ITALERI 1:72 HEINKEL HE-111H-20/22 & V-1
Reviewer: Myself (braithy@bigpond.com)
This kit replicates the famous German Medium Bomber of World War II. The aircraft, distinctive with it's glass fronted nose/cockpit area, served in all war theaters as a medium bomber, reconnaissance aircraft, torpedo bomber and in some cases a cargo carrier. Near the end of the conflict the He-111 was utilised as the carrier of flying bombs. This was necessary because after the loss of the Channel Coastal areas these flying bombs could no longer be launched from ground launch pads.
Italeri has reproduced the Heinkell He-111-H20 or H22 variant equipped with the infamous V-1 flying "buzz" bomb. The kit contains 2 sprues of more than 80 parts for use with the He-111, 1 sprue of about 10 parts for the V-1 and 1 sprue of about 20 clear parts. It appears that this is a rehashed He-111 kit that Italeri have produced to cover a few different variants given that there are a large number of parts in the kit that will not be used to create this model. The parts are a light grey crisp plastic with finely engraved panel lines. On opening the box you are impressed with the quality the parts emanate on sight.
There is a large instruction sheet enclosed with ModelMaster colour codes (with either corresponding FS number or approximate colour name for matching with other pain manufacturers), which sets out assembly instructions in just over half a dozen fairly straightforward steps. There is also a brief history on the plane, drawings of the sprues to help locate parts easier and options for two different aircraft, with pointers throughout the instructions on which parts to use for which end-model.
Assembly starts with the crew stations inside the fuselage and includes four of the five small figures provided in the kit. The cockpit area is rather basic but you do get a steering wheel and platform for the nose gunner to lie on. A bit of scratchbuilding is necessary to get the cockpit detailed correctly. Eight fuselage side-windows (four each side) are provided, which means the very small upper starboard window (above the rear window) is omitted from the kit. My sources of the photographed H22 variant includes this small window. I ended up cutting out a proportioned window carefully and was able to raid the spares box and trim a small clear part to size. Guns and side gunner positions are optional depending on which of the two aircraft you decide to build and these are clearly labelled in the instruction sheet. While the assembly includes small side-windows in the belly of the aircraft, the end product of both versions do not have these small windows, and the instructions correctly advise to paint these over.
You then move onto connecting the fuselage parts and the wings. You will also need to make holes underneath the starboard wing near the root for later attachment of the V1 bomb launch rails. The distinctive gull shaped wing appears to be captured correctly when compared to reference sources. Rudder construction and tailplane elevators are separately attached and while they are unmovable it does allow you to decide the eventual setting position. After this you attach the glazed nose and engines both of which reflect reasonable accuracy when compared to reference sources. The nose captures the distinctive off-side shape but care needs to be taken to ensure that you have the flattened part of the nose on the starboard side. The nose gun bubble also needs to be attached with care as it is easy to glue it in the wrong position. The engine nazelles are not accurately represented with exhaust pipes too long, the intake underneath too large and the structure a bit too squared compared to references. Nonetheless, it lacks only a bit and only the trained eye is likely to pick out these anomolies (apart from the length of the exhaust cowlings!).
The next few steps deal with the undercarriage and these are fairly straightforward to attach. My only criticism is that the retraction mechanism is too angled on the model kit, having a more curving meet with the wheelbay on the real thing. The V1 is the main focus of the last steps to assemble and includes non-movable small nose propeller. The V1 is attached to the bomber by means of two horshoe-like rails under the starboard wing. Curiously I have very little reference of the V1 and the photos of it attached to the He-111 is slightly rear and above at best so I have to rely on the depiction of the nose, launch railings and propeller being correct. Needless to say this is a very easy assemble step and size in proportion is quite accurate.
After completing the model you are given the colour schemes to the two different variants (He-111H20 and He-111H22) the kit produces. I selected the H22 variant and ignored the instruction sheet by painting my aircraft according to colour references from Airplane and German Warplanes of WW2 references. Decals provided with the kit need a lot of care as they tended to disintegrate when trying to attach to the aircraft and I would recommend aftermarket products be used in this regard. Additionally there are no swastikas in the kit so these will also need to be obtained from an aftermarket source.
Overall the finalised product depicts a reasonably accurate He-111H22 with V1. For ease of assembly and quality of parts it is certainly recommended for novices and up. For those stringent on accuracy I would suggest at the very minimum seeking replacement parts (for example resin) for the engines, they sit a bit too high and have too large exhaust cowlings and air intakes as touched on above. Additionally, the upper cockpit windows are inaccurately replicated on the kit - being a little too flat for my liking. A couple of other parts such as the starboard upper window and bomb-sight housing (which should be attached underneath the nose glazing) are omitted. The rear tail-planes are also slightly inaccurate and need to be reshaped to appear a bit more rounded. A bit of work will therefore be required to depict an accurate replica in the finish but is possible in my opinion. The kit as it is will be a reasonable depiction sitting on the modelling shelf.
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