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MPM Production have sent us details of their latest kits, with new versions of their excellent Special Hobby 1:32 Fiat G.50 due for release later this month.

SH32061 Fiat G.50-II "Regia Aeronautica" 1/32
In the time just before the outburst of World War Two, the Fiat G.50 Freccia became one of the main fighter aircraft of the Regia Aeronautica, or the Royal Italian Air Force. The early version of this plane had already been combat-proven during the late stages of the Spanish Civil War. The first version to be mass-produced was the G.50-II which also incorporated demands and experiences of combat pilots from the Spanish war. This version took part in the first stage of the world conflict. Together with Fiat CR.42 biplane fighters, the Fiat G.50-II created a fighter backbone of the Corpo Aero Italiano, the Italian Expeditionary Corps in the Battle of Britain. Curiously enough, typical English weather was more dangerous to the Italian planes and fighters, even more than the RAF. During the Battle of Britain, it showed up that the Fiat fighter is suitable for Mediterranean conditions. The Regia Aeronautica used its Fiat fighters over the Peloponnese, Malta, Africa or over Italian homeland to much more distinctive success there.

The model contains four frames with plastic parts, clear injected canopy, detailed resin parts with really superb Fiat A.74 engine and also a fret of PE parts. The decal sheet offers markings for two Italian planes, both in typical Italian mottled camouflage scheme, but each one with a different type and colours of the mottles. While the first machine flew from the territory of occupied Albania against the Greeks and Brits, the other machine was flown by the commander of the 20°Gruppo, maggiore pilota Mario Bonzano (17 victories).

SH32058 Fiat G.50bis "Luftwaffe and Croatian AF" 1/32
During 1941 the Fiat G-50-II became outperformed by Allied fighter planes. The Regia Aeronautica also needed fighters capable of attacks against ground targets. Therefore, Fiat company designed a new version, the Fiat G.50bis with better performance and capable of fighter-bomber missions. The majority of produced machines flew in Italian colours and some of them were used by another air forces.

When Italy was partially occupied by the Wehrmacht in 1943, some of the captured Italian machines were taken over by training units of the Luftwaffe. It resulted in a Fiat G.50bis being used by training Jagdgeschwader 108 in Wiener Neustadt, still wearing its original Italian camouflage with new mottles of dark green on the upper surfaces. The plane bore number 352 on its engine cowling and now you can find it on the decal sheet along with another two machines which belonged to another user of Fiat G.50s, the Croatian Air Force. The Croat Fiats were used over the home territory against the Partisans. The decal sheet offers two Croatian machines, the first one adorned with a drawing of the devil on its cowling, the other one is interesting because of its history as its pilot defected to the Partisans. This machine is now being held in a storage of the Aeronautical Museum in Belgrade.

The model consists of four sprues of plastic parts, injected canopy, a fret of PE parts and detailed resin parts which include also a superb replica of the Fiat A.74 engine.

Looking ahead to February, MPM Production are planning to release the following kits in 1:72 and 1:48:

MPM-SA72015 - 1/72 A-Stoffanhänger "Liquid Oxygen Tank for V2 Rocket

SH48135 - 1/48 AF-2S Guardian "Submarine Killer"

SH48158 - 1/48 AF-2W Guardian "Submarine Hunter"

SH48130 - 1/48 Fairey Firefly AS Mk.7 Antisubmarine version

SH48166 - 1/48 Fairey Firefly U.8 "Drone version"

For anyone lucky enough to get to the Nürnberg Toy Fair 2015, you can find MPM Production ast Stand E-52 in Hall 7.

Please remember, when contacting retailers or manufacturers, to mention that you saw their products highlighted here - on AEROSCALE.