“Brace for impact boys!” Italeri Airspeed Horsa AS 51, 1/72
Some of you may think you have seen this already some years ago ,but this is a different build from the first one which is in my gallery, this version uses aftermarket decals with the rather cool graffiti on the side, sadly the first one had a hard landing at the bottom of my stairs . Luckily the dio was not involved and it was always my intension to build another Horsa so when this G.B. came up that was the inspiration I needed to get into gear.
I cut out the airbrakes and scratch built the braces inside the wings but I have no idea if they are accurate or not but they look O.K to me. This is an enjoyable kit to build but does require a little bit of patience to get everything lined up, I noticed on both my builds of this kit that the tail wings are not on an even plane with one sitting higher than the other but this is nothing that can't be fixed.
A bit of info now, the first flight was on September 12 1941 towed into the air by an Armstrong Whitworth Whitley, interestingly the initial order was for 400 Horsas but due to them being constructed sectionaly in different factories and constructed on site as needed there seems to be some confusion as to how many were actually built with estimates anywhere between 3800 and 5000.
Anyway I hope you like her ,feel free to comment.
Neil
Really good concept, Neil! Model looks great!
Cheers Rob, it's funny but when I posted my first Horsa build using the same dio it got a ton of positive comments the same as this incarnation has ,people seem to really like this one.
Looks great, Neil! I built that kit way back in the ‘70s when it came out and have always wAnted to do another.
Thanks John , there readily available so you should do it ,you could do one with black and yellow chevrons to add a bit of colour.
Fantastic work. Just brilliant.
‘Liked’
High praise indeed Dave , thanks your kind words pal.
Well deserved, Neil!
exciting diorama
Cheers Bob, you can almost hear the wind rushing over the wings can't you.
I like it Neil! Is it just me, or can you see a look of "ohhh s--t!" in the eyes of the pilots? 🙂
You certainly can Jaime ,thanks for looking pal
The minute I saw that you were going to put this into the group build I got genuinely excited, Neil. And it has gone way beyond expectation! I love the message on the side of the plane and the rejuvenated dio! The scratch-building is great too - those airbrakes look very convincing to me! It is funny how we are our own harshest critics - I'm not sure anyone that wasn't looking to find fault would have noticed anything at all about the geometry!
I think this is a stunning project Neil - and exactly the kind go thing I hoped against hope would turn up in RAF100, a little piece of history and something suitably different and exciting - thanks for everything along the way! Fantastic!
Thanks Paul I'm glad you like it. You've done a fantastic job of this massive undertaking by the way.
I've just had a look through the 'decades' section - that Hotspur is a corker too - love it!
Neil my friend, you've outdone yourself. Top to bottom this is a winner: concept, bird choice, setting, execution. Just fabulous.
Always nice to hear from you Dave, thanks for your generous words pal.
Imaginative to the max! It's startling at what they asked these men to do.
Thanks Rob, you wouldn't catch me in one of these !
Excellent! Outstanding Horsa, Neil. Thanks for sharing.
Cheers Geoff.
Fantastic build and dio Neil, it looks real in all respects. If you take some B/W pics and compare to historical imagery you will be amazed! Well done!
Thanks so much Michel , very kind words.
Boy do I like what you've done with this kit Neil. Well executed and the pics really show her off. Really nice dio, well done I say.
Thanks Tom , yes everyone seems to really like this dio.
Very nice - well-executed dio Neil!
Cheers Greg.
Dramatic! Great concept and execution. Much respect to those glider pilots and soldiers!
Thanks for looking Andy
Hello Neil,
What a great scene you made out of this all.
It depicts the difficulties that the Glider pilots must have had, by coming down in "rough" terrain.
regards, Dirk.
love this - really nice effect - it certainly demonstrates the "controlled crash" of these gliders in action. I love seeing any dio that shows winged things in flight, and yours is really done well. I'm sorry I missed seeing the first incarnation, but enjoying this one.