| 1/72 kit: Stummel Habicht Glider Czech Master Resin (Model No.G-5011) Model built & reviewed by: Mark J. Davies (IPMS New Zealand) |
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| Background | |
| The Habicht (Hawk) was a fully aerobatic glider, first presented at the 1936 Olympic Games. It was stressed for a phenomenal +12 and -9 G, and had a very high rate of roll, and could achieve 450 kmh in a dive. Many future Luftwaffe pilots had their first experience of aerobatic flying in these gliders. The Habicht was modified with a choice of shorter wings of either 8 or 6 metres span. This version was the Stümmel Habicht (Clipped Hawk), the subject of this CMR kit. The Stümmel Habicht was a training glider used to prepare pilots of the Messerschmitt Me 163 rocket fighter for its gliding phase of flight. With a landing speed of 160 kmh it would seem it must have come close to simulating some of the Me 163's characteristics! |
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| I did come across a photo of a camouflaged Stümmel Habicht equipped with two sub-machine guns in the nose. These were Experimental 9mm MP-40.
Although I don't know the full background of the modification, I can only assume it had some training function like weapons simulation. http://richard.ferriere.free.fr/habicht/Stummel-Habicht_03.jpg http://richard.ferriere.free.fr/habicht/habicht_mp40_1.jpg http://richard.ferriere.free.fr/habicht/habicht_mp40_2.jpg Having fired sub-machine guns I can attest that you can't hit anything effectively at the ranges an aircraft experiences, and a 9mm round would be of little use. |
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| The Model | |
| CMR Models has a wide range of sporting and training gliders (see: 1/72nd Scale: Gliders) and I have built several, as I feel they add some interest to a display cabinet of predominantly military models. The Stümmel Habicht is a very simple kit to build, and will be added to my collection of Me 163's and derivatives when they are finished. | |
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