Sheet:

Luftwaffe im Focus 72005 for Bf-109s & Fw-190s

Units: See Review

Price

€12.00 in Germany, 15.00 everywhere else, postage paid

Reviewer:

Scott Van Aken

Here is the promised 1/72 sheet from Luftwaffe im Focus Decals.

In addition to all the markings covered in the 1/32 sheet, this one has three additional markings for Bf-109s and Fw-190s. All of these markings come from the pages of the various issues of Luftwaffe im Focus so you can be assured that there is photographic reference and that they are not just a guessitmation or based on a long out of date profile.

To jog your memory, here are the original subjects from the 1/32 scheet. First up is yellow 10, a Bf-109G-2 that was covered previously. It was attached to 6./JG 5 during early 1943. Next is Black 9 a standard scheme (RLM 74/75/76) Bf-109F-2 from 8./JG 54. It has a complete yellow cowling, underside of the wing tips and fuselage band, though the band is much farther forward than the norm. Blue 8 is a G-14 in standard scheme from 16./JG 5 during late 1944. A pretty standard scheme with no additional color. Yellow 6 is an E-4 from 9./JG 3 and shown above. It is in RLM 71/02/65 with no mottling and a large yellow nose section with the upper yellow carried back to the base of the windscreen. Finally is Brown 12, a G-6 also shown above and in the standard colors. This 12./JG 51 has full Russian front markings with a brown-tipped yellow spinner. It also has a flash behind the engine that is normally seen on FW-190s. Large areas on the fuselage side are painted over where there were previous markings.

The newer markings cover a Bf-109G-14/AS, White 13 from 13./JG 53 as participated in Operation Bodenplatte. It is RLM 75/83/76 with no mottling other than the fin/rudder. Not really sure just where you'll get a G-14/AS kit though you may want to kitbash a G-10 or K-4 with a standard G-6 kit. The first of the Fw-190s is an A-5 variant. Red X is the machine of Jagdfuhrer Holland during 1943/44 and is in standard camo with yellow under the wings and cowling. It also carries a red spinner with a white band. The other is an FW-190A-4, Black 6, from 5./JG 1 during 1943. Again, standard camo with a rather thick fuselage and tail mottling. The two 190 schemes are shown in the image at the top of the page.

The sheet is superbly printed and offers only the unique markings for the planes in question. Common markings will have to come from the kit or another source. The instruction sheet is in full color to help placement. It is only written in German, but for most of us, that is not a hinderance.

Thanks to Luftfahrtverlag-Start for the review sheet. You can find this and other products on their website.

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