1/33 A6M2 "Zero" (Mały Modelarz 1976)

[Zenon1947]

Here's my new model. Mitsubishi A6M2 "Zero" from Mały Modelarz, year 1976, laser reprinted on a better paper.
It's a great, fun kit to build but the plane itself is historically inaccurate. Very innacurate.
I'd like to thank Don Boose for sharing his knowledge in this regard. Don, my grandson passed to me everything you wrote in an email. Thanks to you and him, I understand the subject much better than before. Unfortunately, many of books I collected through the years, are now a bit "outdated" and don't include many facts, details. And usually I rely, or should I say, relied on these books. A week ago, I bought some newer, pretty recent, history magazines and there's a huge difference. The amount of things I've learned from them amazes me. Back in 1970s, 1980s, or even 1990s, in Poland, you would never find in any book or magazine so many details about camouflages, markings, lesser-known units or lesser-known vehicles, planes.

The "Zero" I'm posting today is built in it's original camouflage from MM but my grandson, Kacper(PacificWind), already did for me a historically correct repaint that I'll build somewhere in the nearest future I guess.
The fact that I made some minor mistakes in the building process, also makes me want to build this A6M2 again.

In the next post I'll also show you my attempt to correct the MM's camouflage with some acrylic paints.
Still fictional, but I think it looks more convincing now.

[Zenon1947]

"Zero" after some painting...

[rifleman]

always like to see your builds zenon the zero looks fine and good well done

[MacSongLi]

Maybe not historically accurate, but still a great looking model. It looks nice after the painting too. Very well done.

Don is a fantastic resource, and very knowledgeable.

Gary

[Butelczynski]

I use to have original copy of that kit and I think that considering near constant problems with colors in nearly all old Maly kits this one deserves honorable mention for trying to look the part.

Great work Zenon. I always enjoy trip back in time.

[Don Boose]

It is certainly an interesting color scheme and, as always, you have done a great job on the construction, Zenon.

As Zenon says, the colors and markings are something of a puzzle. I am reluctant to say that no aircraft ever appeared in such a scheme, and it is possible that such a camouflage was applied in the field in the South Pacific, but I have never seen such yellow and green camouflage. An IJN aircraft with the emblem of the Akeno Army Flying School on the tail seems especially unlikely.

V-110 was a known aircraft of the Tainan Kaigun Kōkūtai (Naval Air Group). It had standard IJNAF markings of the time and crashed in April 1942.
Pacific Wrecks - A6M2 Model 21 Zero Manufacture Number 1575 Tail V-110

The Kanji on the fuselage [池完] read Ike (Pond/Lake/Reservoir) Kan (end, completion). Together, they do not mean anything in my Kenkyusha dictionary or any of my on-line translation programs. Perhaps a Japanese-speaking Forum member can provide some enlightenment.

My conclusion is that Mały made up these colors and markings, although I am quite prepared to learn that I am wrong.

Whether the markings are real or imaginary, you have produced a good-looking model of an A6M2 Zero, Zenon, especially after your re-coloring, and I have enjoyed seeing your images and speculating about the markings.

Don

[Zenon1947]

Coincidentally, while browsing my new history magazines, I've found the same photo of V-110 that can be found in Don's link.
Moreover, the Kanji on the fuselage, according to Technika Wojskowa Historia, Numer Specjalny 5/2012, is a part of "foundation inscription". Recently I didn't have enough time to read the whole article so I don't know if it's explained anywhere, what did that "foundation inscription" mean on Japanese aircraft, but f I find the answer, I'll leave an information here.

[Don Boose]

Zenon –

Thanks for these additional images. Those look like interesting and very relevant articles.

I am not familiar with the term "foundation inscription." I wonder if it refers to what are usually in English called "patriotic presentation numbers."

Many Japanese 1930s and WWII aircraft were purchased through subscriptions by towns, neighborhoods, businesses, schools, and other entities. Aircraft so acquired were given special numbers. In the IJN, these were called “Patriotic Presentation Numbers “ (報国号 or Hōkoku-gō). In the IJAAF, they were called “Patriotism Numbers” (愛国号 – Aikoku-gō).

Sometimes, the name of the organization that donated the airplane would appear underneath the Hōkoku/ Aikoku number.

It does not appear that the real V-110 carried a Hōkoku number, and the Kanji on the model does not conform to any Hōkoku inscription that I am familiar with.

Keep in mind that, while I have had an interest in Japanese history, language, and culture and specifically, Japanese military and naval aviation, for a long time, I am not a fluent Japanese speaker, nor am I a real expert, so I always stand ready to be corrected.

Don

[Don Boose]

The airplane in Image 4 from the magazine that you posted is V-187, an A6M3 (Zero Model 32) c/n 3028, Hōkoku Number 870 of the 3rd Squadron (Chūtai), Tainan Kōkūtai (Naval Air Group) based in Buna in August 1942. My source for this identification is Luca Ruffato and Michael J. Claringbould, Eagles of the Southern Sky: The Tainan Air Group in WWII, Vol. 1, New Guinea (Tainan Research & Publishing, 2012), p. 121.

The inscription beneath the Hōkoku number appears to be 洪源號, which baffles me. The individual characters may mean “river-source-number” and may be pronounced kōgenkō. That combination of Kanji does not show up in any of my hard copy or on-line dictionaries.

Don