VP
CANADA 1/72-SCALE VACUFORM BERIEV KOR-1 Be-2 1937 SOVIET NAVY CATAPULT SEAPLANE
FLOAT
OPEN BOX UNBUILT MODEL KIT – INVENTORIED 100%
COMPLETE.
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Additional Information from Internet Encyclopedia
The Beriev Be-2 (originally designated KOR-1) was
a two-seat reconnaissance seaplane built for the Soviet Navy shortly before
World War II. It was designed to replace the Navy's obsolete license-produced
Heinkel He 55 aircraft operating from warships and shore bases.
Design and development
The Be-2 was an all-metal biplane floatplane, with
two open cockpits in tandem for the pilot and observer. The wings were braced,
but designed to be folded back for storage on a warship. The float arrangement
consisted of a large central float, with two smaller floats on the wings. The
Be-2 was powered by a Shvetsov M-25 radial 9-cylinder air-cooled engine (a copy
of the American Wright R-1820) with a rating of 700 hp (520 kW).
From the outset, Be-2 design exhibited serious
handling difficulties and maintenance problems. However, due to the lack of a
suitable alternative, the design was placed into production. A total of around
12 serial aircraft were produced. By June 1941, six KOR-1 were in the Baltic,
five were in the Black Sea Fleet Air Force.
Operational history
As problems with stability on the water while
taxiing, and with maintenance of the engine were never really resolved, that in
practice, the Be-2 was restricted to training and secondary roles, and was more
often deployed from land than from warships as originally planned. In addition,
delays with updating the Navy's cruisers meant that suitable catapults were not
installed until about 1939.
With the outbreak of war with Germany, all
attempts to deploy the troublesome aircraft from ships were finally abandoned.
During the early years of the war, they served as shore-based reconnaissance
and search/rescue aircraft on the Baltic, and with their float undercarriage
replaced by wheels, some were pressed into service as strike aircraft during
the Battle of Sevastopol. They were withdrawn from service in 1942.
