FAIREY SWORDFISH
At approximately 1:48th scale the “Fairey Swordfish”
is by far my bigger attempt on a scratch-built static model for my blog
features. Envisioning that building a regular plastic kit will
probably just end up unappreciated in a dark deep corner of a storeroom
and be forgotten throughout my remaining lifetime anyway, its decided that it
would be more practical to make a model again using regular household
scraps. Loosely based on model patterns, technical specifications and photos
available online and already familiar with the drawbacks of a purely wood pulp
based mini effigies, I’ve created my interpretation of this British World War
Two (WW2) biplane by using a composite sheet made of thin paper and
polycarbonate plastic packaging combined with the usual basic materials one
will find on an office desk or a child’s art kit, the bigger scale made it a
less strainful project build for a man my age. Household enamel paints was use
as this helps bond the soft cardboard filaments, I also discovered that my
nineteen years old niece’s “fingernail art pens” are convenient tools for
filling out small mis-out portions of the painting process and even
highlighting tiny surface markings and finishing details.
As much as possible I try to feature subjects as
socially relatable to the real world I live in; and Europe, the British Empire,
the Germans, the Atlantic wartime domes are cultures and geo-politics I know
much lesser about, however the “Fairey
Swordfish” is a familiar airplane of my childhood because there was a black and white “movie”
that featured the aircraft that I often watch on television because its was
also often replayed on that channel with the crappy reception, the planes battle
scenes are probably less than three percent of the movie’s runtime, and the
story is not even about warplanes … its about seagoing warships, cannot exactly
remember the title … “The hunt for the Bismarck ?”.
Un-cinematically speaking, the Bismarck is a “WW2” German battleship that is
a legend on its own right. At a time when an empire’s ability to claim mastery
of influence in the world is determined by the strength of its navy;
particularly the deadliness of its battleship fleets, this German Battleship
was to be the optimal showcase of the new Nazi-Germany’s ability to be Masters
of the Sea lanes and claim the title
from England. After its completion from the shipyards of “Hamburg” in 1941, the floating Naval Fortress
was sent to sea to reek havoc on allied merchant supply convoys bound to and
from the besiege British isles. Although basically it would have been more
tactically sensible to wait up to when a full battle group was
assembled the furory nevertheless invoke the immediate initiation of the
Bismarck to it exhibition of prowess on throwing death and destruction to
anything that will challenge it...
Singlely escorted by the German heavy Cruiser “Prinze
Eugen” the behemoth wandered to the allied warship infested North Atlantic Ocean to accomplish its primary mission. Alerted by allied
intelligence, the dynamic Nazi tandem was intercepted by two of “Her Majesty’s
ships” the battleship “HMS Prince of Wales” and the “pride” of the British
Navy the battlecruiser “HMS Hood”, in the ensuing naval battle between two pinnaclelitic
symbols of empiricist powers dubbed as the “Battle of Denmark Straight”; the
“Hood” was sunk in credit of the Bismarck, the Prince of Whales sustained
crippling damages and barely escaped annihilation. Shocked by the news of the
Hood’s sinking the British admiralty dispatch all its available Warship in the Atlantic in pursuit of Bismarck which after the sea duel detaches itself from “Prinze
Eugen” to proceed alone to the port city of “Brest” in German occupied France for minor although crucial repairs.
The Bismarck is manned by the elite of the
“Kriegsmarine” (German Navy) with two distinguished officers at helm a Captain
and an Admiral, they knew the British will be in a rampage to destroy them
after the sinking of its apex “battlecruiser”, but this gave little concern to
the Germans since they calculated they will be near the coast of western France
and within the reach of German “fighter cover” by the time the British Atlantic
dragnet catches them. The British knew this too and battling the Bismarck in
German friendly waters would probably cost the lost of more “Kingdom” lives and
resources … if they can attack the Bismarck and sink it with minimal
casualties, the destruction of “Hood”
will have absolute retribution and a morale boosting news for the homefront.
With the window of strategic advantage closing-up, the
only attack warcraft capable of catching the Bismarck on time was the Aircraft
Carrier-Borne Torpedo Planes - The Fairey Swordfish -, There are Two carriers
that came in attack proximity with the marked battleship; the first was the
“HMS Victorious” which proved to be unsuccessful on its “air-strikes”
inflicting only manageable damage on the Bismarck, Second to gain attack position
was the carrier “HMS Ark Royale”, her first wave of planes to attack proved similar
in result as the Victorious.
The “Swordfish” is a biplane considered to be of
obsolete design by the start of WW2 in Europe, primarily intended to be a reconnaissance aircraft its short
take off and relatively slow cruising speed eventually made it to be retrofitted as a versatile
carrier base torpedo bomber. The
Bismarck on the other-hand is a Brand-new Battleship more than “eight hundred
feet long” equipped with the best weapons technology the “German Reich” superior
intellect can offer, even the British
command premonize that using the flimsy torpedo planes to sink a high caliber
German warship is a daunting undertaking specially in the wavy open ocean, on
last daylight opportunity a squadron of fifteen Ark Royale warbirds flew to its
second and last wave of destiny to meet the floating steel Goliath.
There are many tactics British airmen employ to
somewhat improve their survivability and aim, the simplest is flying at lowest
altitude as possible as they approach the target wherein the flak guns of the Bismarck’s cannot stoop low
enough to aim at the approaching aerial aggressors, the distance predictor
systems of the ship’s anti-aircraft guns
also find the Swordfishe's operational speed un-suited for the purpose of their design, however this given
handicap is no consolation to the pilots who have to fly head-on to within
torpedo striking range and face the onslaught of wild multi-directional hale of bullets and sharpnels.
In the combined attack of the two British Carriers the
initial two torpedoes that hit the Bismarck did little to diminish its
potential fighting capability, a third one by a Swordfish from “Ark Royale”
launch its single torpedo that hit the Bismarck at her rear-end
portion near a rudder mechanism that rendered the ship completely un-steerable
and unable to keep a straight course, a few miles cut short within reach of
Nazi fighter planes. a combined armada of
English warships fronted by the Battleship “HMS King George the V”
finally caught-up with the Aryan prize and pummeled it with unrelenting Naval
artillery fire until all its guns will shoots no more and all that is left is
a burning heap of floating twisted
steel, a death encore of ship-launched torpedoes sent the Bismarck to its final resting place at the bottom of the Sea.
Although the Swordfish torpedo did not actually sink the powerful battleship,
the battle will mark the turning point of empires and later “superpowers” reveration
away from massive floating city of giant-guns; the whole course of WW2 saw the
gradual emergence of air-superiority as a major element in the successful outcome of any future naval
engagements.
Battlecruisers?...Torpedoes...Reich...whah?, this fish
and cans story could be a long “Jurasically dragging” reading for most
“trending topic” webworms of today, for me however its one of the most
personally anticipating owing that the advent of the information age gave a wide array of historically
accounted visual and literary versions of the epic naval contest. Finding the
time, justification to sit down, build, and give precious time to type
everything for online posting are some of the downsides of one’s indulgence
with this kind of projects, but for this feature surprisingly; the real
challenge is hinting my niece that I’m not about to be a future competitor of
her fingernails painting “side-line” at the same time avoid directly revealing
to her my oddly juvenile toy tinkering and blogging activity …:-)
.jpg)
xXx
