Scale aviation modeller international

Eduard 1/48 Westland Lysander Mk III

by Garth Nicholson

BACKGROUND

N

amed after a Spartan

admiral, the Westland

Lysander, affectionately

called the “Lizzie”, was a British

army co-operation aircraft

first flown in 1936, entering

service with the RAF in 1938.

Designed by Arthur Davenport,

under direction from “Teddy”

Petter, the Lysander looked

unconventional with its stubby

fuselage, high wings (equipped

with advanced automatic flaps

and slats), and large glazed

cockpit and observer’s positions.

These features gave the aircraft

excellent crew visibility, combined

with the outstanding low-speed

and STOL performance essential for

artillery spotting while operating

from rough fields. The fixed, spatted

undercarriage was formed around

what was then the largest Elektron

(magnesium alloy) extrusion in

production. Small stub wings with

underslung stores carriers could

be attached to the undercarriage

legs, and machine guns could

also be fitted within the large

wheel fairings, complementing

the observer’s twin Browning or

single Lewis gun armament.

Despite this, Lysanders were

easy targets for the Luftwaffe at

the outbreak of WW2 and were

quickly relegated to air/sea rescue

or target tug duty. However,

due to the type’s outstanding

short-field performance, the

Lysander soon found its defining

role as a clandestine transport

aircraft, dropping or picking up

agents from occupied Europe.

KIT DETAILS

KIT: EDUARD #8290, WESTLAND

LYSANDER MK.III

SCALE: 1/48

RELEASE DATE: 2016 (NEW-TOOL)

NO. OF PARTS: C. 90 (DEPENDENT ON

VERSION)

GUNS: MASTER MODEL AM-48-026,

BROWNING 0.303”

EXHAUST: QUICKBOOST QB48-587

ADDITIONAL PHOTO-ETCH: EDUARD

#48367

AMMUNITION: EDUARD BRASSIN

#648341

NAVIGATOR’S MAP: WWW.

REALITYINSC210ALE.COM

LYSANDER

Westland

64 • MAY 2018 • SCALE AVIATION MODELLER INTERNATIONAL

BY SACCO DE VRIES

LYSANDER MK III

BY GARTH NICHOLSON

1/48

064-73-FEAT-RAF100-Lysander-0518.indd 64 13/04/2018 14:13