Special Hobby Fw 189A Owls over the Eastern Front 1/72 Kit

Build the unmistakable Focke-Wulf Fw 189A with this 1/72 scale aircraft kit from Special Hobby. Created as a Luftwaffe reconnaissance aircraft, the Fw 189 combined a central crew nacelle with two tail booms extending from the engine nacelles. This unusual arrangement provided excellent visibility for its three-person crew and gives the finished model a distinctive outline.

The kit contains three plastic sprues, one clear-parts sprue and 3D-printed components. Decals provide four marking choices covering two German aircraft, one captured Soviet aircraft and one aircraft used by the Norwegian air force after the war.

Distinctive Reconnaissance Aircraft

In 1937, the Reichsluftfahrtministerium issued a requirement for a new Luftwaffe reconnaissance aircraft. Competing proposals included the asymmetric Blohm & Voss BV 141, the single-engined Arado Ar 198 and Focke-Wulf’s Fw 189 project, which won the competition.

Designed by Kurt Tank, the Fw 189 prototype first flew in July 1938. Pre-production Fw 189A-0 aircraft followed in September 1940, before production moved to the initial A-1 series. Manufacturing took place in Bremen, Prague and Bordeaux-Mérignac, continuing until 1944. The A-2, featuring more powerful armament, replaced the A-1 on production lines during the second half of 1941.

Eastern Front Service

Most Fw 189 aircraft operated on the Eastern Front, where the type demonstrated reliability, excellent manoeuvrability and the ability to work from unpaved airfields. Several Fw 189A-1 aircraft were fitted with FuG 212 Lichtenstein C-1 radar and an oblique cannon for use as night fighters in Romania during 1944.

The Fw 189 also served with the Slovak, Hungarian and Romanian air forces. One of the kit’s marking subjects was originally a German aircraft operating on the Eastern Front. It flew to Norway shortly before the war ended and subsequently entered Norwegian air force service.

Kit Features and Marking Options

• Focke-Wulf Fw 189A in 1/72 scale
• Three plastic parts sprues
• One clear-parts sprue
• 3D-printed parts included
• Two German marking options
• One captured Soviet aircraft
• One post-war Norwegian aircraft

The four decal choices give this unusual twin-boom aircraft strong display variety across German, Soviet and Norwegian service. Explore more 1/72 aircraft, browse the wider range of aircraft model kits or discover further releases from Special Hobby.