patrols (especially as the war progressed) to bombing, patrol, and torpedo attack. Though underpowered for its size, the 184 served faithfully from the beginning of the war through the end and beyond, fighting in the Russian Civil War in 1919-1920. Some were taken by the Russians after they were abandoned by the British, and eight were given to Estonia, five to Chile, five to Greece, and one to Japan.

Two 1:144 Short 184 miniatures are now available from Great War Planes by Reduced Aircraft Factory: one with a loaded bomb rack and one carrying a torpedo.

Computer render
Computer render
Posted on by — Leave a comment

New Miniature: Levy-Besson “Alerte” Flying Boat

The Alerte class of triplane flying-boat was intended for long patrols and carried a radio and small bomb loaded, with the intent of spotting enemy planes, seaplanes, and submarines and radioing for help when needed. Levy-Besson’s entry for this class was based on a triplane fighter.

One hundred Levy-Besson Alerte Flying Boats were built and used by Aviation Maritime, entering service in October 1917. It was used primarily in the anti-submarine role. Production of triplane flying boats was relatively limited because they were harder maneuver on water.

A paintable 1:144 miniature of the Levy-Besson “Alerte” Flying Boat is now available from Great War Planes by Reduced Aircraft Factory.

Computer render
Computer render
Posted on by — Leave a comment

New Miniatures: The Tellier T.3 and T.6

Naval aircraft month continues with the release of these French flying boats, the Tellier T.3 and T.6. The T.3 was also used by the U.S. Navy.

In WWI the French were great proponents of flying boats, and the Tellier T.3 served with distinction alongside flying boats from F.B.A., Donnet-Denhaut, and Levy-Besson. Tellier was already accomplished at building boats before the war, and the Tellier flying boats had the reputation of having the best hull of any flying boat. About 190 were built and from February 1917 through the end of the war they were used for anti-submarine and mine patrols.

The USA inherited at least 32 T.3’s, which they operated from Le Croisic Naval Station starting in November 1917. Russia, via Dux, had plans to build at least twenty, but the hulls and wings were still in storage awaiting the arrival of engines when Russia exited the war. The RNAS acquired two for evaluation but there was never a production order.

In an effort to provide a cannon-armed flying boat, the Tellier T.3 was re-armed with a 47mm Hotchkiss cannon. To balance the weight of the gun, the hull was lengthened by almost a meter. The Tellier T.6 premiered in late 1917, where they were useful for patrol and convoy escort. At least fifty-five T.6s were built for Aviation Maritime.

Great War Planes by Reduced Aircraft Factory has released two new 1:144 flying boat miniatures: the Tellier T.3 and T.6.

Computer render
Computer render