Small Scale Military Headquarters

AA35701 HISTORY CHANNEL LEGENDS SERIES (NON LIMITED)
1/72nd SCALE

MESSERSCHMITT Me 262A-1a
'White 3'
Adolf Galland, JV 44,
Munich-Riem, April 1945.

EXPECTED SEPTEMBER 2005



AA35702 MESSERSCHMITT Me 262A-1a (LIMITED EDITION)
1/72nd SCALE

MESSERSCHMITT ME 262A-1a
ANTON SCHOPPLER, 3./JG 7, SAAZ, 1945.

EXPECTED OCTOBER 2005

Photos Courtesy of the Corgi Heritage Centre

Thanks for the pictures! Both the paint schemes look great.

Why, however, does the pilot sit so low in the cockpit in the upper picture? The canopy on the real thing doesn't sit up that high! 21c made the same error in their 1:32 version of the plane. It should look more like the picture below, which is a modification to the 32x ME-262 cockpit:

Why, however, does the pilot sit so low in the cockpit in the upper picture?

He's just trying to look cool for the ladies.

They look great! One reason I prefer Corgi over Dragon when it comes to German planes is that Corgi puts swastikas on their tails.

Hi Gene,
I think its kind of ironic that with all the German stuff Dragon pumps out, they're reluctant to put the Swastika on their planes or upcoming 1:6 scale Zundapp. Sort of like a house without a roof, if the analogy fits...

Lightning2000
www.themotorpool.bigstep.com

Hey Lightning!

Funny that you mention that. Back in October 2003 just before Dragon released their first 1/72 Me109, I asked Scott Crawford, one of the head honchos at Dragon about the lack of a swastika on its tail. The following is my question, followed by his answer:

Hi Scott,

I was looking at the photos of Dragon's booth at the recent Hobby Visions
show and I noticed that the 1/72 die cast Me109E on display does not have
a swastika on its tail. Will there be a swastika on its tail when this plane is released? Many thanks.

GI Gene
Tucson, Arizona


Hi Gene,

Glad you liked the preview -- I'm pretty charged about it myself, since HG
Division is my favorite (and about darn time we made one!

I checked with our Warbirds guy in HK about the Me109E ... sorry, no
swastika is planned. Apparently, it's a line we can't afford to cross in
that market -- results in sticky issues with importing and distribution.
I'm not as immersed in the diecast aircraft lines, but couldn't help but
notice that Tamiya and Hasegawa also seem to follow the same policy. I had thought we might be able do it in the same way we do the SS figure insignia (with little stickers), but our Warbirds guy has been doing diecast aircraft for 20 years and says that's already been tried several times without success ... so in this case, I've got to defer to his experience and agree.

Hope that answers your question -- and thanks for your note!

Scott.

Hi Gene,
Its that whole PC bullcrap rearing its ugly head again. A hammer and sickle is okay when Russia raped East Germany after the war or the Japanese Sunburst in light of the rape of Nanking et. al. I still dont understand why they cant include a decal in the box so that the customer can do as he please or purchase it direct from Dragon via mail order. I can understand how its still a touchy matter for some, and that Germany isnt looking to open old wounds, but how is this the Swastika any different from the German balkenkreuz which seems to go unnoticed on the tanks?

Lightning2000

The German Balkenruze is the National Symbol for Germany.. The Swaztika is the Symbol for the Nazi's.. That's the difference..
Honestly, I am glad that this symbol is the only one banned.. I mean, look at it this way, we could be getting planes with NO National symbols.. And Swaztikas aren't that hard to come by if you have to have them on your plane..

Political Correctness will ruin us all.

"Political Correctness will ruin us all."

AMEN.

DITTO!!!
Todd