HOME | DD

Description
A Fiat CR.42 Falco in the colours of Escadrille 4/II/2 of the Belgian Army Air Corps (Aéronautique Militaire Belge), during the desperate May days of 1940.

A late purchase by the Belgian Army to replace its obsolete Fairey Firefly fighters, the Fiat CR.42 was delivered starting in the spring of 1940 (March 1940). Their introduction into service started under a bad omen - the first aircraft to be delivered crashed during its landing.

While a total of 40 aircraft had been ordered, less than 30 had been delivered when Nazi Germany invaded Belgium on May 10th 1940. While most of the Belgian Army's Air Corps was destroyed on the ground by German Bombers - including half of the CR.42s - the surviving aircraft continued fighting throughout the entire 18-day campaign, scoring confirmed kills against German Ju 52 transport planes, Dornier Do 17 bombers, and even the superior Messerschmitt Bf 109E fighter. Most Belgian CR.42s were destroyed on the ground: just two were actually shot down by the German Luftwaffe, while the Fiats in turn scored eight kills. By the end of the campaign (May 28th 1940), 5 out of a fleet of 27 Fiats survived: while it is known these aircraft were later captured in France by German forces, their ultimate fate is unknown.

Kit is a 1/72 scale Italeri kit (#1260), first issued in 2006. Decals are from an after-market decal kit, produced by the now-defunct Dutch manufacturer "Kits At War". Model depicts a Fiat CR.42 of Escadrille 4/II/2 of the Aéronautique Militaire Belge in May of 1940.

Model inventory: kit #518, purchased May 5th 2006 @ Baillien Modelbouw, Antwerp, Belgium.

Description
A Fiat CR.42 Falco in the colours of Escadrille 4/II/2 of the Belgian Army Air Corps (Aéronautique Militaire Belge), during the desperate May days of 1940.

A late purchase by the Belgian Army to replace its obsolete Fairey Firefly fighters, the Fiat CR.42 was delivered starting in the spring of 1940 (March 1940). Their introduction into service started under a bad omen - the first aircraft to be delivered crashed during its landing.

While a total of 40 aircraft had been ordered, less than 30 had been delivered when Nazi Germany invaded Belgium on May 10th 1940. While most of the Belgian Army's Air Corps was destroyed on the ground by German Bombers - including half of the CR.42s - the surviving aircraft continued fighting throughout the entire 18-day campaign, scoring confirmed kills against German Ju 52 transport planes, Dornier Do 17 bombers, and even the superior Messerschmitt Bf 109E fighter. Most Belgian CR.42s were destroyed on the ground: just two were actually shot down by the German Luftwaffe, while the Fiats in turn scored eight kills. By the end of the campaign (May 28th 1940), 5 out of a fleet of 27 Fiats survived: while it is known these aircraft were later captured in France by German forces, their ultimate fate is unknown.

Kit is a 1/72 scale Italeri kit (#1260), first issued in 2006. Decals are from an after-market decal kit, produced by the now-defunct Dutch manufacturer "Kits At War". Model depicts a Fiat CR.42 of Escadrille 4/II/2 of the Aéronautique Militaire Belge in May of 1940.

Model inventory: kit #518, purchased May 5th 2006 @ Baillien Modelbouw, Antwerp, Belgium.