1/48 Eduard Albatros D-III  

by Michael R. Muth

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Jasta 5 was one of the elite German fighter units during the First World War, second to only Jasta 11 and Jasta 2 in total victories. This model is from the Eduard "Limited Edition" kit. I used some of the photo-etched parts in the cockpit area, but most of the cockpit is hidden.  I used Model Master enamels for most of the paint, except the light green on the wing (which is Italian Camo Green acrylic) and the wood grain finish.  The decals for the red outlined tailplane go on easily, but don't cover the sides of the tailplane. I used the decal for the top and then used the masks provided in the kit as a template for my own masks using 3M blue masking tape. Then I airbrushed the red on the sides and bottom. 

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This particular Albatros served for a long time with Jasta 5. In late July of 1917, while the Jasta was housed at an airfield in Boistrancourt, some great photos were taken of all of the Jasta's machines lined up outside of their hangers. The model is based on the markings of Ltn. Strobel's Albatros D-III 2225/16 as it appears at the time of the lineup. Strobel scored no victories during the war and little is known about him. He was probably a Bavarian nationalist, based on the color scheme he added when he took over this Albatros from Uffz. Weiss.

Anybody with an interest in World War I aviation in general or Albatros aircraft or Jasta 5 in particular needs to pick up the Jagdstaffel 5 Datafile specials written by G.K. Merrill from Albatros Productions Ltd. Both volumes are an invaluable resource for the biplane modeler. Finally, my thanks to my many good friends on the WWI mailing list http://www.wwi-models.org/ who provide an incredible amount of information and ideas about WWI modeling.

Michael

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Photos and text © by Michael R. Muth