"De Ruyter" – the Dutch light cruiser

"De Ruyter" – the Dutch World War II light cruiser. The keel was laid down on September 14, 1933, launched on May 11, 1935, entered service on October 3, 1936. He was sunk in the Battle of the Java Sea. “De Ruyter” was designed during the Great Depression, which, in addition to being a period of economic depression, was also a period of widespread pacifism in the Netherlands. For these reasons the ship was officially called a "flottieljeleider" (flotilla leader) rather, than a cruiser, and every effort was made to keep costs down. His function was to assist the two existing “Java”-class cruisers in the defense of the Dutch East Indies; it was assumed, that with three cruisers, two would always be in service, even if one was being repaired. However, due to the cost-cutting policies implemented during the design, “De Ruyter” was not entirely suited to this task. Her main battery (7 x 150 mm guns) was weaker, than other light cruisers of the time (e.g. the British “Leander”-class cruisers), and the ship was not sufficiently armored and was not armed with long-range anti-aircraft guns. However, his fire control system was excellent. Cruiser was equipped with a single “Fokker” C.XI reconnaissance seaplane. During World War II “De Ruyter” saw action in the Dutch East Indies in an unsuccessful attempt to repel the Japanese invasion. On 4 February 1942 he was damaged by air attack in the Battle of Macassar Strait, but the damage was not significant. On 18 February he fought in the Battle of Badung Strait. In the Battle of the Java Sea on 27 February “De Ruyter” was the flagship of Dutch Rear Admiral Karel Doorman and his flag captain Eugène Lacomble, who had previously served on the ship as a lieutenant. On the evening of 27 February the Dutch cruisers was unexpectedly attacked off the north coast of Java by the Japanese heavy cruisers “Nachi” and “Haguro”. A few minutes after the Dutch cruiser “Java” was torpedoed and sunk, “De Ruyter” was hit by a single Type 93 torpedo, fired by “Haguro” at about 23:40, causing a fire on board. The torpedo also disrupted the ship's electrical systems, preventing the crew from extinguishing the fire or flooding the burning compartments of the ship. “De Ruyter” sank at about 2:30 the next morning, killing 367 sailors, including Admiral Doorman.

A large, well-designed and highly detailed model of a large cruiser, designed for intermediate and experienced modelers. The model accurately depicts the hull, underwater detailing, superstructures, armament, onboard aircraft and their launch and recovery equipment, rescue and other equipment. Furthermore, it features a beautiful irregular spotted camouflage and rare in model’s national flag. A significant reserve of colors and textures is available, and the texture of the wooden decks is recreated very realistically. The textual instructions are comprehensive and detailed, and, although brief, they describe gluing all the parts together and the entire assembly process. The graphical instructions are equally comprehensive, detailed, easy to read, and very informative.