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Fly Fa330 #32009 The Fa330 Bachsteize (Wagtail) always interested me as a unique aircraft with an equally unique mission. This was towed aloft to about 400ft (120m) by the U-Boat so the pilot could see beyond the horizon view (25 nautical miles) and report any enemy activity. Stored in 2 water tight compartments by the conning tower a team of 3 can assemble and disassemble the Fa330 in about 20 minutes. U-boat commanders disliked the Fa330 as the prolonged time on surface make their boat venerable to an air strike or detection by enemy ships. The Fa330 was abandoned in the North Atlantic due to allied air superiority but continued use in the South Atlantic and Indian Ocean. The only recorded successful use of the Fa330 was 5 August 1943 by U-177 on the Indian Ocean off the coast east of Madagascar. Greek merchant ship Efthalia Mari was observed by U-177's Fa330. U-177 proceeded to intercept the Efthalia Mari and sink her with 2 torpedoes. Efthalia Mari lost 1 crew of 43. U-177 did not survive the war and was sunk 6 February 1944 in Atlantic west of Ascension Island by an American P4BY-1 Liberator. U-177 lost 50 crew of 65. Fly's 1:32 offering is a challenging build at best there was plenty of angst and head scratching moments. Almost 50 scratch built parts. This build also gave me an opportunity to practice rigging as a WNW bird will be landing on my bench soon.
