Airfix 1:72nd Battle of Britain 75th Anniversary Plastic Model Gift Set

The Battle of Britain is regarded by many to be one of the most pivotal events of the Second World War. The main battle took place from July to September 1940 and was the first major campaign to be fought entirely by airpower and was the largest and most sustained aerial bombing campaign up until that time. The 'few' of the RAF stood up to and fought off the might of the Luftwaffe, pitching their outnumbered Hurricanes and Spitfires into deadly combat with Messerschmitt 109s and hordes of Luftwaffe bombers, such as the Heinkel He 111. The Battle had three distinct phases. The first began with attacks on shipping convoys to try and draw the RAF into battle. In the second the Luftwaffe turned their attention to trying to cripple the southern airfields of the RAF by bombing and in this they nearly succeeded. Finally, in the third phase the head of the Luftwaffe Goering, under orders from Hitler, switched his focus to bombing Britain's cities thus allowing the RAF to regroup and regain its strength. By the late autumn of 1940, the RAF had regained air superiority over Southern England, the German losses having become unacceptable and Hitler was forced to cancel his plans to invade Britain in order to concentrate on the planned invasion of Russia. Set includes: - Supermarine Spitfire Mk.IA - Messerschmitt Bf 109E-3 - Hawker Hurricane Mk.I - Heinkel He 111 P-2 - Display stand.