Product Info
When Britain was standing alone against the might of the all-conquering German war machine, they needed heroes to steel the nation to its duty - men like Douglas Bader. Joining the Royal Air Force in 1928, Bader was a gifted sportsman with the reputation of a thrill seeker. However, he struggled with the academic side of life at Cranwell.
Commissioned in July 1930, he was posted to No.23 Squadron at Kenley to fly the Gloster Gamecock, and later, the Bristol Bulldog, one of the most advanced fighting aeroplanes in the world at that time. Although Bader’s wartime exploits and aerial victories were linked with both the Spitfire and Hurricane, the aircraft which defined him as an airman was the Bulldog biplane.
During an impromptu flying visit to the Reading Aero Club on 14th December 1931, and with official instructions not to perform low altitude aerobatics in the Bulldog still ringing in his ears, Bader recklessly ignored those instructions after being challenged by fellow pilots.
Having performed a series of spectacular manoeuvres and with his aircraft just a few feet above the ground, the wingtip of his fighter struck the ground during a slow roll manoeuvre and cartwheeled across the airfield, inflicting catastrophic injuries on the pilot, to the horror of those watching.
Despite suffering the amputation of both legs, Bader was determined to fly for the Royal Air Force again, and was given his chance following the outbreak of the Second World War. He flew both the Spitfire and Hurricane operationally, and was credited with 22 aerial victories, before being forced to bail out of his Spitfire over France, becoming a POW on 9th August 1941.
Douglas Bader’s story of courage and determination inspired Britain in her darkest hours, and when a victory flypast took place over London at the end of the war, it was hero Bader who led the formation in a Spitfire.
This Legends triple pack celebrates the courage and determination of a hero, with three aircraft model kits in 1:48 scale.