Junkers Ju-87B-2. 1941 Balkans - the German diving bomber

In order to participate in the competition for a dive bomber, which was announced in the mid-1930s by the leadership of the Third Reich, the Junkers company prepared a project for such an aircraft. The company won the competition and in 1937 the Ju-87A began to be supplied to units, several of them were sent to Spain, where they participated in the Civil War on the side of Franco. There they were well tested in combat conditions and the aircraft was extensively modified. This is how later versions appeared. The aircraft was used for its intended purpose throughout the war and served well, while the Germans had air superiority. When the Allies acquired it, the slow-moving and lightly armed aircraft became a good target for fast, maneuverable and well-armed Allied fighters. Version B-2 aircraft were very successfully used at the beginning of World War II and provided excellent support for Wehrmacht units, attacking from the air. An additional psychological weapon of these planes were sirens, called "Jericho trumpets", which, when the plane was diving, "howled" loudly and simply paralyzed enemy soldiers and refugee civilians. "Stukas" were widely used in the occupation of Poland, in the French campaign, during the Battle of Britain, but suffered huge losses in the latter actions. However, after that they were again accompanied by success in the Balkans, where in battles with the British Navy they sank a number of enemy military and transport ships, fought in North Africa, in the battles for Malta - during which they severely damaged the British aircraft carrier HMS "Illustrious". In the war with the USSR, they also initially did well and reigned in the skies. During the subsequent battles on the Eastern Front, they got used to the "Stukas" and learned to fight them, taking advantage of their shortcomings (low speed, weak defensive weapons, weak armor, small bomb load) and they were simply driven out of the sky. Later versions did not improve the situation much.

Excellent detailing (there is even an engine with a mounting frame), good design and beautiful camouflage - the pluses of this model. They can also be attributed to a large and detailed graphic instruction. The text instruction is somewhat poor, but quite well complements the graphic one. The disadvantage - there is no color reserve. The model has complex shapes and is richly detailed, so it will suit only medium-experienced and experienced modelers. The model is painted in the standard German broken-spot camouflage of the beginning of World War II and recreates the machine, used by 1/StG.1 in battles in 1941 from Bulgarian bases.