RC GIANT SCALE
MAGNIFICENT
MACCHI 202
ITALIAN
FIGHTER
By Sal Calvagna | rcgiants@optonline.net
WELCOME BACK. Summer is in full swing and there are lots of flying events scheduled, so grab a couple of friends and pack up an airplane or two and go flying!
Featured in this month’s column are two World War II aircraft that are hardly unusual but, nevertheless, seldom modeled. I hope you enjoy them.
The first model is a 1/5-scale Macchi 202 Folgore (“Lightning”) of the Italian Air Force from WW II. The model was masterfully built by Scott Neary of Manorville, New York, using Jerry Bates plans and a short kit from Bob Holman.
The 202 spans a little more than 83 inches, with a fuselage length of 69.5 inches. It is of standard stick-built construction and covered with 1-ounce fiberglass cloth and Minwax Polycrylic water-based clear gloss. It sports Sierra Giant Scale retracts and is powered by a DLE-55 two-stroke gas engine spinning a three-blade 21 x 10 propeller. The finish comes from WarbirdColors, and the insignia is from Callie Graphics.
The full-scale aircraft used an Italian-built Daimler-Benz DB 601 inverted V-12 liquid-cooled engine. The 601 gave the Folgore a top speed of approximately 600 kmh or 372 mph. The aircraft was fast and maneuverable; however, it lacked armament, having only two 12.7mm (50-caliber) machine guns. Nevertheless, it was considered the most successful Italian fighter of the war.
The most unusual attribute of the 202, similar to its predecessor, the Macchi C.200 Saetta, is that the designer extended the left wing by 8.5 inches so that it would produce more lift than the right wing panel. This was done to offset the tendency of the aircraft to roll to the left because of propeller torque.
Great job, Scott! Best of luck to you on the first flight.
Superb Focke-Wulf Ta 152
Next up is the German WW II Focke-Wulf Ta 152 high-altitude fighter owned by Brian Taylor of Warren, Ohio. Brian served in the U.S. Air Force for 27 years, where, on his first assignment, he was a tail gunner on a B-52G bomber.
The Ta 152 passed through a number of owners before it ended up with Brian. As I recall, it was built by Ty Brown of Kannapolis, North Carolina, and I watched it fly at Warbirds Over Delaware some years ago.
The model spans 140 inches and weighs approximately 47 pounds. Brian installed all new servos and electronics. He also swapped out the Quadra 75 gas engine for an older but more powerful Brison 5.8 gas engine. During a complete overhaul, he swapped out the Century Jet Models
retractable landing gear for newer Sierra Giant Scale gear. Friend and airbrush artist Mark Moore weathered the model and applied all of the graphics.
The full-scale aircraft was based on the Focke-Wulf 190D Dora as a high-altitude fighter to counter the Allied bombing campaigns. Some interesting facts about this aircraft are that the Ta 152H entered service in January 1945 and ceased production just one month later. Only around 70 152H versions were built. To reach higher altitudes, a pressurized cockpit was added to the canopy, which was sealed by a circular tube filled with rubber foam that was inflated by a compressed air bottle. It was one of the fastest propeller-driven aircraft of the war, with a top speed of 469 mph using nitrous or a methanol-water boost.
On one occasion, while flying an unarmed version, the designer, Kurt Tank, was warned by ground controllers that a pair of P-51 Mustangs was closing in behind him. Kurt just applied full power, engaging the boost and flying away. The Mustangs could not catch up.
As fate would have it, the Ta 152H design was too little, too late, to have any significance. There is only one example left, and it resides at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.
Good luck with yours, Brian.
That’s all for this month.
SOURCES:
WarbirdColors
www.warbirdcolors.com
Bob Holman Plans
(909) 556-6513
www.bhplans.com
Sierra Giant Scale Products
(440) 476-4885
www.sierragiant.com
Callie Graphics
info@callie-graphics.com
www.callie-graphics.com
Jerry Bates Plans
www.jbplans.com
David Andersen Designs
www.mmbigbirds.com/Andersen%20Plans.htm
Focke-Wulf TA 152H-0/R/11
Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum
www.airandspace.si.edu/collections-objects/
focke-wulf-ta-152-h-0r11/nasm_A19600317000
