The Arado Ar 196 was the primary float plane on board of German Kriegsmarine ships.

Development started in fall of 1936 as a replacement of the obsolete  Heinkel Bi-planes used these days. The first prototypes of the all metal planes flew in summer of 1937 showing its superiority over the competing Focke-Wulf design. Full scale production started in 1939.

The Arado Ar 196 was relative heavy armed for a sea based reconnaissance plane and with its agility it was able ot protect itself against land based fighters in the early stage of the war. Besides its use on larger Kriegsmarine ships and auxiliary cruisers, the aircraft also operated in coastal patrols - one remarkable event was the capture of the British submarine H.M.S. Shark in May 1940.

Over 500 Ar 196 were build at Arado, Société Nationale de Construction Aèronautique in France and Fokker in the Netherlands between 1939 and 1944. At least three survive; one in Bulgaria and two in the US at NAS Willow Grove and the Smithsonian collection.

THE KIT

For a look at what's in the box and a brief history, please visit the preview.

CONSTRUCTION

As with any good floatplane, I started with the floats. First thing I did was to put two large weights in the very front of the floats to keep it from sitting back when finished. It may not be enough, but you can's say I didn't try. As I mentioned in the preview, the molding of the float bottoms left something to be desired so those needed some filler once the glue had dried. I also glued the wings together. Using the guns as the proper alignment guide, I found the lower wing to be too long on one side by about a 1/16 inch. It was sanded flush with the upper wing. I lost detail on the wing leading edge during sanding, but being raised detail, it was easy enough to replace simply by scribing with a hobby knife.

The interior bits were glued together and painted RLM 66 along with the rest of the interior bits and the inside of the fuselage. The engine and instrument panels were painted black at this time. Thanks to the rather low parts count and relative ease of construction, this won't be a long and drawn out build job. Heller kits of this era seemed to fit exceptionally well compared to others then on the market. I should also mention that the engine is OK, but a bit on the generic side. Those wanting a real BMW 132K should seek an aftermarket replacement.

COLORS AND MARKINGS

 

FINAL ASSEMBLY

 

CONCLUSIONS

 

REFERENCES