Italian and Soviet WWII 1/2400 Aircraft

[Donald M. Scheef]

Now that the German WWII 1/2400 aircraft pack #1 contents have been announced, it is time to begin speculation about the contents of RMN20 and SUN05.

Unlike the British and the Germans, for whom the problem was to select from an abundance of good choices, the Italians and the Soviets are difficult because of a general lack of maritime-oriented aircraft. I would very much like to have additional packs for the British and Germans, but one pack should just about do it for the Italians. The Soviets might have enough designs for aircraft with a secondary maritime role to deserve a second pack.

For the Italians, there is one aircraft that is almost a necessity: the SM.79 Sparviero. This three-engined medium bomber built a formidable reputation in the torpedo attack role. The Cant Z.1007/1008 was also a good design but didn't have the popularity and reputation of the SM.79.

Another logical choice for the Italians would be the Cant Z.501 floatplane. Although obsolescent, it was widely used for coastal patrol and rescue purposes. Unfortunately, the more modern Italian floatplanes/seaplanes were built in small numbers only.

If the pattern of the British and German aircraft packs is continued, RMN20 will include Re.2001 fighters and I.M.A.M. Ro.43 floatplanes. More Re.2001 would be OK - they were widely used - but please no more Ro.43.

I would like to see some different fighters (in addition to Re.2001): The most widely-used in-line fighter was the Macchi M.202. The biplane Fiat Cr.42 could also be useful in early-war scenarios.

My best guess for RMN20: SM.79, Re.2001, I.M.A.M. Ro.43, Macchi M.202, and Fiat CR.42.

In terms of attack aircraft, the only type the Italians had that was really successful was the Ju 87s they got from the Germans. Maybe some of these should be in the pack.

For the Soviets, I would start with Il-2 Sturmvik. These heavily-armored attack planes were built in immense numbers, some of which were used against shipping.

The MBR-2 single-engine seaplane was widely used for coastal patrol. The larger and more capable Beriev MDR-6 and Chetverikov ARK-3 were built in much smaller numbers. Lend-lease or copied PBY Catalinas were used much more widely. The biplane Kor-1 and Kor-2 were built in very small numbers for use from shipboard catapults (looks like one of these is on SUN03, Kirov).

The Soviets used cannon- and rocket-armed fighters extensively in the attack role. The radial-engine La-5 and in-line-engine Yak-1/3 and Yak-7/9 would be good to include in this pack.

The Petlyakov Pe-2 was a very good twin-engine attack aircraft. It is less well-known than the single-engine Il-2, but was effective in the anti-ship role.

The Tupolev SB-2 was the early-war medium/fast bomber. It was used in several attacks against German shipping. The Ilyushin Il-4 medium bomber was used in the torpedo attack role.

My best guess for SUN05: Yak-7, Il-2, Il-4, MBR-2, and Pe-2.

D. Scheef

[pmskaar]

Hi Donald

Thanks for giving your opinion on the 1/2400 aircraft. Although I am doing primarily WWII land forces currently, I do have an interest in both the WWI and WWII naval as well and will paint some more stuff eventually. I always enjoy your posts for their thoughtfulness and insight in the realm of naval things pertaining to GHQ. There are a number of various ships GHQ needs to do to round out the various navies that they already do and I enjoy your ratings on the ships and now the aircraft. Keep up the good work.

Pete - Binpicker, Out!

[Donald M. Scheef]

The Italian Aircraft Pack #1 is out with the following contents: S.M.79, Z.506B, Ro43, and Re2000. I think I was reasonably close with my wishes and predictions.

The S.M.79 is absolutely the best choice for the Italians. This is a necessity for Mediterranean scenarios.
I was a bit surprised about the Z.506, but like it. The only drawback of this model is that the aircraft was built in relatively small numbers. I had expected the earlier and much more widely-used Z.501.
I made an error with my fighter wish - GHQ's choice was correct. My wish list had the Re2001, but this version had an in-line engine. The Re2000 was the proper choice.
As I have said before, we already have enough of the Ro43.

I doubt that there will be much demand for an additional Italian aircraft pack now that the S.M.79 is available. Perhaps some time in the far future GHQ might consider producing one with some of the following:
P.108 - four-engine bomber, never effectively used but with maritime capability
Z.1007/1008 - three-engine bomber contemporaries of the S.M.79 (differing in the design of the tail).
Z.501 - single-engine biplane flying boat. This was much less capable than the Z.506, but many more were built.
Fiat Cr.42 - biplane fighter widely used early in the war (this would be especially good if we could get a British Sea Gladiator)
Macci M.202 - most widely-built up-to-date Italian fighter, it used a German DB601 engine or an Italian copy
Fiat G.55 - best-looking (to my eye) Italian WWII fighter, it used a German DB605 engine or an Italian copy

Don S.

[Donald M. Scheef]

The Soviet Aircraft Pack #1 is out with the following contents: MBR-2 seaplane, KOR-1 floatplane, Il-2 "fighter" and Pe-2 bomber. This is pretty close to what I had expected.

In my opinion, the MBR-2, Il-2, and Pe-2 are very good choices. As I mentioned in earlier postings, the KOR-1 can be discarded.

Despite being described as a fighter, the Il-2 was a dedicated attack aircraft with essentially zero air-to-air combat capability. The Pe-2 was very much an attack bomber. These selections leave the Soviets with no true fighter aircraft and no medium bombers.

I would like to see a Soviet Aircraft Pack #2 including:
- La 5/7/9 radial-engine fighter
- Yak 1/3/7/9 in-line engine fighter
- Il-4 medium bomber (with torpedo capability)
- one of the following (SB-2 twin-engine light bomber, DB-3 medium bomber, MDR-6 seaplane, Tu-2 twin-engine attack bomber)

Don S,