The Heinkel 111Z
came about as one solution to the need for towing the massive Messerschmidt
Me-321 Assault Gliders to their destinations. The task was originally assigned
to multiple Messerschmidt Me-110 twin engine fighters. Due to the problems of
having multiple twin engined aircraft towing a huge glider this proved
impractical.
The Heinkel Company
came up with an imaginative solution with the Heinkel He-111Z, or Zwilling, for
twin. Two standard Heinkel 111 bombers were modified by removing the outer right
wing from one and the outer left wing from the other. These were joined by a
straight chord section mounting an additional engine. This aircraft proved up to
the task. The original Z-1 aircraft was the glider tow, while there were
discussions about creating the Z-2 to perhaps fill the need for a long range
bomber.
Only a relative few
of the 111Z-1 were built, most being expended on the Russian front in efforts to
resupply different German pockets such as at Stalingrad. The Me-321's were
eventually supplanted by the six engined Me-323.
Click on
images below to see larger images
Italeri has had the
He-111Z, the Me-321, and the Me-323 kits in their 1/72 catalog for quite
some time now. The Zwilling is basically two of their He-111 kits with the
necessary conversion parts included as well as different decals. The kit
in the article is built strictly out of the box, and is intended to hang
in a local hobby shop posed towing an Me-321 Gigant. Hopefully there will
be another article about the Gigant and photos of the two hanging at the
shop. Then maybe a Bf-109 or two...
The fit of the model
is comparable to it's vintage. The wing fit to the fuselages takes some work,
and the drop tanks under the fuselages need a lot of work to smoothly fit in.
Transparencies are nice especially after a dip in Future. The one omission that
I have been researching for when the time comes is the complete lack of towing
fittings or diagrams. Anyone with a set of good drawings will earn my gratitude
if they can help out, as well as Jerry & Barb at JBAR Hobbies in Tecumseh,
MI!!!
The finished product
looks like a Zwilling, and with a Gigant in tow it should make quite a display
:-)
Bob
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