ICM 72302 Dornier Do 215 B-5 Kauz III Night Fighter — 1:72 Plastic model aircraft kit

Manufacturer: ICM
Kit number: 72302
Aircraft: Dornier Do 215 B-5 “Kauz III”
Scale: 1:72
Barcode / EAN: 4823044401666
Kit type: Injection-moulded plastic aircraft kit
Country of manufacture: Ukraine
Catalogue release: 2008
Status: Discontinued / out of production
Manufacturer and kit background

ICM is a Ukrainian manufacturer particularly well known for its aircraft subjects from the WWI and WWII periods. The 72302 belongs to an earlier generation of ICM tooling, having been added to specialist catalogues in 2008. It is now out of production, with Super-Hobby recording its last availability in November 2018.

The kit is specifically the Do 215 B-5 night-fighter version, rather than the more general reconnaissance/bomber versions of the Do 215.

It is a useful subject for a Luftwaffe collection because the Do 215 looks very similar to the more numerous Dornier Do 17, but the B-5 represents the specialised night-fighter development.
Kit contents and modelling details

The kit is a conventional injection-moulded 1:72 aircraft kit and provides the parts necessary to build the twin-engined Do 215 in B-5 night-fighter configuration.

Expected contents include:

Fuselage halves

Large one-piece/sectioned wing assemblies

Twin engine nacelles

Two Daimler-Benz engine representations

Propellers

Engine cowlings

Cockpit and crew compartment

Instrument panel

Seats and interior fittings

Tailplanes

Twin vertical fins/rudders

Main landing gear

Tailwheel

Landing-gear doors

Night-fighter armament

Clear canopy/nose glazing

Small external fittings

Decals

Assembly instructions

The kit's relatively substantial fuselage and twin-engine arrangement make it a much larger project than the ICM biplanes you've been cataloguing.

The Do 215 has a particularly distinctive glazed forward fuselage, so the clear parts are important to the appearance of the finished model.
Modelling considerations

This is an older ICM tooling, so it does not have the same level of engineering as the company's latest kits.

A modeller should allow for:

Careful dry-fitting around the fuselage

Alignment of the two engine nacelles

Careful fitting of the large glazed nose/canopy

Attention to the landing gear

Some seam cleanup around the fuselage and nacelles

The aircraft's twin-engine layout makes alignment especially noticeable when viewed from the front.

For a second-hand kit, check the clear nose/canopy pieces, propellers, engine nacelles and landing gear particularly carefully.
The full-size Dornier Do 215

The Dornier Do 215 was developed from the Dornier Do 17 family.

It was originally intended as an export version, with the more powerful Daimler-Benz DB 601 engines replacing the radial engines used on many Do 17 variants.

The first Do 215s were intended for Sweden, but the export arrangement was prevented by wartime restrictions. The aircraft were consequently taken over by Germany and developed into several Luftwaffe variants.

Only 101 Do 215 aircraft were produced, making it considerably less numerous than the Do 17.
Do 215 B-5 “Kauz III”

The aircraft represented by kit 72302 is the Do 215 B-5, known as Kauz III.

It was adapted for the night-fighter role, with additional armament and equipment intended for interception of Allied bombers after dark.

The B-5 retained the characteristic slender fuselage and twin-engine layout of the Do 17 family, but its nose and equipment were modified for night operations.

The night-fighter version was equipped with forward-firing guns, while the crew used visual observation and later increasingly sophisticated night-fighting equipment to locate targets.

The aircraft was used during the early and middle stages of the Luftwaffe's night-defence campaign before more specialised night fighters became available.
Aircraft specifications

For the Do 215 family, typical figures include:

Crew: approximately 4, depending on version

Engines: 2 × Daimler-Benz DB 601

Power: approximately 1,100 hp each

Maximum speed: around 470 km/h

Role: reconnaissance / bomber / night fighter

Armament: multiple 7.92 mm machine guns, with the B-5 carrying specialised night-fighter armament

Maximum range: approximately 2,450 km for the basic B-series configuration

The catalogue information gives the DB 601 engine installation as producing about 1,100 hp per engine and a maximum speed of approximately 470 km/h.

The Do 215's overall size makes it a substantial 1:72 display model, with a wingspan of roughly 25 cm.