¹⁄32

April MOM Winner

history

The Airco DH.2 was a single-seat biplane "pusher" aircraft which operated as a fighter during the First World War. It was the second pusher design by Geoffrey de Havilland for Airco, based on his earlier DH.1 two-seater. The DH.2 was the first effectively armed British single-seat fighter and enabled Royal Flying Corps (RFC) pilots to counter the "Fokker Scourge" that had given the Germans the advantage in the air in late 1915. Until the British developed a synchronisation gear to match the German system, pushers such as the DH.2 and the F.E.2b carried the burden of fighting and escort duties.

History adapted from Wikipedia.

the model

This is the Wingnut Wings 1/32 kit. The model represents aircraft in service in mid 1916 - a period that would start evolution from entirely Clear Doped Linen aircraft to what would eventually be known as ambiguous PC10. The aircraft I've built bears application of PC8 (predecessor to PC10) on top surfaces of the wing and tail planes - I've mixed the color from equal parts Model Master Acryl Field Drab and Dunkelgelb to attain "light khaki" coloration, as instructional material suggests. Nacelle materials, as well as most exterior wood surfaces, are painted neutral gray, while all interior wood is left as dark varnished wood - this is where I took some artistic license, as instructions suggest that all wood would most likely painted gray.

Rigging is done with Beadalon 0.01" (0.25mm) jeweler's wire by drilling and running through thicker surfaces or glued to tail booms framework with small amounts of CA glue. Turnbuckles are made of stripped electric wire insulation painted with brass acryl. Rigging a "pusher" proved to be a challenge and gave a healthy respect for this subject - one must remember to apply counter-pressure to opposing lines when rigging the tail booms, as it's easy to through the alignment askew.

Weathering is done with layers of heavily diluted artist oils - separating washes in detail accents, overall grime and castor spray from the engine. The latter was most fun to apply, given the effects of rotary engine sans any cowling.