The Rat Posted January 26, 2023 Share Posted January 26, 2023 If Operation Green had been carried out… https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Green_(Ireland) Operation Green, the Nazi invasion of Ireland in 1941, was a tactical and strategic failure, despite British intelligence initially believing that the plan was simply a bit of carefully crafted misinformation. General of the Artillery Leonhard Kaupisch had been placed in charge of the operation, and decided upon two things; his retirement, and a desire to go out with an impressive military victory to secure his place in the history books. His ego was his undoing. A poorly planned and terribly executed invasion was shredded before even half the assembled troops, making a mad dash across England in Ju-52 transports, got to the Irish Sea. Irish resistance was much stronger than the Germans had anticipated, and those who did make it were quickly rounded up, aided by the fact that the decimation of the transports so shocked the Nazi command that no more were committed to resupply, and the invasion force was essentially abandoned. The effect on the relationship between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland was immediate. Despite their success in repelling the invaders, Ireland realised, as Britain had before, that the rise of air power seriously impacted the previous safety of geographic isolation. A closer alliance with their neighbour was logical, and led to the formation of the British Isles Mutual Defence Agreement. Post-war Ireland was now afforded unfettered access to modern British and NATO equipment, and a principal task was defending the western flank. This obviously placed a stress on maritime operations, and Ireland was sometimes called the World’s Largest Aircraft Carrier. The Gloster Javelin was not considered a great success in the fighter role, being large, heavy, and encumbered with a thick wing that compromised speed. But various low-level operations supporting ground troops in Malaya had shown it to be effective at lower altitude, and it was converted to an anti-shipping aircraft, and missiles were developed to give it a powerful punch. Extensive modifications to the Red Angel rocket, which had almost been abandoned, yielded an effective weapon. Stub wings were added to allow for greater range by using lift instead of just brute force. A small empennage arrangement, with the vertical stabiliser on the underside, gave more control, and a larger warhead increased its capability to successfully engage the new Soviet Sverdlov class cruisers. A simple and well proven paint scheme of grey over white was used for the duration of its service. In-flight refuelling was an option, but it is not known if the infamously large probe was ever fitted. The model This is the Novo article, from the Frog molds. Rather heavy plastic, but the wheels seem to be holding up. Fit was generally good, although my (lack of) skills makes it seem rougher than it actually is. The cockpit could be easily improved by someone who enjoys ‘super detailing’, but I left it with simple painted seat belts and ejection seat handles made from wire. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bdt13 Posted October 21, 2023 Share Posted October 21, 2023 I know I'm very late to this party, but that's a cool story, and a neat model to go with it! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
The Rat Posted October 21, 2023 Author Share Posted October 21, 2023 5 hours ago, bdt13 said: I know I'm very late to this party, but that's a cool story, and a neat model to go with it! Thanks! Writing the back story is often as much fun as doing the actual model. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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