Fokker Dr.I of Otto Löffler

The Revell Fokker Dr.I is a delight to build. Details are exquisite, and construction is quite simple. However, there are several fragile parts that need to be handled carefully, both when removing from the sprue and attaching. Also, the plastic is red, which is a tad frustrating. Decals are provided for Lothar and Manfred von Richthofen, but I decided to go for a third option: Otto Löffler, an option that can be completed without resorting to other decals.

Leutnant der Reserve Otto Löffler started his career with the Grenadier Regiment König Friedrich Wilhelm Nr. 10 before becoming a pilot. After training, he was assigned to the Boelcke Staffel in the fall of 1917, scoring his first victory in early December that year. His second victory was a D.H. 4, which may have been claimed while flying this Dr. I on February 3, 1918. Löffler saw quite a bit of action during the spring of 1918, and he was shot down twice while flying a Dr. I.  His scores increased over the course of the summer, and by the end of October Löffler had claimed 15 aircraft shot down, most of them while flying a Fokker D.VII. He was also the acting commander of the Boelcke Staffel between September 4 and September 18, 1918. During World War II, his son Kurt would score 26 victories and became an ace while serving with JG 51.

The lemon yellow band of Löffler’s Dr. I were the colors of his old regiment. The black and white colors found on the cowling and the tailplane represent the Royal Prussian colors.

Date	Time	Unit	Aircraft	Opponent	Location
1	05 Dec 1917	1030	Jasta 2		Nieuport Scout	S of Houthulst Forest
2	03 Feb 1918	1040	Jasta 2		D.H.4	Ghent Mariakerke
3	09 Aug 1918		Jasta 2		A.W.F.K.8	Mericourt
4	21 Aug 1918		Jasta 2		Bréguet 14	W of Champs
5	02 Sep 1918	1300	Jasta 2		Sopwith Camel (E1471)	Beugnatre
6	02 Sep 1918		Jasta 2		Sopwith Camel	S of Pelves
7	02 Sep 1918		Jasta 2		Sopwith Camel	S of Palluel
8	03 Sep 1918	1625	Jasta 2		D.H.9	Epehy
9	06 Sep 1918		Jasta 2		Bristol F.2b	NW of Bourlon Wood
10	16 Sep 1918		Jasta 2		D.H.4	N of Aveluy
11	16 Sep 1918		Jasta 2		D.H.4	NE of Arras
12	24 Sep 1918		Jasta 2		D.H.9	W of Cambrai
13	28 Sep 1918		Jasta 2		S.E.5a	Epinoy-Marcoing
14	09 Oct 1918	1440	Jasta 2		D.H.9	Thulin
15	30 Oct 1918		Jasta 2		D.H.9	N of Quieverain

 

(source: theaerodrome.com)

Checking Out at the Check Point

The old Tamiya US Military Policeman with a Harley Davidson and a Masterbox female civilian constitute the participants in this credit card-sized vignette. The young lady, perhaps a civilian employee at the UN Headquarters in Seoul, is reapplying her lipstick in front of a military policeman who is rapidly losing interest in the traffic. The Tamiya figure's head was replaced by a Nemrod head, but it was tad too small, and simply not of the same quality as, say, Hornet heads. The MP therefore looks perhaps more shocked than pleasantly surprised. The female figure was wonderful to assemble, and I think the original head worked quite well. The characters on the oil drum are supposed to say "stop" in Korean. The base is made out of old hotel key cards glued together and sandpapered into shape.

The Great Bugout

I have spent some time studying the Korean War as of late, since it can be argued that this particular conflict provided most of lessons that should have been learned when it comes to post-1945 conflicts. As a small project after a modeling hiatus I decided to depict two US GIs as they encounter some of the havoc and carnage, including a frozen comrade right in front of them, that occurred during "The Great Bugout", i. e. the massive UN retreat from North Korea that took place after China entered the conflict during the winter of 1950-51.

The figures are from Dragon's US Battle of the Bulge Airborne Troops, but with Tamiya weapons, one Hornet head and one Verlinden head crowned by a Soviet-style fur cap that the BAR gunner might have picked up to replace his own headgear. The same soldier has also managed to liberate a Nagant revolver just in case the BAR runs out of ammunition. The hills of North Korea were, by all accounts, very cold, windy and nasty in general, and this has been reproduced by plaster of paris, baking soda and some odds and ends that were placed into the plaster before it settled. The mold did bulge a bit while settling, so the base isn't the exact rectangle I hoped for, but it will have to do. Some of the photos of the vignette were taken with flash, some without, with the former perhaps simulating the dazzle of illumination rounds overhead.