Tag Archives: Eric Brown

Like a Cat Outta Hell…

z 109

The Elves have just returned from a dawn raid on MOCpages. They swooped out of the sun to scoop up two models of classic WWII fighter aircraft. First up is c bigboy99899’s Bf 109. As he says, this was one of the first truly modern fighter aircraft of its era, with its all metal, stressed skin construction and closed cockpit. The Bf 109 was incredibly successful, with somewhere around 34,000 being built, which is a bigger production run than many of the cars that we feature here. Examples were used by airforces all over the world, with the Spanish retiring their last example in 1965. Click this link to see more of this Bf 109, plus a pair of LDD versions in alternative colour schemes.

Early in the Second World War, the Bf 109 easily outclassed many of the aeroplanes flown by the Allies, especially the carrier based Sea Gladiators and Martlets (Wildcats) of the Royal Navy’s Fleet Air Arm. This was also true in the Pacific, where the famous Zero could outmanoeuvre anything in the sky. Pilots such as the RN’s Eric “Winkle” Brown had to use cunning and tactics to stay alive. Things changed when Grumman produced the Hellcat, with vastly upgraded performance. Jim McDonough normally builds ships but is building a whole squadron of Hellcats (and another of Avengers) to put on the deck of his next creation. This epic project is going to be an impressive sight when it’s finished. Click this link to Jim’s MOCpages to see more of his aeroplanes and ships.

z Hellcat

Before we go, if you’ve some spare time, click this link to BBC Radio 4’s website and listen to the stories and music of Capt. Eric “Winkle” Brown on Desert Island Discs. It’s classic edition of the programme with a man who has lived a life of real adventure. The Lego Car Blog writers also hope to be buying their latest sports car when they get to the age of 95!