Manufacturer: Matchbox
Scale: 1/72
Additional parts: 3D printed parts
Model build: Now 2020 - Feb 2021
Luftwaffe Dornier Do23/G2
Matchbox
1/72
1/72
Dornier's Last Stand
October 1939, North Sea
Oberleutnant Franz Schmidt gripped the control yoke of his Do 23/G-2, the thrum of the BMW IX engines a constant thrumming counterpoint to the icy wind whipping through the cockpit. Below, the choppy grey expanse of the North Sea stretched as far as the eye could see. Franz wasn't supposed to be here. The Do 23, once a proud bomber, was now relegated to training duty, a relic overshadowed by the sleek Do 17s and Ju 86s roaring off the production lines. Yet, here he was, leading a flight of three on a patrol exercise – a far cry from the glory he craved.
Suddenly, a dark dot caught Franz's eye. "Sergeant Müller! Plot these coordinates!" he barked. Müller, a young recruit with eyes wide with nervous excitement, leaned over his map, tracing a course. "Looks like a surfaced vessel, Herr Oberleutnant," he stammered.
Franz peered through the gunner's sight. A dark shape bobbed on the waves, unmistakable – a submarine. The rising sun glinted off its hull, revealing the markings of a British S-class sub. A jolt of adrenaline surged through Franz. This was no training exercise anymore.
"Enemy vessel sighted!" he bellowed into the radio. "British S-class submarine, current location…" He rattled off the coordinates, heart pounding. There was a tense silence, then a crackle of static. "Prepare for engagement," a voice rasped in his ear. "This is your only chance, Schmidt. Make it count."
Franz wasn't sure what that meant, but the unspoken threat spurred him on. He tightened his grip on the yoke and banked the Dornier, urging the aging machine towards the unsuspecting sub. The other two Do 23s fell in line behind him, their twin machine guns glinting ominously in the sun.
The submarine scrambled. Anti-aircraft guns swivelled towards the approaching Dorniers, spitting defiance. Tracers arced through the air, a deadly ballet narrowly missed. Franz gritted his teeth, pushing the Do 23 to its limits. The outdated bomber wasn't built for speed, but every extra knot closed the distance a fraction faster.
With a roar, they were upon the sub. Franz opened fire, unleashing a torrent of lead. The other Dorniers joined the fray, their machine guns hammering the exposed deck. The sub captain, desperate, ordered a crash dive. But it was too late. The hail of bullets found its mark, tearing into vital equipment. Smoke billowed from the conning tower as the sub sputtered, its dive halted.
A tense silence followed the cacophony of gunfire. Then, a white flag emerged from the crippled sub, fluttering defiantly against the grey sky. Disbelief washed over Franz. An outdated bomber, a training mission – and they'd forced a surrender. He radioed the news, a thrill coursing through him.
It wasn't the glorious dogfight he'd envisioned, but in that moment, as the old Dornier circled the vanquished sub waiting for backup, Franz knew he'd made his mark. The Do 23, the underdog, had roared one last time.
In the early 1930, Dornier had secretly developed the Do 11 bomber, the first "heavy bomber" developed after WW1.
As the plane had many flaws, it was further developed to the Do 13 and then the Do 23.
About 280 planes of the Do 23 were built between 1934 and 1935, but the plane soon proved to be outdated compared to more modern designs like the Do17, He 111 or Ju 86.
However, did not want to give up the design completely and therefore evolved the Do 23 to its final version, the Do23/G-2. Modernized and streamlined in many respects, the big advantage was the usage of more powerful engines, instead of the BMW VI V-12 with 750hp, the more advanced BMW IX with up to 950 hp was used. This caused an increase of the top speed form 260kph to 295kph, which despite all advances was still significantly lower than the one of the newer bomber generation.
Therefore, only 20-30 (exact numbers cannot be found anymore) of the Do23/G-2 were build and as the replacement of the Do23 started in 1936, even those "modernized" versions were taken out of frontline services.
At the outbreak of WW2, the Do23 was mainly used in training units, some of them were tested to spray chemical agents or were equipped with a degaussing ring to detonate magnetic mines over sea.
A rather unknown episode of the Do23 was its one and only "military operation" during WW2.
In October 1939, a flight of three Do23/G-2 took off at an airfield North of Hamburg for a navigation exercise over the North Sea. While not carrying a bomb load, the planes were equipped with a full load of machine gun ammo as this exercise did take place during wartime.
Operating about 50 miles northwest of Helgoland, the planes detected a surfaced submarine which could be identified as a British S-class sub that had to surface due to technical problems. The three bombers approached the damaged submarine and strafed it with their on-board machine guns, not causing any damages. However, the effect of this attack was so big that the British crew raised a white flag and surrendered to the three bombers. The planes were able to inform the naval base on Helgoland and an old, WW1 era torpedo-boat used for training purposes was send out as it was the only available ship there. In the meantime, the bombers circles over the submarine until the torpedo-boat arrived and could take over the British sub.
The model is based on the 1/72 scale Matchbox Handley Page Heyford kit. It was mostly built OOB, modifications were a single, 3D printed tail (original taken from a FW-200), and removal of the lower wing. Instead, a new landing gear was 3D printed. Also, the antenna was added form the spare part box.
The model was painted with Revell Aqua Color in a mid 1930s camo scheme. Decals were taken from various models in the spare part box.
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