The Amazing Polish Airmen of WW2

I Completed my Polish PLZ P.11c COBI Model, Yay!

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The Second of My WW2 Polish Fighter Aircraft Was Actually The First!

I kinda surprised myself as I built this COBI brick model in record time - for me that is. Turning this kit around in under a week - bearing in mind all my other jobs and dog sitting duties - I was actually really pleased with myself.

The Polish P.11 - and I can't seem to find an endearing name for the aircraft in the manner that British fighters were given a name - is one of my favourite 'underdogs' of WW2. And it really is an icon of the tenacious resistance that the Poles put up throughout the war.

Above: This is the sole surviving fighter from the Polish Air Force of 1939. The exhibit on
 display, flew with the 121st Flight of the 2nd Air Regiment in Krakow. Today, this aircraft
is considered as the most precious exhibit at the Polish Aviation Museum, but not because
of the material value. It is the only saved Polish fighter from the September 1939
campaign, the symbol of the Poland's lone struggle with the German Luftwaffe.
Source: Wikipedia.

Despite being obviously obsolete - compared to the premier fighter designs like the Spitfire, Bf109, P40, etc, the P.11 put up a remarkable show against the technically superior invading German aircraft...

 A total of 285 German aircraft were lost according to Luftwaffe records, with at least 110 victories credited to the P.11 for the loss of about 100 of their own. Some of the German aircraft shot down were later recovered and put back into service. This allowed German propaganda to claim smaller combat losses. [Source: Wikipedia]

While this K/D ratio might only appear like the Poles only just bettered parity, one has to remember that the Luftwaffe vastly outnumbered the Polish air force and also fielded newer and faster aircraft types. So it really is to the Poles great credit that they managed such an impressive tally at all.

But, perhaps the greatest feat of the Poles was that - even with the fall of their home nation to the Germans and Soviets with the partitioning Poland on September 29, 1939 - is that the Poles *never* officially surrendered. Indeed, they simply carried on their resistance from outside Poland, moving from one nation to another - one step of the advancing Germans!

The two models I have now completed from the COBI range reflect this, my P.11representing the initial fight in Poland itself and my Morane-Saulnier MS.406 being an example of the Poles continuing exploits for the French Air Force.

Above: My COBI MS.406, an example of the Polish pilots
serving in the French Air Force.

Unfortunately, COBI have not continued this remarkable story by creating a model which represents the Pole's operation subsequent to the fall of France. I really hope that they eventually release a Hawker Hurricane in the scheme of the legendary RAF 303 (Polish) Squadron to complete the story. (COBI actually have the Hurricane Mk. I in their collection but in RAF desert camouflage, so it would be easy enough to add the 303 Battle of Britain scheme to the model.)

Above: 126 Adolfs" - German aeroplanes shot down by No. 303 Squadron during the Battle
of Britain. Painted on a Hurricane. Source: Wikipedia.

Making the COBI PLZ P.11c 'Brick' Model

Amusingly, while the Morane-Saulnier MS.406 was a more technically advanced fighter than the earlier P.11 design, the COBI model of the P.11 has more parts to the kit (320 versus 317).

More surprisingly, however, was that I actually had a little more trouble putting the P.11 together than I did the (theoretically) more complex MS. 406!

It turned out that the stand-out feature of the P.11 - those high-mounted gull wings - are a bit of a bitch to translate into a brick model. Although COBI has done the best they could to represent this aspect of the Polish fighter, it is still a bit of a 'Heath Robinson' fudge and caused me several lapses into some quite spicey language! 😡

It was one of those quintessentially 'brick modelling' problems where when pushing on one brick part you inadvertently dislodge another already attached component.

However, as already stated, I did manage to work past these little frustrations and completed the model in record time. Of great help to this is my little more experience building brick models - there's a knack - and especially my more organised sorting of parts prior to starting the project.

And, in the end, I was very pleased with the end product... Just be very careful handling the finished model and DO NOT try and pick it up by the wings! 😬

NEXT: As said, COBI do not make a 303 Squadron Hurricane - which would have been the ideal model to tackle next - so, looking at the other COBI models I have in my stash it will either be another fighter aircraft or one of the Vietnam War themed models.