Italeri 1115 - 1/72 ME 321B-1 Gigant WWII  [IT-1115S]

Period: Second World War

Nation: Germany

Model Dim.: 39 cm

ME-321 B-1 Gigant Glider

This big transportation glider had been made under the guidelines for the German army at the beginning of World War II. In 1940, through the drafting of plans for an invasion of England, the need to quickly go considerable amounts of troops and gear emerged. This was maybe not achievable with all the vessels and standard Ju 52 transportation aircraft that have been in use at that time. In December 1940, after the failure of plan to invade England, Germany began its assault on Russia, and, again, found the requirement to rapidly move troops and equipment, due to the fantastic distances and insufficient suitable roads. The Me 321 entered into service in June 1941. Having its capacity to carry 130 equipped soldiers or an IV Panzer tank, it looked like the right solution the German basic staff. However, numerous problems immediately emerged. There have been no aircraft effective at towing this giant glider and the utilization of no under 3 twin-engine Bf 110s had been required for just one glider, which implied eliminating them from their place in the front line; because hefty fat, the Me 321 ended up being not able to repeat the landing procedure in case of an error, special gear was required to move it on a lawn and it also needed large areas for take-off and landing.