Trumpeter 1/32 Me 262A-2a

By Suresh Nathan

Introduction

The Me 262A-2a is famously ridiculed as being Hitler's failed vision for the world's first operational jet aircraft fighter. I came across this interesting write-up by Dr Alfred Price FRHistS for the RAF Museum archives which offers an alternative insight for this infamous trope: “The Me 262 was still in the service test stage in May 1944, when Adolf Hitler issued his much-publicized order that initially the aircraft was to be employed as a high-speed bomber. To assess the validity of that decision it is necessary to examine the reasons behind it. Since the previous autumn Hitler had been increasingly worried at the prospect of an Anglo-American invasion of northwest Europe some time in 1944. If the landings succeeded, then the German army would be committed to a two-front war against numerically superior enemy forces. Hitler believed, correctly, that if such an invasion was to be defeated it would have to be during the very early stages, before Allied troops could establish defensive positions ashore. If there were fifty or so Me 262s to deliver repeated bombing and strafing attacks on the troops coming ashore, that would add to the inevitable confusion and delay the process of consolidating the beachheads. The Fuehrer had been assured that the Me 262 could carry a couple of 550-pound bombs if required, and consequently the aircraft had come to feature prominently in his anti-invasion plans. With its high speed, the Me 262 would have been difficult to intercept, and there can be little doubt that it could have performed the task. The alternative would have been to employ the Me 262 in the air-to-air role over the beachhead. That might have led to lots of exciting but inconclusive fighter-versus-fighter combats. The rest is history that by 6 June there were no operational Me262 let alone fighter bombers that fighter command failed to prioritize. Allied troops fought their way ashore at points along the coast of Normandy with no effective German way to stem the waves of the assault. By the mid-morning they had established four firm bridgeheads. The opportunity for Me 262 fighter bombers to play a part in defeating the landings, if it had ever existed, was past.”

Model

Trumpeter produced the Me262 and its variants between 2005 and 2008. The model is finely produced and is considered the de facto standard for 262’s in this scale even though the recent Revell offering is giving it a run for its money. There are virtually no fit issues. The accuracy is very good and stands to be enhanced with minor modifications mainly to do with wiring. I took it a step further but really nothing dramatic to be able to display the engines. It comes with clear parts which like many modelers I do not like. These extra parts were useful for the construction of the fully detached engine in my display.

Cockpit and wheel wells

The cockpit is out of box with a few wires for the dashboard rear. These are barely visible in the completed kit but still worth modeling. The cockpit tub is the roof of the wheel well and this requires significant detailing with wires and hydraulics to get it right. Moving forward , the 2-gun version factory fitted was elected for with a suggestion of the potential for wiring on the upper two guns. In front of the guns is a gun barrel housing which is perfect for the lead weights to keep it a nose sitter.

Undercarriage

With the addition of nose weights the model is significantly heavier and Trumpeter has provided white metal struts identical to the plastic option. My model is quite old and the rubber wheels cracked in the process of insertion. I was able to repair them but the situation was less than ideal. Final detailing of undercarriage hydraulics was done with solder wire.

Engine Compartment

I wanted to show the model with one detailed engine. Trumpeter provides two well-detailed Junkers Jumo 004 B turbine engines. The starboard engine is shown mounted with panels removed while keeping the wing structural integrity. In the model the wire attachment points are represented by slightly raised knobs. These should be drilled out and the wires inserted into the footprint. It’s not really durable to glue wires onto the knobs. I wired it according to references up to the coupling with the wing. This was under the wing and can't be seen in this position. The port side engine however is fully dismounted. The rear of the engine was modeled using the spare clear parts (the only time they were used) carved to show the inner housing. The front intake and rear exhaust details were cast in epoxy from the kit originals in silicone molds. The other details were done with styrene. Of note the engine wire and hosing coupling was fully scratchbuilt. In the front the four model mounting ridges are pared down to better reflect the real counterpart.

Ordnance

I used the 550lb pylons to emphasize the Jagdbomber (Jabo) role of the A-2a. I left off the bombs to keep the beautiful silhouette of the plane.

Fuselage and Wings

This went together very well. My references did not show antenna wires though it was recommended in the box-art. I had to re-scribe some details at the seam lines. Not a big deal.

Painting and Markings

The model was base-painted in Humbrol Enamels, varnished with Future-Tamiya Flat acrylic, weathered with turpenoids and chipped sparingly. I used oil washes for weathering and drop filters for colour variation. Black was used as panel wash. The worn silver was a combination of sponge dabbing, silver pencil and undercoat and masking of silver with overspray. The Me 262's were well maintained by highly skilled crew and chipping was barely noticed. The markings were from 5./KG(J)51, Swabisch Hall in 1944. This was provided in the kit and is fairly comprehensive. Nevertheless, the paint scheme on the box, instructions and website are somewhat improbable. I looked up the actual plane and it appears the light blue (RLM76) undersurfaces "flow" upwards as if the undercoat was painted over in patches with light green (RLM82) and brown-purple (RLM81). This is the approach I undertook, and I must say it appears a lot more authentic. The RLMAir line of Humbrol colours is spot on. The RLM 02 in the wheel and engine wells is colour modulated with purple base and results in a more vibrant finish.

Conclusion

I very rarely build Trumpeter kits as non-diorama subjects. I do find them lacking for standalones. This model is exceptional, and I would strongly recommend it. The Revell kit is probably worth looking at but this is no slouch. Increasingly, I find that painting from actual photos is a better undertaking that following the kit instructions. As a bonus the weathering is kept in check to realistic levels.

References

Aircraft Anatomy from World War II from Chartwell Books Inc
Cockpit from Airlife
Various photos on the internet
My friend Lee Stringer who is crazy about Me262's. He doesn't build in large scale but his collection is insane.