RS Models LeO C.30 Autogyro Kit 92190 — 1/72 Scale Plastic model kit

Manufacturer: RS Models

Kit number: 92190 / RSM92190

Aircraft: Loire et Olivier LeO C.30

Scale: 1/72

EAN: 8594183911908

Release: 2016

Kit type: Injection-moulded plastic aircraft model

Country of subject: France
RS Models

RS Models is a Czech specialist model manufacturer based in Janovice, Czech Republic. Its catalogue has become particularly well known for unusual and relatively obscure aircraft subjects, especially inter-war and Second World War types that receive little attention from the major manufacturers.

The LeO C.30 is a very typical RS Models subject: rather than choosing a familiar fighter or bomber, the company produced a model of a small French military autogyro that existed in only a few dozen examples.

The kit was added to the Super-Hobby catalogue on 23 March 2016, with the Japanese HobbySearch catalogue giving an early July 2016 release date.
Kit contents and characteristics

The kit represents the Loire et Olivier LeO C.30, a French military autogyro derived from the Cierva C.30 design.

At 1/72 scale, the finished model is quite small in fuselage length but has a surprisingly large rotor. Based on the dimensions of the real aircraft, the model works out at approximately:

Fuselage length: 8.3 cm

Main rotor diameter: 15.6 cm

The catalogue weight of the boxed kit is approximately 100–101 g.

I have not found a dependable published parts count for 92190, so I would not quote one as fact.

The model is particularly distinctive because it represents an autogyro rather than a conventional aeroplane. The main rotor provides lift through autorotation, while the engine drives a conventional propeller to provide forward thrust.

The LeO C.30's unusual configuration makes this a particularly interesting collector's kit: the finished model looks quite unlike almost anything else in a conventional 1/72 aircraft collection.
The real Loire et Olivier LeO C.30

The LeO C.30 was a French licence-built development of the Cierva C.30 autogyro, produced by Loire et Olivier during the 1930s.

The Cierva C.30 was developed from the work of Spanish aviation pioneer Juan de la Cierva, whose experiments with autogyros had demonstrated the possibility of obtaining controllable vertical and low-speed flight without using a powered helicopter rotor.

The LeO C.30 incorporated a more powerful engine than the original British-built Cierva aircraft. RS Models' catalogue description identifies the engine as a 175 hp Salmson 9Ne, and gives the aircraft's length as approximately 6 metres with a rotor diameter of about 11.25 metres.

Approximately 60–65 LeO C.30-family aircraft were produced.

That makes the real aircraft considerably rarer than most subjects represented by 1/72 plastic kits.
How an autogyro worked

The LeO C.30 should not be confused with a helicopter.

The engine drove the aircraft's forward propeller, rather than directly powering the large overhead rotor. As the aircraft moved through the air, airflow caused the rotor to autorotate, producing lift.

This arrangement gave the autogyro excellent low-speed and short-field characteristics for its era. It could operate at speeds and altitudes that made it useful for observation, while its ability to fly slowly was valuable for directing artillery fire.

The technology was consequently attractive to military planners during the inter-war period, before practical helicopters became available.
French military service

The French military employed the LeO C.30 primarily for observation and reconnaissance.

One of its most important potential uses was artillery direction. The aircraft's relatively low-speed capability made it possible for an observer to remain over an area while watching artillery impacts and communicating corrections.

The type was operated by both the French Army and French Navy, according to the RS Models catalogue description.

There was no permanent built-in armament, reflecting its reconnaissance rather than fighter role.

Several related variants and experimental aircraft were produced, including the C.30S, C.301 and C.302 developments.
Second World War

The timing of the LeO C.30's service was unfortunate.

By the outbreak of the Second World War, the autogyro concept was still useful for specialised observation, but conventional aircraft had developed enormously. The German campaign against France in 1940 rapidly overwhelmed the French military aviation system.

According to RS Models' historical description, all LeO C.30 aircraft were destroyed or lost during the 1940 campaign.

Consequently, unlike some contemporary French aircraft, there was no substantial surviving fleet that could continue into the later war years.

The LeO C.30 therefore represents an interesting dead end in aviation development: the autogyro offered some capabilities that conventional fixed-wing aircraft could not easily duplicate, but the rapid development of aircraft performance—and subsequently the helicopter—ultimately made the military autogyro obsolete.