Click on the picture of model below to view it in detail.


Jets and Rockets
Germany was way ahead of the curve with jet and rocket engine research. Though the US and Britain did develop jets during the war, Germany is the only country to field successful jets into combat service.

Heinkel He280V3 Prototype
Heinkel produced the world's first jet airplane designed strictly as a fighter. Though it never went into service because the RLM chose the Me-262 over the He-280, it remains a landmark aircraft.
Huma Models 1/72 Scale.

Heinkel He280V3 (again?!)
I thought it was fairly boring that they painted the plane overall 02 gray. So I painted Eduard's beautiful new 1/48 scale kit in operational markings for the 1940 period.

Arado Ar-234C
The world's first operational jet bomber and recon aircraft, which began operations a year before the end of the war.
Monogram/Pro Modeler's 1/48 issue using the basic Hasegawa 2-engined kit plus a lot of ill-fitting add-on parts. I did my best. Since it turned out rather badly, a decided to skip the real markings and put it in more colorful fictional service markings.

Messerschmitt Me-262a-1a/Jabo
The world's first operational jet fighter, in service for the last full year of the war, in it's fighter-bomber version.
An old 1/72 Scale Hasegawa kit.

Messerschmitt Me-262A-2a/Jabo Sturmvogel (Stormbird)
The jabo (bomber) version of the fighter.
Tamiya's nifty 1/48 kit with Kettenkraftrad tow tractor.
The pose is based upon a piece of film taken during the war.

Messerschmitt Me-262A-1a/U4
Experimental version of the fighter armed with a big-ass 50mm cannon.
Hobby Boss' 1/48 kit with Aeromaster decals for "what if" JG7 scheme.

Messerschmitt Me-262B-1a
2-seat trainer version of the 262
Hobby Boss' 1/48 kit with random decals for "what if" North Africa scheme.
The model's rear seat is totally inaccurate for the trainer, rather being the night fighter configuration. I therefore added a tissue-paper tarp to hide the lack of detail.

Messerschmitt Me-262B-1a/U1 Night Fighter
The Schwalb (Swallow) in its operational night fighter version.
An old 1/72 Scale Hasegawa kit.

Heinkel He-162 Sparrow (or Salamander)
The "Volkjager" (Peoples' Fighter) that was meant to be flown by quickly-trained Hitler Youth, and could barely be handled by experienced fighter pilots with breaking apart. Records are unclear, but it MAY have gotten into combat in the last weeks of the war.
Trimaster's incredible 1/48 scale kit.

Fiesler Fi 103 R4 "Reichenberg"
An attempt to make the V-1 flying bomb more accurate by adding a cockpit. The pilot was supposedly to bail out after aiming the bomb, but few in the project kidded themselves that it was possible. Several aircraft were flight-tested, but none were used operationally.
Bronco Models' 1/35 plastic kit.


Rocket Planes
Bachem Ba-349 "Natter" (Viper)
The Bachem Ba-349 "Natter" was a rocket-powered point-defense interceptor designed in late-war Germany. It was to be launched vertically on rail mounted to a wooden pole. Once reaching the US bomber formation, the pilot would fire the 30 rockets, or cannon shells, mounted in the nose, and bail out. The fuselage would parachute down separately for re-use. A number were built and test-launched. But only one manned flight was attempted - the pilot was killed when the canopy broke off at launch, and the Natter made a 1 minute ballistic flight ending in a smoking hole on impact.

This is Dragon's 1/48 scale plastic model, omitting the detailed engine. It's presented in a "what-if" camo scheme as if operating with JG 400 in a factory defense capacity. It's shown on its assembly cradle, with booster rockets attached and nose cone armed up, awaiting mounting on its pole.

Messerschmitt Me-163B "Komet."
The world's first operational rocket-powered fighter, in service briefly at the end of the war.
Dragon Models' kit from 1992.


Back to Models
Back to InPayne