Corgi Aircraft Newest Arrivals

The opportunity to capture and evaluate the latest versions of your enemy�s aircraft was of great interest to both Allied and Axis military planners throughout WWII, not only in order to asses the technology itself, but also to develop tactics which would be useful to squadron pilots when meeting the aircraft in combat. Most of these aircraft would come into the possession of their new owners following combat and usually after suffering varying degrees of damage, however, there were rare...

One of the most significant factors in reducing the effectiveness of Luftwaffe bombing operations during the Second World War was their lack of a capable heavy bomber which could be deployed in large numbers. By comparison, the Allies were almost spoilt for choice and following the introduction of the four engined Short Stirling, Bomber Command�s operations took on a new dimension of offensive capability. The second four engined �Heavy� to enter squadron service was the Handley Page Halifax,...

Just one week after the D-Day landings and the successful Allied invasion of enemy occupied Europe, the Germans were determined to show that the war was far from over and launched the first of their V-1 Flying Bombs against Southern England. Described as their first "Vengeance Weapon", these pulse jet powered unmanned flying bombs emitted a distinctive sound from the intermittently firing engine and quickly became known as �Doodlebugs�, with the indiscriminate nature of their targeting...

The aviation pedigree of the Supermarine Spitfire is second to none. Produced in greater numbers than any other British aircraft, the Spitfire was in constant production throughout the Second World War, with the basic airframe capable of readily accepting upgrades and improvements which maintained the aircraft�s position as one of the most capable single engined fighting aeroplanes of WWII. The combination of the classic Spitfire airframe and the new powerful Rolls Royce Griffon engine...

If the Douglas C-47 Skytrain is considered the most famous multi engined aircraft of D-Day aerial operations, then the single engined equivalent must be the fearsome Hawker Typhoon. Agile and extremely heavily armed, the Typhoon was to see plenty of action during the summer of 1944, either attacking strategic targets in the weeks prior to invasion, such as German radar sites or providing invaluable close air support to ground units breaking out from the landing beachheads. With forward air...