Jump to content

Fascist Falcon - 1/72 Italeri Fiat CR.42, Corpo Aereo Italiano, Ursel, Belgium, October 1940


Recommended Posts

The Corpo Aereo Italiano - the Regia Aeronautica's expeditionary force sent to assist the German Luftwaffe in bringing Great Britain to terms - probably owed its origins to two factors, the first being RAF air raids on Italian cities in June and September 1940 which stung Mussolini's sensitive pride and the second being the potential for Italy to make gains in the Mediterranean and North Africa at the expense of the British Empire once Britain had been forced to a negotiated surrender.

Sadly for Mussolini and fortunately for the British, it didn't quite pan out that way. The CAI was beset with problems from the outset which limited its impact on the battle and resulted in it losing a number of aircraft and crews to accidents as well as to enemy action. Not least of its difficulties was that the aircraft and equipment provided was not up to the standard of that of the Luftwaffe and the RAF; also in terms of tactics and combat training the CAI pilots were 'newbies' entering a game being played between two opponents who had several months of combat experience.

Despite this the Italian pilots and crews put in a creditable effort, fighting bravely and attempting to carry out their objectives, but ultimately they achieved little and were withdrawn to Italy starting in December 1940.

The Fiat CR.42 equipped the 83., 85. and 95. Squadriglia of the 18. Gruppo Caccia (Fighter Group) commanded by Maggiore Feruccio Vosilla and based at Ursel in Belgium.

This is the kit I will be building:

DSCN3788.jpg

It's the Italeri kit dating back to 2006, this edition includes a well-illustrated reference booklet:

DSCN3789.jpg

... with lots of colour pictures of the CR.42 built by Fiat in 2005 and now on display in a museum near Rome:

DSCN3790.jpg

It should be a useful reference. The sprue shot:

DSCN3792.jpg

It looks a nicely designed and moulded model. I'll be using this in addition - the instrument panels and the seatbelts at least:

DSCN3795.jpg

For additional reference I have this:

DSCN3796.jpg

... and the aircraft I intend to represent is the second one down in the profile from this book:

DSCN3797.jpg

...because I like the yellow band around the cockpit basically :D - my understanding is that the CAI Fiats were in fact painted in the more usual three-tone upper camouflage with aluminium-painted undersides so I will be painting mine thusly rather than the yellow-green scheme shown here.

Fortunately for me, that is one of the options provided in the DP Casper 'Forgotten Battles' transfer set 'Operation Cinzano':

DSCN3798.jpg

Finally, these are some of the colours I will be using - these are from the new Colourcoats range for the Regia Aeronautica and chosen as advised by the Stormo! Colour Guides here:

DSCN3801.jpg

They are (top row): Giallo Mimetico 1, Giallo Mimetico 4 (I'll be mixing a little of the second into the first, as it looks a little pale to me) and Verde Mimetico 3 (bottom row) Grigio Mimetico, Grigio Azzuro Scuro (I think the former for the interior colour but possibly the latter, more research required...) and finally Marron Mimetico 2. For the Alluminio underside I will use Alclad Semi-Matt Aluminium.

Right, I think that's everything covered, well done if you managed to stick with me through that lot :lol:

Cheers,

Stew

  • Like 17
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Italians produced some beautiful aircraft. This will look great after you've finished it. Joe :)

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Very nice stew, very cool in fact! Check you out with your Italian bird...

Really looking forward to seeing this crack on, love the Italian schemes, and yes I to would have gone for that just because of the yellow band...

Rob

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Good to see something different. Looks like it should be an interesting build. :thumbsup:

Thanks Stix, I hope so :)

The Italians produced some beautiful aircraft. This will look great after you've finished it. Joe :)

I hope so Joe, it's a lovely looking little aeroplane :)

Looks an interesting project. I do like the finish on Italian aircraft, very stylish.

Thanks Ozzy, it will be a challenge to get a half-decent effect for the camouflage scheme but if I can pull it off it will stand out in my collection :)

Stew, we all knew you'd find something unique and cool to build, and you have not disappointed.

Thanks Cookie, I think it will not be the only one built, but I hope it will be cool B)

Very nice stew, very cool in fact! Check you out with your Italian bird...

Really looking forward to seeing this crack on, love the Italian schemes, and yes I to would have gone for that just because of the yellow band...

Rob

Aw don't get me started Rob, Sophia Loren broke my heart in 'Houseboat' and it was never quite the same afterwards... :heart: ... but thanks, and yes, do you think the ground crew got the instructions wrong with the yellow fuselage band? I've never seen another CR.42 marked that way... :hmmm:

Cheers,

Stew

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting choice Stew, and it's got me thinking as I have the same kit as well...........mmmm...maybe not

I have enough to do but I shall obviously be stealing tips of your build. Plus I'd like to see how those paints

work out.

Sean

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ooh! Nice choice, Stew. I'll be eagerly following this build. I promise not to throw in late information this time.

I do want to get that book.

Chris

Edited by dogsbody
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is going to be an interesting build, lovely little aircraft, saw one at hendon last year.

Hi Blitz; yes it is a nice looking plane, isn't it - the one at Hendon and one Swedish survivor are the only two originals left...

Interesting choice Stew, and it's got me thinking as I have the same kit as well...........mmmm...maybe not

I have enough to do but I shall obviously be stealing tips of your build. Plus I'd like to see how those paints

work out.

Sean

Thanks Sean, I'm keen to try out the new Colourcoats too B)

Glad to see this one Stew,I was hoping to see some Italian aircraft built.

You can bet there will be some Steve, and they should look quite nice when painted up; one Hurricane pilot who took part in intercepting an Italian raid said he thought the little biplanes were RAF trainers at first, they were so brightly painted.

Book ordered.

I hope you enjoy it Chris, it's a pretty slim volume but informative and with some nice profiles in it (though how accurate they are is debatable :pipe: )

Ooo Stew, mottling! I shall be watching with interest! :):popcorn:

Hi Ced :) - yes, I suspect I shall have to go for a 'representative' scheme as the patterns for each aircraft were unique and to be honest my mottling skills are not really fit to be called 'skills'

I've never seen a photo of one with the fuselage band though it crops up a lot in profiles. I be happy to be enlightened.

I'd be happy to see a picture of that aircraft too, there are several pictures here that I had never seen before (but all annoyingly watermarked which obscures a lot of the detail) and a number of pictures of Fiat CR.42s but no sign of 85+9 - quite a few of 85+7 which is the option above the one I have chosen on the DP Casper sheet and which must have been one of the most photographed aircraft of the C.A.I. :shrug: - I can only hope that somewhere a picture of '9' showing the yellow band around the cockpit exists somewhere and it is not just one of those schemes copied from incorrect profile to incorrect profile :hmmm:

Anyway I have painted up the various parts that make up most of the cockpit tub:

DSCN3831.jpg

I ended up using the kit transfers for the IP as half of the Eduard one pinged off somewhere and has not been seen since :fraidnot: - still those provided by the kit are actually pretty good and I suspect will do as well once the fuselage halves are closed up. Next I will be assembling the cockpit tub and adding the frame that goes over the top of it... hopefully that will be soon...

Cheers,

Stew

  • Like 12
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks gents; the weathering/shading is a bit over the top, but you can't actually see it once the fuselage halves are closed up...

Which it is! But first...

I assembled the cockpit tub:

DSCN3836.jpg

... and installed it into the fuselage:

DSCN3840.jpg

I drilled out the gun muzzles (sorry for the picture, it defeated even the macro setting):

DSCN3835.jpg

... glued the fuselage halves and added the top cowling (the wing here was being test-fitted):

DSCN3841.jpg

... and finally added the lower wings - the upper wing has been cleaned up and the upper aileron actuators fitted:

DSCN3845.jpg

Today's progress was brought to you courtesy of a long wait for a plumber to fix the dripping bathroom ceiling which secured me a day off work. It's an ill wind that blows nobody any good :)

Cheers,

Stew

  • Like 10
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nice Stew, very nice...

Can I ask how you drill out the guns? Actually I mean how do you a ) hold them steady and b ) make sure you're 'in the middle'? I may have a go at it if it's not too fiddly.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks Ced,

I got some tiny drill bits and a pin vice off ebay, these drill bits, not the ones that come in a box set of about 20 different ones (the small ones snap at the drop of a hat leaving you with about 3 sets of all the larger drill bits and none of them are very sharp).

I always start off marking the centre of the barrel end with a No.11 blade - just make a little indentation so the drill bit has somewhere to sit before you start drilling. Then drill. And stop and have a look to see how it went. Then drill a bit more until you have enough of a recess to put some black paint in and voila - a hole (if you did it right anyway). If the guns have those cone-shaped flash suppressors you can insert the No.11 blade in there and rotate the knife to give a cone-shaped recess too.

It is pretty fiddly though - whether it's too fiddly or not I can't really say, that depends on your fiddle-tolerance level, but I believe the Lanc comes with a couple of guns not used for the Dambuster version if you wanted to have a trial run at it.

Cheers,

Stew

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Stew that tub looks great, and your over weathering if you want to call it that will actually make the detail that may be seen be seen... If you know what I mean.

The kit looks a good one? Any fit issues as I would love to build one of these

Rob

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the step-by-step Stew, really appreciated :)

I'll give it a go and you can watch my (no doubt) pathetic efforts!

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Stew that tub looks great, and your over weathering if you want to call it that will actually make the detail that may be seen be seen... If you know what I mean.

The kit looks a good one? Any fit issues as I would love to build one of these

Rob

Liking this already, the tub looks good, and as Rob has asked, any fit problems?,

Sean

Thanks Rob, Sean; I've not really experienced any fit problems that could not have been ascribed to my assembling parts 'not-quite-in-sequence' with the instructions - the metal frame around the cockpit tub needed a bit of manoeuvring because I should have fitted it before the IP/front bulkhead part and not afterwards and I tried to fit headrest after installing the cockpit tub, not before, and as a result had to cut about 1mm of the bottom of it to get it to fit. Had I done these things in the order the instructions appear to indicate I might not have had these two small issues, and I haven't had any other problems so far.

Thanks for the step-by-step Stew, really appreciated :)

I'll give it a go and you can watch my (no doubt) pathetic efforts!

I recommend your strongest magnification glasses/visor thing Ced, it's mostly a case of being able to see what you are doing and having something to rest both hands on to keep them steady - good luck!

With the bottom wing on, it looks more like a fat little sparrow than a falcon, doesn't it?

I don't like to disparage the aircraft I am representing with my model PC, but it is never going to look like a falcon... I suppose "Piccolo Passero Grasso" just didn't have a suitably martial ring to it to satisfy Mussolini :D

Cheers,

Stew

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...