Roden Plastic Model Kit Roden Nieuport 24bis — 1:32

Manufacturer

Roden is a Ukrainian scale-model manufacturer particularly noted for its First World War aircraft range. Kit 611 is one of Roden's larger 1:32 WWI aircraft kits, providing a considerably more substantial model than the company's equivalent 1:72 Nieuport subjects.

The kit is catalogued as Roden 611 / Nieuport 24bis, with the EAN 4823017701380 and 1:32 scale confirmed by multiple specialist retailers.
Kit contents

The kit represents the Nieuport 24bis, with the characteristic sesquiplane layout of the Nieuport family.

Contents/features include:

Injection-moulded plastic parts

Detailed fuselage

Cockpit interior

Pilot's seat and cockpit fittings

Rotary engine

Engine cowling

Propeller

Large upper wing

Narrow lower wing

Interplane and cabane struts

Tailplane and rudder

Main landing gear

Wheels

Machine-gun equipment

Transparent components where applicable

Decals

Illustrated assembly instructions

Five decal/marking options

The completed model measures approximately 184 mm in length with a 256 mm wingspan.
History of the full-size aircraft

The Nieuport 24 was a French single-seat fighter developed during the First World War by designer Gustave Delage as a successor to the successful Nieuport 17 family.

The Nieuport 24 first flew in 1917, with series production beginning the same year. It retained the characteristic Nieuport sesquiplane configuration, in which the lower wing was considerably smaller than the upper wing.

The design was an attempt to improve the successful Nieuport 17 while incorporating a revised fuselage, tail and aerodynamic structure.
The Nieuport 24bis

The Nieuport 24bis was a related version that retained the earlier-style tail arrangement while incorporating other features of the Nieuport 24 development.

The type appeared at a time when French fighter development was moving rapidly toward the more powerful SPAD designs. Consequently, the Nieuport 24bis had only a relatively limited career as a first-line fighter.

Nevertheless, it saw service with several nations and remained useful as a training and secondary aircraft.
Engine and performance

The Nieuport 24bis was powered by a Le Rhône 9Jb rotary engine producing approximately 120 hp.

Representative specifications include:

Crew: 1

Engine: Le Rhône 9Jb

Power: approximately 120 hp

Configuration: Single-engine sesquiplane

Role: Fighter / trainer

Maximum speed: approximately 170–175 km/h, depending on configuration

The rotary engine was a major feature of contemporary lightweight fighters. Its relatively low weight and compact installation provided a useful power-to-weight ratio.
Armament

Nieuport fighters were normally armed with a single machine gun, although armament configurations varied according to operator and production batch.

The aircraft was primarily designed for close-range fighter combat, where its light weight and manoeuvrability were important characteristics.
Combat service

By the time the Nieuport 24 appeared in significant numbers, the French SPAD S.VII was becoming the preferred high-performance fighter.

The Nieuport 24 was consequently used only to a limited extent as a front-line fighter. It nevertheless served with French aviation and was also operated by other countries.

Among the aircraft's users were:

France

Britain

United States

Russia

Soviet Russia

Poland

The type subsequently saw service in the turbulent post-war period, including the Russian Civil War and the Polish-Bolshevik War of 1919–1921.
Charles Nungesser

One of the best-known pilots associated with the Nieuport 24bis was the French ace Charles Nungesser.

Nungesser flew a Nieuport 24bis in combat, making the aircraft particularly interesting to collectors modelling French aviation of 1917–18.
Post-war service

The Nieuport 24 family had a surprisingly long service life after the First World War.

Aircraft transferred to Russia subsequently found use with Soviet forces, while examples were also operated in Poland.

Some captured and inherited aircraft were used for reconnaissance and training rather than front-line fighter operations.
Historical significance

The Nieuport 24bis represents the final phase of the classic Nieuport sesquiplane fighter concept.

It is historically interesting because it sits between two generations of French fighter design:

Nieuport 17 → Nieuport 24/24bis → SPAD fighters

While it did not achieve the combat reputation of the Nieuport 17 or SPAD S.VII, its international service and post-war use gave the design a much broader history than its relatively short French front-line career might suggest.