Gaspatch Model’s New 1/48 Henschel Hs123

by Jay Blakemore

THE BIRTH OF THE DIVE

BOMBER

W

hen Ernst Udet, the

World War 1 fighter ace

turned international

stunt pilot, returned home

from a tour of the United States,

extolling the dive-bombing

abilities of the new Curtiss

Hawk II, he was duly offered

funds by the newly established

Reichluftfahrtministerium

(German Air Ministry - RLM) to

purchase two examples for use

in aerobatic display. This not

only gave German designers the

opportunity to study state-of-the-

art American technology, it also

allowed Hermann Göring, head

of the fledgeling Luftwaffe, to

entice the fighter ace and national

hero back into military service.

In February 1934, the dual-role

capability of the Curtiss machines

prompted the technical office of

the RLM to issue specifications

DREI

Eins Zwei

22 • JANUARY 2018 • SCALE AVIATION MODELLER INTERNATIONAL

BY SACCO DE VRIES

HENSCHEL HS123

BY JAY BLAKEMORE

1/48

022-27-FEAT-Hs123-0118.indd 22 08/12/2017 17:01