1/144 DC-109G

Gallery Article by Alvis 3.1

Silly Week 2009

 

Jackal Island, being remotely located, is by nature pretty much only accessible by air. One of the major airlines servicing this remote, forbidding locale is "LuftRitger", flying one of the oddest variants of the classic Bf-109 ever seen. Using the basic fuselage shape of the Bf-109G series aircraft, but enlarged several times, and mating it with DC-4 wings and engine systems, a whole new airliner was created. Capable of seating 52 in Unter Class, and 12 in the spacious luxury of Uber class, the DC-109 is a marvel of modern(??) engineering. Using the standard Germanic cockpit arrangement allowed great visibility for the flight crew, except in snow, rain, and rear lighting situations. A canopy opening above the pilot's seat allows him to stick his head out into the airflow and get a better view for landings during inclement weather.

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Here we see a DC-109, the "City of Jackal Island",  taking on passengers at the Jackal Island main terminus. Note the elevation: 1.09 meters. Jackal Island Airfield is one of the few major airports in the world where it is inaccessible during high tide!  

This kitbash was created by using the fuselage of a Hasegawa Bf-109G and the wings etc from a Minicraft DC-4. The cockpit area was faired in with a block of balsa, and the new fuselage area was sanded in until it looked "right" It kind of looked like a Chinook Salmon in profile to me. Next, I vacuformed over the spinner, and cut that section out and scratchbuilt in the cockpit area. The glazing was attached, and masked off. The base colour was Testors spraycan Metallic Silver, with the black being hand painted on with Tamiya flat black. The airline and door decals were made in my hand dandy inkjet printer, and the portholes are Letraset dots, applied very carefully, one at a time. The airfield is made up of poster board, an N scale terminal and several of those pre-made 1/144 scale models. The lil people are "Woodland Scenics" N scale figures.

Alvis 3.1

Photos and text © by Alvis 3.1