Fly Bachem 349 "Natter"

[stona]

This will be my next victim. It's a 1/32 version of Germany's most desperate attempt to stem the tide of Allied bombing.

I had many young relatives staying over the Xmas period and ought to replace the models which suffered as a result. The most serious loss was my PCM Hurricane which went for a few experimental flights. I tracked the culprits down. They cracked under rigorous interrogation!

Anyway.....here's the "Natter".

In the box are some nicely molded parts on a few sprues.

And some other bits and pieces. Decent clear parts,some photoetch and some detailed bits in resin.

The instructions are a bit vague and (at least in my box) there a is no colour information at all. There is an assumption that the modeller will know which version he wants to build and have done his own research.

I'm going for the one on the box. It is the one in which Siebert made his fatal flight.The box art is based on a photo of him scrambling aboard before his ill fated flight.

To do this one the first thing to do is to saw off the nose on the kit fuselage and fit the appropriate one which is included in the kit.

Now where did I put my razor saw?

Cheers

Steve

 

[mossiepilot]

They both definately look guilty, good job you caught such desperate looking criminals.

Looks like this is going to be good 'un.

I'll be watching further progress with interest.

Tony.

 

[stona]

They both definately look guilty, good job you caught such desperate looking criminals.Tony.

I may have prevented them from taking a path leading to a life in crime

Of course they don't really give a monkey's the little.....errrr.....monkeys. I felt sorry for their dad! It was to him that I had to explain that "it's just a model" and that I actually am not that bothered. I'm not! It's an excuse to build another,different,Hurricane.

I've now hackedoff the original nose and the new one looks as if it will fit quite nicely.

I'm now committed to building this aircraft.

Cheers

Steve

 

[Vaughan]

Hi Steve just found this on Youtube. There are some interesting closeup shots of the 'Natter' which might be of interest. Here's a shot of a unrestored "Natter" at the Smithsonian institute with the original camo

Vaughan

View attachment 57883

 

[stona]

Thank you very much for that Vaughan,some very nice and helpful footage.

Oddly I've seen some "stills" that are taken from that film but never the film itself.

I've not decided on my colour scheme yet. Most seem to think that the camouflage on the one I'm doing was RLM 74 over RLM 76. The picture you posted is clearly RLM 83 over RLM 76. Looking at the B+W photos of the one I'm doing I am leaning towards that combination. The squiggle is awfully dark for RLM 74 which had,after all,been officially discontinued and replaced by RLM 83 anyway.

Cheers

Steve

 

[colin m]

Steve I'm sure you've had this problem before, how about an electric fence, or electronic tags, so you know where the 'visitors' have crept off to ?

 

[stona]

Steve I'm sure you've had this problem before, how about an electric fence, or electronic tags, so you know where the 'visitors' have crept off to ?

You know Colin I have!

You've just reminded me that the little fella in the picture managed to get hold of a Fw 190 which I thought was out of reach for him. I don't think he was even walking at the time! This must make him a serial offender and elligible for some kind of tag or restraining order

Cheers

Steve

 

[Ian M]

Sorry for your loss. That Hurricane was a nice one. Butter would not melt in there mouths bless 'em....

At interesting machine which I look forward to seeing.

Ian M

 

[stona]

Last night and this morning I've been wresting with the new nose. I have added a couple of thin plastic card strips as reinforcement. These will also help hold the bulkhead that forms the front of the cockpit in place.

It's not just attaching the two new nose sections but also ensuring that when the two fuselage halves are eventually joined the nose joins up too!

Once I'm happy with this (and it's not far off) I can start to fit the cockpit interior.

Cheers

Steve

 

[CDW]

I have a few items suitable for home defence if you wish to borrow them next year when Bonnie and Clyde visit Steve

Anyway ... never heard of the "Natter" before now, had a look at the youtube bit and some pictures on the old t'interweb and i think i have the general jist of the thing now.

I know this is a bit down the line as you're only just adjusting it to the right physical spec but the camo looks to be a right pig to do, are you going to airbrush it or try for a hairy stick attemp at it?

p.s. can we sway you into a little diorama for this one?

 

[stona]

I'm initially going to pose the aircraft in flight. I've got a pilot which I can alter to represent the ill fated Lothar Sieber. I will also have all the rockets attached.

This means that somewhere down the line I will be able to pose the model immiediately prior to launch,on the tower. There are a handful of pictures of the tower(s) used for these experimental launches. I reckon that I can scratch build at least a portion of one,maybe slightly simplified a bit,to make a diorama. They were constructed of standard triangular and I/H section steel,plastic versions of which are available off the shelf.

I'll airbrush the camo. It is basically a heavy scribble of a darker colour (I'm leaning towards RLM 83) over a base of RLM 76. The underside was partially black.

There's an account of his flight here.

Bachem Ba 349 Natter Flight

The rank is wrong,he was promoted Oberleutnant posthumously,and I've always understood his surname to have been Sieber without the T. Only three of the boosters fell away,which can't have helped.One was found when the crash site was excavated much later,post war.

Not much of Sieber was found immiediately after the crash either. The crater was 5m deep. There is a rather ghoulish account of what was found but it's hardly family reading! It is possible that he was travelling at the speed of sound as he dived,vertically into the ground.

Cheers

Steve

 

[colin m]

You know Colin I have!You've just reminded me that the little fella in the picture managed to get hold of a Fw 190 which I thought was out of reach for him. I don't think he was even walking at the time! This must make him a serial offender and elligible for some kind of tag or restraining order

Cheers

Steve

I blame the parents myself !!

 

[flyjoe180]

Interesting stuff there Steve. Surprising that there were no shortage of volunteers after Sieber's incident.

 

[mobear]

from what ive read on the natter is only 3 ever went into service,but nothing on the stuff they did lol,so Steve i think this will be interesting

mobear

 

[stona]

They were never used operationally. Sieber's ill fated escapade is almost certainly the only manned,powered,flight. Several gliding and parachute test flights were made by another pilot,Hans Zubert.

There are claims that one or two other powered launches were made but no evidence to support the contention.

Cheers

Steve

 

[stona]

Interesting stuff there Steve. Surprising that there were no shortage of volunteers after Sieber's incident.

Hi Joe,Willy Fiedler was an SS officer attached to the "Natter" project under Waffen-SS General Wollf (it was an SS project). He claimed in his post war interrogation that whilst earlier working on the manned V-1 project (Fi 103R),which was to have been a suicide attack,he had more than 1,000 volunteers from within the SS.

At least theoretically flying the "Natter" was not a one way ticket,though the escape procedure was risky. Zubert managed it a few times,though from gliding flights.

This was what was supposed to happen.

Looks good on paper!

Cheers

Steve

 

[mobear]

close range interceptor it could`ve been,and scarey as hell,i all went wrong last thing that went through your mind would be your ass lol

mobear

 

[CDW]

Looks good on paper!

But as always murphys' law comes into play

Interesting stuff Steve, i like the idea of the simple dio, shouldn't take away from the aircraft which is, after-all, the main item.

I take it the pilots the only figure to be included? .... decent 1/32 figures of the period are a bit scarce i would imagine.

 

[stona]

But as always murphys' law comes into play Interesting stuff Steve, i like the idea of the simple dio, shouldn't take away from the aircraft which is, after-all, the main item.

I take it the pilots the only figure to be included? .... decent 1/32 figures of the period are a bit scarce i would imagine.

The best laid plans etc. It would have been a risky undertaking. It was a sign of German desperation. Most of the aircraft was to be reused and it was made almost entirely of wood and,importantly,didn't need glue presses required for other wooden aircraft parts.

There are no figures in the kit. I've liberated a 1/32 pilot from my spares box. He's the smallest decent one I have (oh yes,they do vary....a lot) but even he may have to lose his feet to fit!

Cheers

Steve

 

[stona]

I've managed to build the rather simple cockpit. It was simple on the original!

I've also built my own tail end using the reisin piece,including casting block,from the kit. The rocket outlet has been modified and substantialy strengthened with some tubing which will eventually serve as a socket for the acrylic stand. The Blu-Tac is temporary

When Gagarin sat on top of his Vostock rocket preparing for launch I wonder if he knew that a vertical rocket powered launch had been made 16 years earlier by this man.

He didn't receive world acclaim. He got his rank back,having been court martialled for something we don't know today. Fellow members on the Natter project say he didn't tell them what he had done and that they didn't ask. He also got two weeks leave during which he got engaged. He's almost a forgotten figure in what would become the space race and that seems a shame.

My own little Lothar Sieber will be taking his place in his cockpit as soon as I work out how much leg he will have to lose!

Cheers

Steve