Wingnut Wings 1/32 Felixstowe F.2a & Hansa-Brandenburg W.29 “The Duellists” Model kit

Released on 16 December 2014 – Includes 2 models; 1× Felixstowe F.2a & 1× Hansa-Brandenburg W.29 – 2 high quality Cartograf decal sheets with markings for Felixstowe F.2a N4305 & Hansa-Brandenburg W.29 2512 including naval hexagon camouflage – 590 high quality injection moulded plastic parts – Beaching dollies and trestles – Highly detailed 375hp Rolls Royce Eagle VIII and 150hp Benz Bz.III engines – Metal wing spar (W.29) – 55 photo-etched metal detail parts – Fine in scale rib tape detail – Full rigging diagrams

Felixstowe F.2a – The Felixstowe F.2a was probably the most successful flying boat of the First World War. With a crew of 5 it was capable of carrying out long range reconnaissance, anti-submarine and anti-shipping patrols of up to 10 hours duration. The development of the Felixstowe F.2a is staggeringly convoluted but was essentially an Anglo-American design which can trace its development from the pre war Glenn Curtiss & Cyril Porte designed 180hp twin engine ‘America’ flying boat design. This basic design was improved and strengthened successively by both Curtiss and Porte (having now returned to service in the RNAS after the outbreak of war despite suffering from Tuberculosis) over the next few years until July 1917 when Porte arrived at the deep ‘V’ hull with full side fins so characteristic of the Felixstowe flying boats, so called because they were developed at the RNAS Seaplane Experimental Station at Felixstowe in Suffolk. Although technically now a wholly Porte design these flying boats were referred to as ‘America class’ by the Royal Navy and as ‘Curtiss’ types by the Germans. The twin 375hp Rolls Royce Eagle VIII engine powered Felixstowe F.2a featured a deep ‘V’ hull constructed using boat building techniques with diagonal planking on the bottom while the tops of the fins were ply and doped fabric. The sides of the upper hull were ply while the top coamings and rear were covered with linen, as were the wings and tailplane. Ply walkways were positioned on the coaming near the engineer’s hatch and on the bottom wing under the engines. A modified Liberty engine powered version was manufactured by Curtiss in America as the H.16. On 31 July 1918 Felixstowe F.2a N4305 took off from Great Yarmouth Air Station on a routine patrol.

Felixstowe flying boat wings and tailplane upper surfaces usually appear very dark in photographs and have been recorded simply as “green” with the bottom surfaces remaining heavily varnished Clear Doped Linen. The bottom of the wooden planked hull, bow, side & tailplane struts and fin tops were finished with gloss black bituminous tar based paint inside and out for waterproofing. The plywood panels of the superstructure were heavily varnished with their joints being sealed with the same bituminous tar based paint while the coamings often remained Clear Doped Linen (CDL) as did the lower surfaces of the wings and tailplane. In some instances the coamings were finished with the same protective dope as the wings and tailplane. All metal fittings were painted gloss black although those on the engine bearers and interplane struts appears to have been frequently overpainted Battleship Grey along with the wooden struts. Most surfaces featured a gloss finish when new which weathered to a dull matt appearance after short periods exposed to harsh saltwater. Many British flying boats featured brightly coloured dazzle paint finishes for identification purposes from the middle of 1918 onwards. Any history of these aircraft here is of necessity very brief, therefore we encourage you to seek the references listed below for a more thorough understanding of these significant aircraft.