RWD-5 Poland to Argentina flight- ZTS modified 1/72 kit

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

As if ready to embark on the transatlantic feat that gave it fame, from Poland to Brazil to Argentina, here is the simple but charming figure of this Polish single-place monoplane.

For those curious about the building process, here is the link to the step-by-step post:

Aftermarket decals and photoetched parts were used on this model, plus some surgery to open the door and engine cover; an engine was added obtained modifying a resin item from Matías Hagen in Argentina.

As it is often the case, I forgot to add the Venturi and Pitot, a fact I only discovered -naturally- after the photo session, so I added those items and photographed the model two more times -images at the end.
It happens.

 

Stanisław Jakub Skarżyński

 

During the research for this model I found a Polish book titled:  "ON THE RWD-5 THROUGH THE ATLANTIC" that describes the whole flight and (to my joy) the stay in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where the plane arrived  in June 11 1933.

The chapter made me giggle continuously, as Stanislaw Skarzynski, the pilot, is exposed to the effusions and celebrations of the remarkable Argentine people. He was impressed when he saw Buenos Aires from the air before landing, and describes its skyscrapers, boulevards and squares.

Once he landed in the El Palomar airport, a huge and enthusiast crowd broke de police and military barriers and launched into the airport. The military personnel, in an attempt to control the crowd, draw machine guns, but that had no effect whatsoever on the crowd. The pilot was squeezed, crushed, embraced, bent, stretched, tugged, given fortifying pats on the back and generally overwhelmed by this traditional demonstrations of affection and admiration.

He finally was taken to the safety of an hangar.

The stay is described as a succession of banquets, festivities, interviews, conferences and social engagements with all the parties involved: the press, the Polish delegation, the military, the wide range of local and foreign authorities and dignitaries, and the public in general. The poor pilot -if completely grateful and gracious- was exhausted and got a cold. He declined to cancel those social engagements and states that he needed super-human strength to endure the endless demonstrations of unquenchable Argentinean love 😉

He was treated of course to the traditional drink: yerba mate, a sort of hot tea (but nothing like it) served on a gourd and sipped through a straw. Now, we absolutely love this caffeinated, stimulant drink of indigenous origin, but like any other foreigner I know of, the pilot didn't seem to be particularly thrilled by it, although he was gifted a "gourd" (mate vessel) made of silver.

He was awe-struck by the night life of the city (and it is still like that today), where people stay out until two or three in the morning. He was impressed that radio stations will put aside their customarily tango broadcasts and instead play mazurkas and other Polish traditional music in his honor.

He was showered with gifts, and was moved by the demonstrations of affection and respect.

Skarzynski will eventually, at the break out of world war II, join the RAF in several important capacities, but he insisted in getting a combat position. Flying back from a mission in 1942 his plane had to ditch. He made all others evacuate the plane, but being the last, unfortunately he was washed away by the stormy waves.

SP-AJU had one occupant and one door as the RWD-5 bis that crossed the Atlantic, and when later went back to Poland it was reconverted to the original variant as a two-door, two-place plane with a long exhaust and other minor changes in details and decoration, but keeping the registration.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 21, 2018 by Moa

[RidgeRunner]

Lovely, Moa

 

Martin

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

12 minutes ago, RidgeRunner said:

Lovely, Moa

 

Martin

Thanks, Martin!

 

[Martian]

Where's the model? Oh, that was it! I thought it was a real one. Nice!

 

Martian 👽

[Dazey]

Yes, lovely indeed!

 

As we have gotten used to, beautiful models of fascinating aircraft (and often with much scratch-building and modifications, demonstrating great skills).

 

I should get my act together and start on the "Kamikaze" or even a "Southern Cross"!

 

Regards,

David

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

8 minutes ago, Dazey said:

I should get my act together and start on the "Kamikaze" or even a "Southern Cross"!

 

Regards,

David

It only takes one little step, and you will be on your way...

C'mon, open those boxes, separate a couple parts, try the fit, warm up to it!

Nice to have a build in progress for the Season! (The in-laws? yes, yes, I am a little busy at the moment, will be there in a jiffy! sorting out some stuff for the holidays -white lie)

[Wlad]

Wow, Moa, that was a fast build. You waited longer for the photo-etch than it took you to build the model. Very nice as usual.

 

Cheers,

Wlad

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

1 hour ago, Wlad said:

Wow, Moa, that was a fast build. You waited longer for the photo-etch than it took you to build the model. Very nice as usual.

 

Cheers,

Wlad

Well, almost two models, actually 😉

 

[Piotr Sudnik]

Well done. As always, your works look great

[spiton]

That is very nice, that you Moa had Build a model of Polish plane. Flight across Atlantic on this little plane it is very interesting story.

[Courageous]

I can't add anymore to what has already been said. Nice touch with the engine cover and the fitting of the venturi. Last two images set it off a treat.

 

Stuart

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

Here is the story:

 

Stanisław Jakub Skarżyński

 

During the research for this model I found a Polish book titled:  "ON THE RWD-5 THROUGH THE ATLANTIC" that describes the whole flight and (to my joy) the stay in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where the plane arrived  in June 11 1933.

The chapter made me giggle continuously, as Stanislaw Skarzynski, the pilot, is exposed to the effusions and celebrations of the remarkable Argentine people. He was impressed when he saw Buenos Aires from the air before landing, and describes its skyscrapers, boulevards and squares.

Once he landed in the El Palomar airport, a huge and enthusiast crowd broke de police and military barriers and launched into the airport. The military personnel, in an attempt to control the crowd, draw machine guns, but that had no effect whatsoever on the crowd. The pilot was squeezed, crushed, embraced, bent, stretched, tugged, given fortifying pats on the back and generally overwhelmed by this traditional demonstrations of affection and admiration.

He finally was taken to the safety of an hangar.

The stay is described as a succession of banquets, festivities, interviews, conferences and social engagements with all the parties involved: the press, the Polish delegation, the military, the wide range of local and foreign authorities and dignitaries, and the public in general. The poor pilot -if completely grateful and gracious- was exhausted and got a cold. He declined to cancel those social engagements and states that he needed super-human strength to endure the endless demonstrations of unquenchable Argentinean love 😉

He was treated of course to the traditional drink: yerba mate, a sort of hot tea (but nothing like it) served on a gourd and sipped through a straw. Now, we absolutely love this caffeinated, stimulant drink of indigenous origin, but like any other foreigner I know of, the pilot didn't seem to be particularly thrilled by it, although he was gifted a "gourd" (mate vessel) made of silver.

He was awe-struck by the night life of the city (and it is still like that today), where people stay out until two or three in the morning. He was impressed that radio stations will put aside their customarily tango broadcasts and instead play mazurkas and other Polish traditional music in his honor.

He was showered with gifts, and was moved by the demonstrations of affection and respect.

Skarzynski will eventually, at the break out of world war II, join the RAF in several important capacities, but he insisted in getting a combat position. Flying back from a mission in 1942 his plane had to ditch. He made all others evacuate the plane, but being the last, unfortunately he was washed away by the stormy waves.

SP-AJU had one occupant and one door as the RWD-5 bis that crossed the Atlantic, and when later went back to Poland it was reconverted to the original variant as a two-door, two-place plane with a long exhaust and other minor changes in details and decoration, but keeping the registration.

 

[JWM]

Very nice results! 

Here is more about the pilot, Stanisław Skarżyński

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanisław_Skarżyński

Perhaps you know that nobody is sure if the registration "SP-AJU" was red or black (and likely we will never know it for sure...)

Here is a short movie with attempt to ind out the right colour for registation. The comment is in Polish, conclusion is thet likely they were red on wings, black on fuselage but nothing sure. Anyway it contains a lot of interesting photos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EH_SflZZCc

Best regards and thank you for sharing

J-W

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

8 minutes ago, JWM said:

Very nice results! 

Here is more about the pilot, Stanisław Skarżyński

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanisław_Skarżyński

Perhaps you know that nobody is sure if the registration "SP-AJU" was red or black (and likely we will never know it for sure...)

Here is a short movie with attempt to ind out the right colour for registation. The comment is in Polish, conclusion is thet likely they were red on wings, black on fuselage but nothing sure. Anyway it contains a lot of interesting photos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EH_SflZZCc

Best regards and thank you for sharing

J-W

Very interesting, thanks for the addition.

 

[303sqn]

Born 1st May 1897, Skarżyński began his military career in 1916-17 as a member of the Polska Organizacja Wojskowa (Polish Military Organization), a clandestine organization tasked with gathering intelligence on and sabotaging Poland's enemies. He transferred to the Polish Army when it was created in 1918 commanding units engaged with disarming German soldiers in his home town Warta. After that he fought in the Polish-Soviet War being wounded twice, the second time severely which left him with a permanent limp. Because of this he was unable to continue serving in the infantry and transferred to the aviation arm completing pilot training at Bydgoszcz in 1925 and then serving in the 1st Air Regiment.

 

Skarżyński first found fame with his tour of Africa. In September 1931 he conceived the idea, to acquaint the world with the achievements of Polish industry and prove the reliability of nationally developed aircraft, of a long range flight over a difficult route. Deciding of a tour of Africa be selected the PZL Ł.2 obtaining full backing from PZL for the venture. By the middle of November he had the blessing and financial support of the Department of Aeronautics, Ministry of Transport and LOPP. Work to convert the first production Ł.2 was quickly undertaken. Fuel capacity was increased from 150 ltr to 630 ltr by fitting four fuel tanks in the wings. A small fuel tank under the pilot's seat was replaced by an oil tank. Four luggage compartments, one replacing the original oil tank, were built into aircraft. The engine was enclosed in a cowling ring and Col Rayski loaned Standard Steel adjustable pitch metal airscrew from his own aircraft. The aircraft, registered SP-AFA and named Afrykanka, completed its trials in January 1931, and on the 1st February Capt Skarżyński and Lt Markiewicz left Warsaw for the first stage of a long tour.

 

They were delayed for a few days in Kraków because of bad weather in the Tatra Mountains and foggy and stormy conditions in southern Europe. Flying by Gyoma, Belgrade, Soplje, Athens, and Mersa Matruh, reaching Cairo on the 18th February. A damaged piston forced the aircraft down in the desert near Atbara, spares were brought from Atbara and the crew managed to replace the faulty cylinder and fly to Khartoum, where the engine was checked and cleaned of sand. On the 14th March they took off taking the route Malakal, Juba, Kisumu, Abercorn, Luebo, Leopoldville, Port Gentil, Lagos, Abidjan, Bamako, Dakar, Port Étienne, Casablanca, arriving at Alicante in Spain on the 12th April. On the way to Bordeaux the engine seized because incorrect oil had been supplied by mistake at Perpignan. This delayed them by two weeks. Eventually they landed at Warsaw on the 5th May having covered 25,770 km in 147 flying hours.

 

Despite the engine problems, the the tour proved an outstanding success. The aircraft spent more than three months in the open, being exposed to frost, snow, tropical storms and tropical sun, and survived the most incredible take-offs from unprepared fields, stony beaches, deserts, and 2 m high grass with no ill effects.

 

In June 1931, SP-AFA was flown by Skarżyński in the Bucharest Rally. Later it was involved in the first glider towing experiments conducted in Poland, and, fitted with a prototype tow gear assisted the Polish team during the 1932 Rhöne Meeting.

 

For his epic transatlantic flight, Skarżyński consulted the RWD designers and selected a specially converted RWD 5, that became known as the RWD 5bis (modified). The aircraft was completed by the end of March 1933 conforming to the FAI Category 2 requirements (single seat weighing less than 450 kg) and given the registration SP-AJU. Later it became known as Amerykanka. Powered by a 130 hp Gipsy Major engine, its fuel capacity was increased to 752 ltr and oil to 36 ltr giving a maximum range of 5,000 km. 452 ltr of fuel were carried in four 113 ltr tanks mounded side by side in the reinforced wing, and 300 ltr in a large tank fitted in the rear cabin, the doors and windows of which were omitted. To ensure greater comfort on long flights the pilot's seat was provided with rubber cushions that could be inflated in case of an emergency landing on water. Arm rests and foot supports close to the rudder bar were fitted.

 

The intended start date was the 7th April but the IBTL requested further trials before clearing the aircraft. These included a 10 hour endurance flight over Poland, which was made on the 15th April covering 1,650 km. Clearance followed five days later and on the 27th April SP-AJU left Warsaw reaching St Louis-du-Sénégal in West Africa on the 4th May. According to an official statement it was to make an attempt on the International Distance Record for Light Aircraft in category 2 from St Louis-du-Sénégal in the direction of western Europe.

Skarżyński's true intention of making the South Atlantic crossing to Brazil was a well guarded secret only to be revealed when he was already on his way.

 

Take-off was 23.00 on the 7th May and after 20 hours 30 minutes landed at Maceió, Brazil, 19.30 local time. Immediately after landing, the chief of the airfield's radio station approached the bare headed Skarżyński in a grey suit and enquired who he was. Skarżyński replied “I am captain Skarżyński of the Polish Air Force. My last take-off was from St Louis-du-Sénégal.” The bewildered official glanced at the tiny monoplane and the casual looking stranger in front of him, and, convinced that it was a hoax, shrugged his shoulders and walked away. Maceió control had been informed about the the attempted crossing (the RWD 5bis did not have a radio) but expected to see and impressive, large transatlantic aircraft, especially as Skarżyński had bypassed Natal, the nearest Brazilian airfield on his route. Only when the registration had been check did Maceió break out in celebration. In fact, on arrival at Maceió, Skarżyński still had fuel reserves for several more hours flying but decided not to extend the flight so as to avoid a risky landing in darkness on an unknown airfield.

 

Skarżyński's flight raised the International Distance Record in the FAI Category 2 to 3,582 km and with an empty weight of 450 kg, the RWD 5bis was the lightest aircraft to cross the Atlantic, and because Category 2 class was later abolished, the distance record was never officially beaten.

 

After triumphal tour of Brazil, including several demonstration flights, Skarżyński and SP-AJU left Rio de Janeiro on the liner Avila Star on the 11th of July, to arrive at Boulogne on the 17th July. After reassembly it was flown to Łódż and then Warsaw on the 2nd August, covering the entire tour of 18,305 km in 104 hr 40 min flying time. Skarżyński was given a hero's welcome and was decorated with order of Polonia Restituta. SP-AJU was presented to him by the Aeroclub of the Polish Republic and subsequently converted to a standard two seat configuration.

 

In 1934 he was promoted to Major and commanding a bomber squadron, and from 1938 was deputy C/O of the 4th Air Regiment in Toruń with a rank of Lt.Col. In April 1939 he became President of the Polish Aero Club. In August 1939 he became deputy Air Attaché for Rumania. When war broke out he helped with the escape of Polish Airmen to France and after the fall of France helped 17,000 Polish airmen move to Britain.

 

In Britain he was made C/O of Polish training schools at Hucknall and then Newton, eventually appointed C/O of RAF Lindholme. On the night of 25/26 June the Bomber command launched a 1,000 bomber raid on Bremen, of which the Polish contribution was 71 Wellingtons, 13 from 300 Squadron, 14 from 301 Squadron, 15 from 305 Squadron, 7 from Coastal Command 304 Squadon, and 22 from 18 OTU. Skarżyński volunteered to fly a supernumerary member of the Józef Szybka's crew in Wellington Mk II Z8528 SM*R. The Welligton suffered engine failure and Szybka ditched in the sea. The navigator launched a dinghy but Skarżyński exited the cockpit on the wrong side, was hit by a wave, and swept away. He was heard calling for help for some time but the sea's heavy swells prevented the dinghy from reaching him and he drowned. The rest of the crew, Józef Szybka, Kazimierz Nowak, Edward Rudowski, and Władysław Szmidt were rescued eight hours later.

 

 

 

[Dazey]

On 12/21/2018 at 10:35 AM, Moa said:

On 12/21/2018 at 10:24 AM, Dazey said:

I should get my act together and start on the "Kamikaze" or even a "Southern Cross"!

 

Regards,

David

It only takes one little step, and you will be on your way...

C'mon, open those boxes, separate a couple parts, try the fit, warm up to it!

Nice to have a build in progress for the Season! (The in-laws? yes, yes, I am a little busy at the moment, will be there in a jiffy! sorting out some stuff for the holidays -white lie)

Yes, but largely a matter of time. I'm also waiting to set up DIY decal printing, so that may take a while to optimise.

 

And your later post reminded me there's also a DH comet kit to do!

 

Have a Happy Christmas!

Regards,

David

[Baldy]

Another beautifully built stunner Moa.

 

Cheers

 

Malcolm

[TheBaron]

Your photography sets off your work here wonderfully Moa.

I seem to state variations on this theme each time you post another build, but that doesn't stop it from being true!