Army Fi-156 Fieseler "Storch"

  Aeroplane identification poster, published 1944 63 x 47 cm A particularly unusual style of aeroplane identification poster, owing to the very arty images. Most such posters rely on very plain silhouettes, this series - and we have several in this series; view them here - have a much more arty approach to the task with shading and an interesting angle view. The Fieseler Fi 156 Storch, meaning "stork", was a small German liaison aircraft built by Fieseler before and during World War II. It was notable for its excellent short-takeoff-and-landing performance and low stall speed of 31 mph.The Douglas Skymaster was a four-engine transport aircraft used by the United States Army Air Forces in World War II and the Korean War. Like the Douglas C-47 Skytrain (the Skytrain poster from the same series is also available in our storefront), the Skymaster was derived from a civilian airliner, the Douglas DC-4. The Storch was deployed in all European and North African theatres of World War II. In addition to its liaison function, a number were used to fly a battalion of Infantry Regiment Grossdeutschland behind enemy lines during the invasion of Belgium. In 1943, the Storch played a role in Operation Eiche, the rescue of deposed Italian dictator Benito Mussolini from a boulder-strewn mountain-top near the Gran Sasso. Even though the mountain was surrounded by Italian troops, German commando Otto Skorzeny and 90 paratroopers used gliders to land on the peak and quickly captured it. However, the problem of how to get back off remained. A Focke-Achgelis Fa 223 helicopter was sent, but it broke down en route. Instead, pilot Heinrich Gerlach flew over in a Storch. After Mussolini and Skorzeny had boarded the aircraft, the Storch took off to 250 ft, even though the aircraft was overloaded. A Storch was the last aircraft shot down by the Allies on the Western Front. Condition: generally very good. If you are interested, please email info@manningfineart.co.uk or call us on 07929 749056.

Royal Air Force Handley Page "Hampden" Bomber

  Aeroplane identification poster, published 1943 63 x 47 cm A particularly unusual style of aeroplane identification poster, owing to the very arty images. Most such posters rely on very plain silhouettes, this series - and we have several in this series; view them here - have a much more arty approach to the task with shading and an interesting angle view. The Handley Page HP.52 Hampden is a British twin-engine medium bomber that was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was part of the trio of large twin-engine bombers procured for the RAF, joining the Armstrong Whitworth Whitley and Vickers Wellington. The Hampden was powered by Bristol Pegasus radial engines but a variant known as the Handley Page Hereford had in-line Napier Daggers. The Hampden served in the early stages of the Second World War, bearing the brunt of the early bombing war over Europe, taking part in the first night raid on Berlin and the first 1,000-bomber raid on Cologne. When it became obsolete, after a period of mainly operating at night, it was retired from RAF Bomber Command service in late 1942. By 1943, the rest of the trio were being superseded by the larger four-engined heavy bombers such as the Avro Lancaster. Condition: generally very good. If you are interested, please email info@manningfineart.co.uk or call us on 07929 749056.

Heinkel "He 111K"

  Aeroplane identification poster, published 1942 63 x 47 cm A particularly unusual style of aeroplane identification poster, owing to the very arty images. Most such posters rely on very plain silhouettes, this series - and we have several in this series; view them here - have a much more arty approach to the task with shading and an interesting angle view. The Heinkel He 111 was a German bomber aircraft designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter at Heinkel Flugzeugwerke in 1934. Through development it was described as a "wolf in sheep''s clothing"; due to restrictions placed on Germany after the First World War prohibiting bombers, it masqueraded as a civil airliner, although from conception the design was intended to provide the nascent Luftwaffe with a fast medium bomber. Perhaps the best-recognised German bomber due to the distinctive, extensively glazed "greenhouse" nose of later versions, the Heinkel He 111 was the most numerous Luftwaffe bomber during the early stages of World War II. The bomber fared well until the Battle of Britain, when its weak defensive armament was exposed. Nevertheless, it proved capable of sustaining heavy damage and remaining airborne. As the war progressed, the He 111 was used in a wide variety of roles on every front in the European theatre. It was used as a strategic bomber during the Battle of Britain (and has a prominent role in the film "Battle of Britain"), a torpedo bomber in the Atlantic and Arctic, and a medium bomber and a transport aircraft on the Western, Eastern, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and North African Front theatres. The He 111 was constantly upgraded and modified, but became obsolete during the latter part of the war. Condition: generally very good. If you are interested, please email info@manningfineart.co.uk or call us on 07929 749056.