Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-5

Weekend Edition, 1/72 scale

Reviewed by Graham Carter

Eduard continues their love affair with Luftwaffe single-engined aeroplanes with yet another iteration of this very popular kit. Using the mass of alternative parts on the main sprues, augmented by extra fuselages and wings, they have been able to satisfy the demands of modellers for some years now.

Released in 2015 the FW190 kit has been available in around thirty different boxing, including nine ‘Overtrees’ editions allowing modellers to use up the spare decals that come with the full kits. Different wings and armaments are the main variations catered for and the A-5 variant first appeared from Eduard in 2016.

It was the first variant with the slightly longer nose that featured in all subsequent A, F and R variants until the long-nosed ‘D’ versions. 

The kit probably needs no detailed introduction as it has been widely accepted as the best representation of the iconic ‘Butcher Bird” available to modellers. It comes in the familiar large top-opening box with a  great illustration of Obl. Rolf Hermichen in Yellow ‘5’ having success against a Russian PE-2 twin-engined bomber over a snowy scene, one of the  four decal choices.

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Thumbnail panels:

This ‘is the ‘Weekend Edition’, meaning no photo-etch or masks but we do get four markingl selection and of course the great plastic sprues of the original.

The parts are beautifully moulded in the familiar mid-grey and the sprues are sealed in resealable clear sleeves with the clear ‘pin-wheel’ of canopies and sundry parts in their own sleeve for protection.

The subtle surface and interior detailing is beautifully rendered. As is usual with these kits there are a large number of unused parts destined for the spares box, in this case forty-six which can be saved for later projects.

As a Weekend Edition, the absence of photo-etch is compensated by decals for the instrument panels and seat-belts and in this scale these are more than adequate.

Eduard has released a separate photo-etched fret, SS804, which provides all the missing parts from the ProfiPACK kit.

Instructions and Markings

The A4 stapled instruction booklet begins with an outline of the development, usage and reasons for the different wings used on the variants. It illustrates each step with coloured line-drawings and the schemes are shown in colour.

The kit includes a stencil placement diagram, again in four views – very thorough. Colours are indicated clearly at each step and are given in Gunze Aqueous and Mr. Color on a table below the parts map on page 2.

The four decal choices are illustrated with four-view drawings in colour and a nice variety there are. As usual they are beautifully printed, glossy, thin and perfectly in register. A separate sheet contains a mass of stencilling for one aircraft.

The four choices are:

1. Yellow ‘5’ of Rolf Hermichen  of 3/JG 26 over the Soviet Union in March 1943 in RLM 74/75 over 76 with large white patches over wings and fuselage, a yellow lower nose, lower wing tips and spinner

2. Double chevron of Fritz Losikeit from 1/JG 1 at Deelen, the Netherlands, April 1943 in the same colours bit high fuselage demarcation and no white patches, with black and white nose stripes and yellow lower nose.

3. Black ‘7’ of Emil Lang from 5JG 54 over the Soviet Union in summer 1943 in a peculiar RLM 70, with patches of a brown and olive green and  yellow nose patch, the nose has peeling paint patches, and

4. Green ’13’ of Walter Oesau, from JG2, in France , June 1943 in RLM 74/75 over 76 with light fuselage mottle and a yellow lower nose and rudder.

It is great to see yet another version of this terrific kit in the ‘One True Scale’ and I would thoroughly commend it to the fan of mid-war Luftwaffe aircraft.

Thanks to Eduard for the sample

Review Text Copyright © 2023 by Graham Carter
Images Copyright © 2023 by Brett Green
Page Created 16 November, 2023
Last updated 16 November, 2023

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