Nieuport

Nieuport IV by A Model, injection mold

First flown in 1911, the Nieuport IV were exported to Italy, Russia, Great Britain, Argentina, Italy, Japan, Romania, Siam, Spain and Sweden. Additionally, the type IV was built under license in Russia, and was one of the principal aircraft used by the Imperial Russian Air Service in its formative period.

The plane depicted was flown by P. N. Nesterov who was the first to perform a loop with this plane.

The kit is well molded but when I received the kit, all parts had been removed from the sprue. I was unable to determine if there was any flash on the parts. The most difficult assembly is the undercarriage. As best as I could determine, the plane had no tailskid and balanced on the rear extension of the undercarriage. The kit does not cooperate here, resting on its tail tipped to one side. Possibly a little weight to the nose would solve this dilemma but the cockpit area is very crowded.

This was a very easy build and took less than 5 hours to complete. The kit has two decal options, Swedish and Russian.

Nieuport 11 1/72 scale injection mold by TOKO

The Nieuport 11 was produced by the French company "Societe Anonyme des Establissement Nieuport" founded in 1909 by Edouard de Nieuport. The Nie11 was a smaller version of the two seat Nieuport 10. Powered by the 80hp LeRhone engine, the plane was delivered to the Front in Jan 1916. Due to its high speed, excellent maneuverability and its ability to gain speed quickly, the Nie11 quickly won the affectionate nickname Bebe Nieuport.

Italy and Russia both built and flew the Nieuport 11 and a small number were built and used in Holland. The Nieuport 11 was also widely copied by many German manufacturers.

This kit depicts the plane flown by the Russian pilot A. Kazakov with the XIX Flying Division, Lutsk region, August, 1916.

Nieuport 16c Single Seat Fighter By Toko 1/72 Scale, Injection mold.

The Nieuport 16c was developed in early 1916. Using a more powerful engine, the speed and rate of climb was increase over its predecessor, the Nieport 11. It was built in France until 1916 and under license in Russia . This model depicts a Nieport 16c of the Emperor's Flying Guard, December 1916. It was built by the "Duks" plant.

This model is built Out of the Box with the exception of the wood grain, which is a thin wood veneer glued on the fuselage and stained.

Nieuport 17C1/72 injection mold by Eduard

The Nieuport 17C with its larger engine and additional weight impaired the good handling qualities that had made the Nieuport 11 so popular with its pilots. Gustave Delage developed the design by refining various areas. One change was providing wings of greater span and area. This improved design was designated Nieuport 17, officially presented as Nie.17.C 1. It was referred to as the 15-metre Nieuport.

The plane was armed with a single Lewis on the top wing or a single Vickers firing through the prop or on some occasions, with both configurations.

The plane was also built in Italy and Russia and French built Nie.17's were used by Belgian escadrilles and by the Royal Flying Corp.

This is Eduard's new Nie.17 released in the "Flyboys" color schemes. I chose to depict Charles Nungesser's 1490 when he was attached to N.124 in July 1916.

The kit is out of the box with the only changes being the replacement of the Vickers machine with one from Aeroclub and the Lewis gun being replaced by one from Roden and modifying the mounting. Nungesser's personal insignia came from the Eduard SPAD XIII sheet. Tail number 1490 was cut from the Flyboys sheet.

A very easy build with no surprises and the building time was under 10 hours.

Nieuport 17C by Eduard. 1/72 scale Dual Combo kit number 7071

This model depicts the plane flown by Lieutenant Onokichi Isobe, Escadrille N.57, December, 1917.

This model is one half of the Dual Combo kit from their Flyboys models. A very easy kit to build. The silver is Talon Acrylic Metal spray out of the bottle. The paint was not polished. Building time is less than 10 hours.

Nieuport 17C by Eduard. 1/72 scale Dual Combo kit number 7071

This model depicts the plane flown by Sergent Maurice Boyau, Escadrille N.77, summer, 1917.

This model is one half of the Dual Combo kit from their Flyboys models. A very easy kit to build. The silver is Talon Acrylic Metal spray out of the bottle. The paint was not polished. Building time is less than 10 hours.

NIEUPORT Triplane Single Seat Fighter BY Revell 1/72 Scale, Injection mold, Modified.

Nieuport's entry into the triplane field was a Nieuport 17 fuselage fitted with a set of narrow chord wings in a rather bizzare configuration. Althought the pilot had unrestricted upward and forward view, the middle wing interferred with his fighting and landing ability. The engine was a 110hp LeRhone with a forward firing Lewis. At least one triplane was sent to the British who evaluated the plane. The official report was adversely critical and the RFC took no further interest in the plane.

This model was built in the mid 80's and was my first attempt at modifying a model. Two Revell Nieuport 17s gave their life for this kit. I trimmed down the top wing for the triplane wing but did not make any attempt to put any curve in the wing. Truthfully, I did not know how. Today I would used Roseparts wing blanks. The engine was cut out and reinserted. There was no aftermarket engines availabe at the time to replace it; my buddies at Aeroclub were about a year away from opening their doors. You can tell my early kits; they have a pilot in them. This figure is from an Airfix kit. One point of interest. The kit is about 20 years old and the rigging is as tight as the day I put it in.

NIEUPORT 27 Single Seat Fighter BY JOYSTICK 1/72 Scale, vacuform.

The Nieuport 27 was the last vee-strutter and was powered by the 120 hp Le Rhone rotary. It had rounded wing-tips, a curved sided fuselage and a rounded tail-plane. The French planes were armed with a single Vickers gun.

In spite of its improved aerodynamic shape, the 27 was little better than earlier Nieuport models. Its speed, strength and fire-power was scarcely good enough for the intensive air fighting of 1917-1918. The vee-strut design was incapable of further development.

This model decipits one of the Nieuport 27's supplied to the Italians.

Nieuport 23 by Eduard, Dual Combo 1/72nd scale

The Nieuport 23 entered service in 1917. It was powered by the 120 h.p. Le Rhone 9Jb, giving it a slight increase in performance. The main external difference was moving the Vickers machine gun a few centimeters to the right to accommodate the improved interrupter gear. The aircraft was in French service until mid 1917, but they served in large numbers and into the mid 1920's in Russian and Soviet air forces.

The model depicted was flown by Lt. Boris “Bob” Guber, Russian Imperial Air Force, Halic in the fall of 1917.