Eduard Weekend edition Hobby Plastic Model Kit Airco DH-2 — 1:48

Eduard is a Czech model-kit and modelling-accessories manufacturer based in Obrnice. The company is particularly recognised for detailed aircraft kits and accessories, including its ProfiPACK, Weekend Edition and Brassin product ranges.

The Weekend Edition concept was intended to provide the core plastic kit at a lower price than Eduard's more extensively equipped ProfiPACK releases. For the DH-2, that means the basic plastic and decals are supplied without the photo-etched detail and painting mask included with the more elaborate version. Eduard's contemporary July 2012 catalogue specifically described Cat. 8443 as the economical version of its 1:48 DH-2.
Kit contents

The Eduard 8443 contains:

Injection-moulded plastic components

Clear plastic components

96 plastic parts according to Eduard's product specification

One decal sheet

Assembly instructions

One marking option

No photo-etched parts

No pre-cut painting mask

No resin components

The model measures approximately 150 mm long with a 179 mm wingspan when assembled.

The kit provides parts for both early and later DH-2 configurations, including alternative propellers and cockpit-related components. A contemporary review notes that the kit contains three main sprues of coloured plastic and provides enough alternative components to represent differences between early and later aircraft.

The supplied markings depict DH-2 serial 5967, flown by Robert H. M. Saundby with No. 24 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps, 'A' Flight, France, July 1916.
History of the full-size aircraft

The Airco DH-2 was a British single-seat fighter of the First World War designed by Geoffrey de Havilland for the Aircraft Manufacturing Company (Airco).

Its most immediately recognisable feature was its pusher configuration. Instead of the engine and propeller being positioned ahead of the cockpit, the engine was mounted behind the pilot and drove a propeller at the rear of the nacelle. This arrangement left the nose clear for the pilot's armament.

The configuration solved an important problem for early fighter aircraft. In 1915, reliable synchronisation systems allowing a forward-firing machine gun to fire safely through the arc of a rotating propeller were not yet widely available to British aircraft. The DH-2's rear-mounted propeller meant that a machine gun could be mounted forward without the need to fire through the propeller.

The DH-2 was powered by the 100 hp Gnome Monosoupape rotary engine. Its armament was normally a single forward-firing machine gun, initially mounted in a flexible arrangement that allowed the pilot some freedom in aiming.

The aircraft entered service with the Royal Flying Corps in 1915. It became particularly important with No. 24 Squadron, which was the RFC's first single-seat fighter squadron equipped with the type.

The DH-2 played an important role during the period often described as the Fokker Scourge, when German aircraft equipped with synchronised forward-firing machine guns had a significant advantage over many Allied fighters. The DH-2 helped restore some of the balance because its pusher layout allowed British pilots to fire forward without synchronisation equipment.

The aircraft's combat effectiveness was nevertheless limited by its relatively modest engine power and increasingly outdated performance. As German fighters such as the Albatros D.I and D.II appeared, the DH-2 was progressively outclassed.

It remained in front-line service through much of 1916 and into 1917, before being replaced by more capable Allied fighters. Nevertheless, its contribution to the development of British fighter aviation was significant. The DH-2 demonstrated that a practical single-seat fighter could be built around a pusher arrangement and helped establish the importance of dedicated fighter squadrons.
The aircraft represented by the kit

The particular marking option in Eduard 8443 represents serial 5967, associated with Robert H. M. Saundby of No. 24 Squadron.

Saundby subsequently became a notable Royal Air Force officer. During the First World War he flew with No. 24 Squadron and later with No. 41 Squadron, eventually achieving ace status. During the Second World War he became associated with RAF Bomber Command.