De Havilland DH. 2 by Eduard

1/72 scale
Kit No. 7048
Cost: $12.00
Decals: Two versions: 1) DH.2 tail code 7851 of No. 32 Squadron, France 1916; 2) DH.2 of No. 14 Squadron (no tail code ), Palestine 1917
Comments: Detailed cockpit, Lewis gun, and rotary engine; choice of two- or four-bladed propellers; choice of two instrument panels; rigging diagram and painting masks included

History

The (Airco) de Havilland DH. 2 was a single-seat scout aircraft of World War I, similar in configuration to the Royal Aircraft Factory F.E. 8, a larger two-seat fighter that also had its propeller mounted at the rear of the fuselage pod, or nacelle, and twin booms connecting the rest of the plane to the tail. This was called a “pusher” configuration as it pushed the aircraft through the air rather than pulled it. Introduced into service in December 1915 at the height of “the Fokker Scourge,” the DH.2 would prove an effective counter to the Fokker E.III Eindecker monoplane during the Battle of the Somme and for several months tipped the balance of the air war on the Western Front in favor of the Allies.

This was no small feat, for since its appearance in July 1915, the Eindecker with its Spandau machine gun synchronized to fire through gaps in its spinning propeller, had terrorized the Allies and revolutionized air warfare by demonstrating how deadly this advantage in technology could be. With a then-impressive top speed of 93 mph, the highly maneuverable DH.2 and its single Lewis gun out in front of the propeller, unburdened by the need for interrupter gear, exacted a deadly toll against the German Air Service in the late spring and summer months; in the crucial period of June to September of 1916, the DH.2, together with the Sopwith 1 1/2 Strutter, French Nieuport and F.E.2B, allowed the Royal Flying Corps to seize complete control of the skies above the Somme battlefield.

As recorded by Peter Hart, author of Bloody April: Slaughter in the skies over Arras, 1917, for a brief time, the DH.2 helped wrest complete air superiority from the Germans: “In July and August 1916, the RFC achieved an almost total domination of the skies above the lines and deep into the rear areas behind the German front. The German infantry grew incensed as they were constantly exposed from above, while their own aircraft were conspicuous only by their absence.” (see Bloody April, Copyright 2005 Casell Military Paperbacks, London, p.29)

But given the rapid development of combat aircraft during the war, the DH.2’s superiority was short-lived. By December 1916 with the introduction of the German Albatros, the DH.2 had become outdated. On December 20th, over Monchy-au-Bois, a flight of six DH.2’s of 29 Squadron led by Captain Gerald Knight, an ace with eight victories to his credit, met none other than Manfred von Richtofen leading four other Albatros fighters. The DH.2’s were mauled and Captain Knight himself killed in the ensuing action.

The urgency for ever more advanced fighters during WWI reflected their primary role on the battlefield, and initially the sole reason for their existence: to protect reconnaissance aircraft (see R.E.8) that were photographing enemy positions over the front lines and acting as the eyes for the field artillery on a daily basis. The DH.2 represented an innovative advance in combat aircraft design that put the Germans on the defensive at a crucial moment; but the advantage it gave the Allies over the battlefield – due to the rapid development in fighter design during this period — had evaporated within nine months. For a more complete history of the DH.2, click here.

Construction

You begin with the cockpit, which features a seat, control yoke, rudder bar, rear firewall, and instrument panel. The cockpit floor, which is molded as a single piece with the lower wings, and sidewalls all feature raised detail, providing an opportunity to show the contrast between the frame of the cockpit cage and the fabric covering. The sidewalls double as the sides of the fuselage nacelle, and can be a little difficult to align properly against the lower wing to ensure sufficient contact for cementing these parts on, so proceed slowly and carefully at this stage.

The nose is a separate part to which the diminutive instrument panel is cemented, and a decal can be affixed to the instrument panel if the modeler wishes. The DH.2’s Le Rhone rotary engine is faithfully represented with the engine assembly consisting of four parts, the most challenging of which is Part B11, a ring with connecting rods attached which is quite delicate.

The top of the cockpit nacelle is also a separate part, which when cemented to the remainder of the nacelle must be slotted carefully between struts that are molded to the sides of the nacelle as a single part and will ultimately connect to the upper wing. Here the fit can be tricky since the top of the nacelle may or may not overhang either of the two sides. Additional small parts for the Lewis gun mount are then cemented to the front of the nacelle top. The next step, Step 5, calls for the cementing on of the Lewis gun, but as this juts out prominently from the nose and I had a good idea of the amount of handling the kit would require before it was finished, I left the machine gun until last. I should note here that the major components were all painted with either brush or airbrush prior to assembly, and most of the decals were applied and sealed as well – on a kit this small and delicate I saw no other realistic option.

Next and most intimidating was the attachment of the upper wing, and the eight struts that make this possible. Owing mainly to Eduard’s engineering genius, I was able to attach it without a jig and without too much difficulty. The key challenge was sanding the points of the struts to enough of a point to get them to fit into the pre-machined holes in the upper and lower wings. While it seemed quite rickety during assembly, once the cement dried the wings were remarkably rugged.  The main landing gear were extremely fidgety, but with patience and careful attention to the assembly diagram, I got them cemented on with only a little difficulty. The four-bladed propeller came next, and Eduard thoughtfully provided a paint guide for this part.

The tail assembly (its parts, including the tri-color on the rudder, painted in advance) went together with ease. Not so the twin booms connecting the tail assembly to the rest of the aircraft. This was nearly as intimidating as attaching the upper wing, because the key was to get them set at the right angle so that once the glue was dry, the tail assembly could be attached without difficulty. The challenge is that the booms form a “V” that come to a point, but that point is only established when they are cemented to the tail assembly, i.e. they touch the tail assembly but not each other. It was necessary for the glue attaching the booms to the wings to be set and fully dried before cementing the booms to the tail assembly, because in bringing them to a point they come under tension and can easily pry loose from the wings if the glue has not dried. Quick drying cyanoacrylate was not an option as some re-positioning had to be done once contact was made.

The booms are a pretty faithful recreation of the design of the actual aircraft, and this speaks to the innovation and creativity of Geoffrey de Havilland. But it was not as easy to assemble as the instructions made it look – you have to pay close attention to the angle of the booms, ensuring that they are properly aligned with the wings on both the horizontal and vertical planes before you set the contraption aside to dry. The finished look with the tail assembly attached is impressive, but it does give the DH. 2 the look of a powered kite.

Rigging followed. Although I experimented briefly with EZ Line, a stretchable modeling thread that simulates wire, it was too cumbersome on a kit this small. Instead I used ceramic glass wire, which can easily be cut to the desired length with an Xacto blade, made by Precision Enterprises Limited and attached using cyanoacrylate.

Painting

The de Havilland DH.2 was airbrushed primarily with Vallejo acrylics — a mix of 70% Camouflage Olive Green (70.894) and 30% NATO Black (71.251) — to produce the Dark Olive Green upper surfaces. Undersides are airbrushed in Polly Scale Doped Linen (F505029). The fuselage nacelle was painted by hand with enamels, Humbrol Gloss Admiral Grey and Testors Flat Brown. The forward section of the tail was airbrushed with the Dark Olive Green noted above, and for the tri-color on the rudder a mix of acrylics and enamels was used: Gunze Sangyo acrylic Gloss Red (H3), Model Master acrylic Royal Blue, and Model Master enamel Insignia White.

Conclusion

This is a challenging and rewarding WWI kit that will put a modeler through the paces, in part because of its small size. While I am pleased with the finished product and happy to have got it finished without any major mishaps, I found myself wondering what it would look like in 1/48 scale. A great addition to the WWI bench!

References

• Classic World War I Aircraft Profiles, Vol. 1, by Terry C. Treadwell and Edward Shacklady; Copyright 2002 Cerberus Publishing Limited; Bristol, England.
• Bloody April: Slaughter in the Skies Over Arras, 1917, by Peter Hart; Copyright Peter Hart 2005, Cassell Military Paperbacks, London.