{"product_id":"icm-72302-dornier-do-215-b-5-kauz-iii-night-fighter-1-72-plastic-model-aircraft-kit","title":"ICM 72302 Dornier Do 215 B-5 Kauz III Night Fighter — 1:72 Plastic model aircraft kit","description":"\u003cp\u003eManufacturer: ICM\n\u003cbr\u003eKit number: 72302\n\u003cbr\u003eAircraft: Dornier Do 215 B-5 “Kauz III”\n\u003cbr\u003eScale: 1:72\n\u003cbr\u003eBarcode \/ EAN: 4823044401666\n\u003cbr\u003eKit type: Injection-moulded plastic aircraft kit\n\u003cbr\u003eCountry of manufacture: Ukraine\n\u003cbr\u003eCatalogue release: 2008\n\u003cbr\u003eStatus: Discontinued \/ out of production\n\u003cbr\u003eManufacturer and kit background\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eICM 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe kit is specifically the Do 215 B-5 night-fighter version, rather than the more general reconnaissance\/bomber versions of the Do 215.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt 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.\n\u003cbr\u003eKit contents and modelling details\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eExpected contents include:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Fuselage halves\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Large one-piece\/sectioned wing assemblies\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Twin engine nacelles\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Two Daimler-Benz engine representations\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Propellers\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Engine cowlings\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Cockpit and crew compartment\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Instrument panel\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Seats and interior fittings\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Tailplanes\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Twin vertical fins\/rudders\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Main landing gear\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Tailwheel\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Landing-gear doors\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Night-fighter armament\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Clear canopy\/nose glazing\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Small external fittings\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Decals\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Assembly instructions\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe kit's relatively substantial fuselage and twin-engine arrangement make it a much larger project than the ICM biplanes you've been cataloguing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Do 215 has a particularly distinctive glazed forward fuselage, so the clear parts are important to the appearance of the finished model.\n\u003cbr\u003eModelling considerations\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis is an older ICM tooling, so it does not have the same level of engineering as the company's latest kits.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA modeller should allow for:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Careful dry-fitting around the fuselage\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Alignment of the two engine nacelles\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Careful fitting of the large glazed nose\/canopy\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Attention to the landing gear\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Some seam cleanup around the fuselage and nacelles\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe aircraft's twin-engine layout makes alignment especially noticeable when viewed from the front.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFor a second-hand kit, check the clear nose\/canopy pieces, propellers, engine nacelles and landing gear particularly carefully.\n\u003cbr\u003eThe full-size Dornier Do 215\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Dornier Do 215 was developed from the Dornier Do 17 family.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOnly 101 Do 215 aircraft were produced, making it considerably less numerous than the Do 17.\n\u003cbr\u003eDo 215 B-5 “Kauz III”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe aircraft represented by kit 72302 is the Do 215 B-5, known as Kauz III.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt was adapted for the night-fighter role, with additional armament and equipment intended for interception of Allied bombers after dark.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe aircraft was used during the early and middle stages of the Luftwaffe's night-defence campaign before more specialised night fighters became available.\n\u003cbr\u003eAircraft specifications\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFor the Do 215 family, typical figures include:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Crew: approximately 4, depending on version\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Engines: 2 × Daimler-Benz DB 601\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Power: approximately 1,100 hp each\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Maximum speed: around 470 km\/h\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Role: reconnaissance \/ bomber \/ night fighter\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Armament: multiple 7.92 mm machine guns, with the B-5 carrying specialised night-fighter armament\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Maximum range: approximately 2,450 km for the basic B-series configuration\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Do 215's overall size makes it a substantial 1:72 display model, with a wingspan of roughly 25 cm.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"ICM","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57509850087804,"sku":"ICM-72302","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0432\/8584\/0033\/files\/7D1E619E-B782-4D61-AF2A-E2A5CF2101B4.jpg?v=1790574513","url":"https:\/\/sussex-model-centre.co.uk\/products\/icm-72302-dornier-do-215-b-5-kauz-iii-night-fighter-1-72-plastic-model-aircraft-kit","provider":"Sussex Model Centre","version":"1.0","type":"link"}