Introduction
The Henschel Hs 123A was a single-seat, German biplane designed as a dive-bomber and close-support attack aircraft. Though considered obsolete by the start of World War II, its rugged design, reliability, and low-maintenance radial engine allowed it to remain in front-line service until 1944.
Development and design
Manufacturer: The Hs 123 was developed by the German aircraft manufacturer Henschel.
Origin: Henschel began designing aircraft after Hitler came to power in the 1930s, having previously been known as a locomotive manufacturer.
Purpose: It was designed in 1933 to meet the Luftwaffe's need for a single-seat biplane dive-bomber, intended as a stopgap measure until the Junkers Ju 87 Stuka became available.
Prototypes: The first prototype, the Hs 123 V1, made its maiden flight on April 1, 1935.
Construction: The Hs 123 was an all-metal aircraft featuring a sesquiplane design, in which the lower wings were significantly smaller than the upper wings.
Engine: The production version, the Hs 123A-1, was powered by a 9-cylinder air-cooled BMW 132Dc radial engine, which produced 880 horsepower on takeoff.
Operational history
Entry into service: Production of the Hs 123A-1 began in the summer of 1936, and the aircraft was first delivered to the Luftwaffe that autumn.
Spanish Civil War (1936–1939): Five Hs 123s were sent to Spain with the Condor Legion in early 1937. Though they were found to be less than ideal as dive-bombers, their ruggedness made them highly effective in the close ground-support role. The Spanish Air Force was so impressed that they purchased additional aircraft.
Second Sino-Japanese War (1938): Twelve Hs 123s were exported to China, where they were used as dive-bombers against Japanese warships along the Yangtze River.
World War II
Poland (1939): The Hs 123 was a key aircraft in the invasion of Poland, where its ability to operate from primitive, forward airfields and deliver bombs with precision proved vital for fast-moving armored divisions.
Eastern Front (1941–1944): The Hs 123 was highly valued in the invasion of the Soviet Union due to its reliability in severe weather conditions where more advanced aircraft often failed.
Withdrawal: Production of the Hs 123A ceased in 1938, and the aircraft was eventually withdrawn from service in 1944 due to a lack of spare parts. The factory had dismantled all tooling in 1940, making any restarting of production impossible.
Review
This offering from ICM arrives in a flip-top cardboard tray with a separate card lid. Inside the sprues are packaged in 1 plastic bag. The access for removal of parts is good; the gates are a little on the large side but should not cause any major issues. There are some flow lines in the larger mouldings, but I do not believe that these have caused any obvious issues so far as I can see.
There are no surviving Hs 123 aircraft for reviewers to turn to and so online information is the direction I have had to go in and it has produced some results that conflict.
The cockpit layout is generally good so far as I can tell from very limited online visuals, but depending on where you look there are differences found that cause confusion. The instrument panel and its dials are a case in point as the shape of the console appears correct in most cases but the dials do not always agree and as for confirming at what point in the aircrafts life the images come from mean it may or may not be correct for the intended finish. ICM has neglected the harness details for the pilot which is always the biggest issue in a kit of this type and scale. The details added by ICM are correct as best I can tell with the floor itself being my only area of concern. (Perhaps someone out there with better reference can jump in on this point.)
Moving forward and the engine comes into view with ICM throwing a lot of detail into an area where I failed to find any reference beyond what is visible from the front. The two MG 17 machine guns that fire through the engine cowling and timed to fire through the propeller arc are well detailed as regards what is on show but could be improved by adding barrels from the likes of Master. I suspect that despite ICM’s work on the engine update photo etch products will show up as displaying the engine is an easy option. There are online images available of the BMW 132Dc engine, but I have no way of knowing what exactly the engine looked like in the aircraft.
Moving to the aircraft shape and form and it looks to me accurate when compared to a number blueprint documents available, but there are issues that bother me. My main concern is the cowling/blister behind the pilot as early aircraft do not have this detail so fair as I can tell and if you check WW2 photographs showing the Hs 123A-1 in action a number do seem to be missing this detail. The diagrams and blue prints offered also have a mix of yes and no for this on the A-1 variant. What I will say is I like this small detail and so I am glad it is there as it adds something to the aircrafts profile.
Another issue is that you are directed to stretch some sprue which modellers of a certain age have done in the past, but there is no direction as to what this stretched sprue is for! The transmitter mast is replicated however the wire itself has not been indicated except on the box top and this is a detail that many of us add. Flight control surfaces are offered as separate parts and I appreciate the effort put into the actuator arms on the tail surfaces; unfortunately these same details does mean the modeller is stuck with controls in a neutral position unless you are upto making your own actuators.
A feature of this biplane is that it had an all metal body and that has been replicated on the model. The recessed panel lines look good being of a reasonable size and depth, but there are issues here. When comparing panel lines to available reference there are some questions that arise such as is a certain detail correct for the variant being modelled and I have no way of confirming what is and is not correct. What I will say is that there are details that match with some reference and not with others. Some details are slightly different sizes and locations and again I cannot prove what is right. What I will stand by is that the surface detail looks to be reasonably close or matching reference but more detail looks to be in need of adding for best accuracy.
The decals provided have very good colour and the definition also rates well. There is a lot of excess decal film on a number of the provided decals but where it has been possible not excessive in all cases. ICM has provided mask templates for the clear parts of the glazing, but no data is provided in regards to any potential rigging that is required on the model. ICM has provided 3 finishing options for this release:
HS 123A 24.7, VJ/88 Legion Condor, Spain, 1937
HS 123A 24.4, VJ/88 Legion Condor, Spain, 1937
HS 123A 24.5, VJ/88 Legion Condor, Spain, 1937