Even though it appears as if their ground offensive has stalled by several months, that hasn’t prevented Corgi from initiating their 2019 aerial attack on the world at-large. Four new aircraft are currently winging their way to us and should be ready for shipment to our clientele by the third week of May. In no particular order, here’s what you can look forward to adding to your aviation arsenal in just a couple of weeks:

When World War I ended, the German Air Force was disbanded under the Treaty of Versailles, which required the German government to abandon all military aviation by October 1st, 1919. However, by 1922, it was legal for Germany to design and manufacture commercial aircraft, and one of the first modern medium bombers to emerge from this process was the Heinkel He 111, the first prototype of which an enlarged, twin-engine version of the single-engine mail-liaison He 70, which set 8 world speed records in 1933 flew in February of 1935. The second prototype, the He 111 V2, had shorter wings and was the first civil transport prototype, capable of carrying 10 passengers and mail. The third prototype, He 111 V3 also had shorter wings and was the first true bomber prototype. Six He 111 C series airliners were derived from the fourth prototype, the He 111 V4, and went into service with Lufthansa in 1936, powered by a variety of engines, including BMW 132 radials. The first production models had the classic stepped windshield and an elliptical wing, which the designers, Siegfried and Walter Gunter, favored. That said, AA33716 is a German Heinkel He-111H-16 Medium Bomber ferrying a Fi 103 (Doodlebug) under its fuselage. It was attached to 2./Kampfgeschwader 53 ‘Legion Condor’, an Air Launch V-1 Flying Bomb Unit operating during the latter half of 1944.

Numerically the most abundant fighter produced by either side during WWII, the Messerschmitt Bf 109 formed the backbone of the Jagdwaffe on both the eastern and western fronts, as well as in the Mediterranean and North Africa. Of the eight distinct sub-types within the huge Bf 109 family, the most populous was the G-model, of which over 30,000 were built between 1941-45. Despite its production run, only a handful of genuine German Bf 109s have survived into the 1990s, and with the serious damaging of the RAFs G-2 at Duxford in October 1997, only the German-based MBB G-6 and Hans Ditte’s G-10 (both composites) are currently airworthy. AA27108 replicates a German Messerschmitt Bf 109G-6/U2 Fighter known as “White 16”, that was attached to 1./Jagdgeschwader 301 during July 1944. Note that it is part of Corgi’s 75th Anniversary of the D-Day Invasion collection.

The Typhoon was a British single-seat strike fighter, produced by Hawker Aviation starting in 1941. Intended as a replacement for the Hawker Hurricane in the interceptor role, it suffered from performance problems, but eventually evolved into one of World War II’s most successful ground attack aircraft. AA36512 depicts a RAF Hawker Typhoon Mk. Ib Ground Attack Aircraft that was attached to No. 245 (Northern Rhodesian) Squadron, then deployed to Homesley South Airfield, Hampshire, England during June 1944. Note that it is part of Corgi’s 75th Anniversary of the D-Day Invasion collection.

The Handley Page Halifax was one of the British front-line, four-engine heavy bombers of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. A contemporary of the famous Avro Lancaster, the Halifax remained in service until the end of the war, performing a variety of duties in addition to bombing. The Halifax was also operated by squadrons of the Royal Australian Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force, Royal New Zealand Air Force and Polish Air Force. AA37209 represents a RAF Handley Page Halifax B.III Heavy Bomber known as “Expensive Babe”, that was attached to No.51 Squadron, then deployed to Snaith, England, during March 1945.