Henschel Hs 123A Decals

Decals by AMtech

Reviewed by Steven "Modeldad" Eisenman

DAM Decals' 1/48 scale Hs 123 Decals are available online from Squadron
 

I know you’re out there, and I know you have them.  Yes you, and you have at least one of the old ESCI / ERTL Hs 123 kits way deep in your stash of styrene.  You also know that those decade plus old decals are worthless.   So here is a second chance to dust of those boxes and build a few of those rugged little aircraft.

As a spin-off of its up-dated reissue of the Hs 123, AMtech has released the decals for separate sale.  This well printed sheet offers a goodly number of marking in various camouflage patterns.  For purposes of unrestricted international sales, the swastikas are printed in two parts.  But because of the way they are printed, it does not appear that matching the parts will be one bit of a problem.

The Markings 

1. 3./JG 165 “IMMELMANN”, Fürstenfeldbruk, 1937.  This is a typical pre-war scheme of RLM 61 Dark Brown, 62 Medium Green and 63 Green-Gray with 65 Light Blue undersides. (I will not discuss what color tone 63 was, it’s beyond the scope of this review). The aircraft is marked 52+A(white)13 and has the pre-war red fin and rudder band. 

2. 5./LG2, Belgium, 1940.  This is the late production factory scheme of 70 Black Green, 71 Dark Green and 65 Light blue undersides.  The aircraft is marked L2+E(red)N.

3. FFS Schule (A/B) 71, Prossnitz, Moravia, 1941.  Again the late production scheme of RLM 70, 71 and 65.  The aircraft is marked 21(yellow)  CB+A(green)F.  This aircraft has the un-spatted, skeletal gear. 

4. 4./SchG 2, Eastern Front, 1942.  This aircraft is in a single green color, either RLM 70 Black Green, or RLM 71 Dark Green, over RLM 65 Light Blue.  The aircraft is marked, from front to rear, with the infantry assault badge a gruppen-adjutant chevron, a Schlacht black triangle, and coded blue O with a white outline.  The aircraft has a full yellow cowling and yellow fuselage band and upper wing tips.  This aircraft also has the skeletal landing gear. (Reviewer’s Note:  It is possible that this aircraft had its pre-war scheme over-painted and was transferred from the Balkans, where a fully painted yellow cowl was a theatre marking)

5. 61^st Squadron, Spanish AF, 1945.  This aircraft is in overall aluminum (dope) finish.  It is marked 1*50 with a most distinctive blue lightening bolt down the side of the fuselage.  The national marking used is the late- post-war red-yellow-red roundel.

Click the thumbnails below to view larger images:

If you do have one of the original Hs123s in your stash, then this set of decals from AMtech is a must get for your next must do.  If you don’t have one, well Italeri has announced a reissue of the basic kit, and the AMtech set might provide for different options.  Finally don’t forget that AMtech is offering the Black Box cockpit and skeletal landing gear for the HS 123 as a separate item also, which can also be ordered from Squadron.

Recommended.

Thanks to for the review sample.

Review and Images Copyright © 2004 by Steven Eisenman
This Page Created on 05 May, 2004
Last updated 04 May, 2004

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