Anigrand Craftswork 1/144 Junkers EF 132 Kit First Look

By Michael Benolkin

First Look

One of the last designs the Junkers engineers tackled before the end of the war was a concept for a long-range jet-powered heavy bomber. The requirement from the RLM called for a high-speed bomber that could carry a 4000kg bomb load over extreme distances.

Junkers designed the EF 132 which was a large airframe (101 feet long, 106 foot wingspan) powered by six Jumo 012 turbojet engines. The long swept wings allowed the aircraft to reach greater than 30,000 feet and sustain over 550 knots. The glass-nosed cockpit was pressurized and accommodated a crew of five.

Had this aircraft been built, there were no fighter aircraft in the allied pipeline that could have intercepted the aircraft (though I'm sure that a few programs would have been pushed up if this aircraft was being readied for operation). The design was evaluated by Soviet engineers after the war, and while the program was officially terminated, the Tu-16 Badger would appear come seven years later that was roughly the same size but powered by two turbojet engines of far better thrust and reliability (relatively speaking).

This kit is actually five kits in one box. The five subjects in this box are:

1. EF 132
2. Fw.P.03102510-1006
3. Li.P.12
4. WESPE
5. Me.P.1106

The first image illustrates the usual fine job of packaging of each kit and clear parts to get you a complete and undamaged model. The bag is heat-sealed into compartments to keep the individual small kits separate and the major sections of the main kit from damage.

The the next image, you can see the hollow-cast fuselage and wings. Anigrand did a really nice job on the engineering of this kit as the wing halves go together nice. The underside of the wings have inserts which are separately cast to provide the bottom side of the engines and thereby keep the exhaust ducts of all six engines hollow. Because this was a jet-powered bomber, there are no propeller assemblies to worry about and you just need to ensure that you have enough ballast in the nose to keep this beauty from becoming a tail-sitter.

The next kit in this line-up is the Heinkel Wespe. This was a small fighter built around a ducted fan engine and was designed for vertical take-off and landing (sitting on its tail similar to the Convair XFY Pogo. Unlike the Pogo, the Wespe was never flown because like the Pogo, it would have been extremely challenging to get the aircraft back on the ground after a sortie. Because of its VTOL design, it would not have had a significant armament loadout, and because of the ducted fan behind the cockpit, bailing out of this beast would have been a challenge.

The next paper design provided in this set is the Focke Wulf with a P.number that must have been a drawing number. This was a single seat aircraft that featured a swept wing, a reverse-seep vertical stabilizer that interconnected with the wing, and was powered by a counter-rotating propeller. The kit is a rather simple build and will look equally unique on the shelf.

The last two designs were the P.1106 fighter with the cockpit located back at the base of the vertical stabilizer, and the Lippisch Li.P.12 which was a jet-powered delta-wing fighter that would later be the basis of the Convair F-102 and F-106 fighters. You can see how nicely both of these aircraft are cast in this scale.

The kit provides two sheets of decals to provide sufficient markings for all five aircraft.

There are some interesting subjects in this box and clearly the most impressive of the lot is also the headliner - the Junkers EF 132. Even in 1/144 scale, this isn't a small model but it is certainly distinctive and will go well with the four other designs that never quite made it to prime time.

My sincere thanks to the US importer, Nostalgic Plastic for this review sample!