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Messerschmitt Bf 109E "Slovak and Rumanian Aces" (SH72472) 1:72 Special Hobby The BF 109 has inherited quite a legendary status and when you look into its service career, it's certainly obvious why. Viewing the design in retrospect, it looks just like a typical fighter of the WWII era, but it was more than that, it was the very platform that the single seat fighter format was born from. Powerful engine, monocoque airframe, all metal construction, enclosed cockpit and retractable gear this was unheard of before hand, it was radical, not typical in the 1930's. Its birth wasn't perfect however, to achieve its performance, some sacrifices were made, particularly in the landing gear arrangement and high wing loading having a negative effect on landing speeds compared to the competition at the time. This inherent design issue was never fully cured and it's estimated that at least 10% of all 109's were lost in take off accidents. Early models (A-D) were powered by the Junkers jumo engine with outputs of around 700hp. The aircraft was first used in combat during the Spanish Civil War where many lessons were learned and these would be later put to good use in battles over France and Britain. The E or Emil model broke the mould in 109 development by changing to the more powerful Daimler Benz DB 601 engine of around 1080hp, a significant step in performance and also in armament due to the introduction of 20mm cannon. By 1939, all earlier variants had been replaced in frontline service. As the variants progressed, so did the level of armour protection for the pilot. Another critical element to improve survivability was the use of twin radiators with cut off valves meaning that if one radiator was damaged, the other could be used to keep it airborne. The Emil was the primary Luftwaffe fighter until 1941 when the F model became widely available with more powerful engine although a few managed to see combat in the Battle of Britain. For an aircraft that broke the mould with fighter technology and performance in the mid 30's, it's evolution meant that whilst it's design had exhausted improvement capability towards the end of the war, it stayed in operational use until 1965 in Europe in the guise of the Spanish licence built HA 1112 using the Merlin power plant. During its 30 year career, more than 33,000 were built, a record that will probably never be beaten. The Kit This a brand new tool for 2020 from Special Hobby, in collaboration with Eduard. The quality is first class with crisp moulding and fine engraved panel lines. Given the small size of the real aircraft, in 1/72 the model is quite diminutive, but seems well detailed. Construction starts with the cockpit. The rear bulkhead attaches to the floor with the rudder pedals going in as well. The front lower bulkhead is made up and installed onto the floor followed by the instruments panel and the coaming in front of it. The instruments being provided as decals. Into the cockpit go the flight controls and flap wheel, followed by the seat. The belts being provided as decals also. If the modeller is going to display the cover for the guns in front of the cockpit open then full guns are included, if you are doing this closed then only partial ones need to be added. Next up the engine is assembled which seems quite detailed for the scale, the bearers attached and it fitted to the firewall. Inside the main fuselage halves the exhausts are fitted along with the tail wheel and then the whole thing can be closed up. Separate engine and gun covers can be added, or left off as needed. After the tail surfaces are attached to the main fuselage then we can move onto the wings. The lower wing is a single part with left and right uppers. The wheel wells are all boxed in on the lower. To the middle of the lower wing the radiator is first added. The top wings can then go on. All the wing control surfaces are separate parts. To finish the wing the under wing radiators are added. The wing can then be joined with the fuselage. The canopy parts can then be added, with different types of head armour being provided for the different decal options. The slats can then be added to the main wing in either the open or closed position as needed. At the front the prop and spinner goes on. Last up for the main parts, the main landing gear is made up and added. A few detail parts now can be added to finish of the kit, the aerial mast, pitot tubes, balance horns,; and even an engine starting handle if you wish to install it. Markings The glossy decal sheet is printed in house and looks sharp and in register. There are four decal options available from the decal sheet; Messerschmitt Bf 109E-3, No.9, W.Nr. 2486, ‘Hai Fetito!’, Lt. Av. Ioan Di Cesare, Escadrila 57, Grupul 7 Vânătoare, Aeronautica Regala Romana (Royal Romanian Air Force), based at Karpovka-Stalingrad, occupied part of the USSR, November 1942. (Box art aircraft) Messerschmitt Bf 109E-7 (rebuilt from an E-3), No.64, W.Nr. 704, ‘Nella!’, Adj. Av. Tiberiu Vinca, Escadrila 56, Grupul 7 Vânătoare, Aeronautica Regala Romana (Royal Romanian Air Force), Karpovka-Stalingrad, occupied part of the USSR, Winter 1942. V Messerschmitt Bf 109E-3, White 2, probably W.Nr. 2945, čtk. Ján Režnák, Slovenské vzdušné zbrane, (Slovak Air Force) 13. (slow.)/JG52, based at Krasnodar, occupied part of the USSR, January 1943. Razňák's final tally stood at 32 victories which ensured him the position of the most scoring fighter pilot of the SVZ. Messerschmitt Bf 109E-7, White 1, rtk. Rudolf Božík, Scramble Flight, Slovenské vzdušné zbrane (Slovak Air Force), Vajnory airfield, the Slovak State, 1943/44. Rudolf Božík, a Slovak Air Force ace pilot with 12 and ½ victories under his belt. Conclusion It is good to see a new tool out of this most famous aircraft. I am no 109 expert but it looks to be a well detailed and engineered kit. Decal options of other users than the Luftwaffe are always welcome. Highly recommended. Review samples courtesy of

Here is a something I finished last year and thought it was an excellent kit by Eduard and resulted in a colorful addition to display. This is Eduard kit #1146 of the Avia B-5 which is an excellent kit of a subject not seen very often. Recently on a post here there was a brief discussion of the Slovakian uprising toward the end of WWII, which was an effort to create an Independent Slovakia as Germany was collapsing so I thought I would post this. This is one of the aircraft used by the Slovak National Uprising, 'White S-13'. The aircraft came out of the training flight of Aviation School on August 29, 1944 and joined the rebelling forces. Slovak WWII national insignia were replaced with pre-war Czechoslovakian markings with Slovak national symbols – a two-pronged cross and the three hills emblem – added. I believe this particular aircraft was the last known Bi-plane to shoot down another aircraft in combat with Frantisek Cyprich shooting down a Hungarian Junkers Ju 52/3m, September 2nd, 1944 Any comments are welcome, enjoy!

Mig-21MF Limited Edition 1:48 Eduard The Mig 21 has the distinction of being the most numerous supersonic jet fighter aircraft ever built, and has seen service with dozens of counties all over the world. It has seen action in Vietnam, the Middle East, Yugoslavia, Cuba and during numerous conflicts in Africa. It has even been copied by the Chinese, where it is known as the Chengdu J-7. The MF is the export version of the SM with modernised avionics and a better engine, which has seen service with many Soviet states and their post Cold War descendants. Czechoslovakia had a substantial quantity that were split between the Czech Republic and Slovakia when the wall came down, eventually to be replaced by Saab Gripens and Mig-29s respectively. The Kit This is a limited edition reboxing of the original MF kit that was released to much acclaim in 2011 that we reviewed here, and contains the book that was included in the Silver Arrows boxing reviewed here. The box is a standard size for the Profipak editions, but when you pick it up you really feel the weight of the book. Inside are the usual 8 large sprues of grey styrene, a large clear sprue in a Ziploc bag, a bag of resin rocket pods, a bag containing two frets of Photo-Etched (PE) parts, one in colour, the other plain, plus the book, the instruction manual and a separate painting and markings manual. This gives the clue to the decal sheets, of which there are three, two of which are around A4 in size, the other slightly smaller. It really is a well-rounded package. The only differences in terms of the build will be your options, which depend on which decal option of the thirty nine (yes… 39!!!) you will be building. The PE instrument panels have a number of choices both on the main panel and side consoles, and there is a sensor fit difference between some of the marks, so take care when selecting the parts to use. The generous load of weapons on the sprues are augmented by the aforementioned resin rocket pods that are each made up from a front section with a hollow tapering exhaust can. The shackles to attach them to the kit pylons are included on the weapons sprues. Markings This is what this boxing is really all about. Thirty Nine decal options, split between Czech and Slovakian aircraft. You can see all the options and even some built up models on the website here. The two large sheets are printed by Decals are by Cartograf, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. The stencils are printed in-house, and are of good quality too. The Book The book is a weighty tome with 128 pages perfect-bound in a card cover, and it is full of photos of the decal options, both in flight, on the ground, and with numerous close-ups of various areas. Even without English text, they should be a big help in getting the most realistic result you can managed. Want More? Such a massive sheet demands consideration of the Overtrees boxes, which allow you to build more of the decal options without having to buy complete kits. If you also want to get the PE, you can purchase that separately too. Overtrees Styrene Overtrees PE In addition, the pre-existing aftermarket available from Eduard and other companies are still out there, and you can find them quite easily by searching on "Mig-21MF". Conclusion This is a great kit that doesn't seem to have aged one bit in the last 5 years. The additional goodies with the massive decal sheets make it quite the prize, and that's probably why Eduard seem to have already sold out of the main kit, so you'll have to be quick tracking one down before the model shops run out. It's a shame the book couldn't have been translated to English as well, but there are such a lot of photos that it hardly matters. Review sample courtesy of