Pavla 1/72nd de Havilland DH.82A Tiger Moth Mk.II
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History:
From the Instructions:
The DH.82A Tiger Moth Mk. II is probably one of the best known light
military trainers of all time. Originally it was an outgrowth of de Havilland's
earlier two-seat civilian Moth trainer. The initial military derivative,
the DH.60T was surprisingly not used by the RAF but rather was developed
and sold to Brazil, China, Iraq, Egypt and Sweden. It wasn't until the
second military modification that it found its way into the RAF inventory.
Redesigned per specification T.26/31 and powered by a de Havilland Gypsy
Major engine the now re-designated DH.82A Tiger Moth Mk.II was ready for
flight-testing. The first flight of this new model occurred on October
26th 1931. With its test flights a success the RAF placed an order for
35 of these aircraft. The first deliveries went to No 3 Flying Training
School at Grantham, Lincolnshire in November 1931 and were followed by
deliveries to Central Flying School in May 1932. This of course, was just
the beginning.
Prior to WWII the DH82.A proved to be very popular aircraft throughout
the world. It was built under license by no less than six different countries
including Norway, Canada, Portugal Sweden, Australia, and New Zealand.
After the outbreak of WWII Australia and New Zealand alone manufactured
over 1400 aircraft between them. Large numbers of Australian built Tiger
Moths were shipped to Southern Rhodesia and South Africa for use under
the Commonwealth Air Training Plan. The Air Training Plan was also established
in Canada where once again the Tiger Moth was redesigned to meet flying
conditions in that region.
The Tiger Moth saw widespread use in WWII as a trainer, air ambulance,
light communications and reconnaissance aircraft. Some were even fitted
with light bomb racks and used as coastal patrol aircraft to deter U-boats
from operating in British waters. Many examples of the Tiger Moth survive
to this day and can be seen in the skies or parked at civilian airports
and air-parks all around the world.
The Kit:
 The
Pavla Tiger Moth Mk.II is a combined media kit consisting of 30 injected
molded parts, 11 cast resin parts and two (duplicate) sets of clear vac-u-formed
windscreens. Needless to say the Tiger Moth is a small and delicate looking
aircraft which is especially true in 1/72nd scale. However Pavla seems
to have captured this quality quite nicely. The injected molder parts
are sinkhole free and crisply cast. A little clean up is necessary along
the edges of both the upper and lower wings, but a light touch with some
fine grain sandpaper is all that is needed. The fabric ribbing on all
flying surfaces is especially impressive with this kit. It is obvious
but not overstated. The only injection parts that looks like they could
use any work at all are the propeller, which seems to be a bit thick at
the leading and trailing edges and the seats which also look to be thick
around the rim of the buckets. The resin parts are very nicely done. Some
of these parts will require a fine touch because of their tiny size and
their associated delicate nature.
The assembly process is very straightforward starting with the interior
then the fuselage and engine assemblies, followed by the attachment of
the flying surfaces and then the landing gear. For the finishing touch
a nicely done rigging illustration is provided, which looks easy to follow.
The assembly instructions provided are very well done and easy to read
and understand..
Decals:
 To
say the least the decal sheet provided with this kit is impressive and
of very good quality and registration. It includes five different schemes.
The first is a RAF camouflaged Liaison DH 82A that was operated by the
312 Czechoslovak fighter squadron in 1944. The second scheme is a Netherlands
East Indian Tiger Moth Mk.I that was evacuated to Australia and then flown
in RAAF colors. The third is a scheme from 1941 for a DH 82A that was
operated by the French in Indochina. The fourth scheme is for the first
DH 82A that went into operation at the Hatfield Air School in the spring
of 1933. The last scheme is for a DH 82A that was flown by the No 4 Flying
Training School, Heany airport South Rhodesia in 1949.
Conclusion:
This is the first Pavla 1/72nd kit I have reviewed so I can’t
really compare it with any previous offering from this company. That said
I am very impressed with the general quality of this particular kit. Of
course being a first look I have no way of knowing how well it goes together.
I also do not have any drawings to compare it with for accuracy, however
a check of the dimensions show both span and length to be accurate.
Many thanks to Pavla for supplying this sample kit.
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