As the second piece in my “Seasons of War” series, this diorama is a scene of a German anti-aircraft unit stationed in a village within Normandy, in northern France, during the Summer of 1944. The team is waiting to shoot down incoming allied bombing sorties coming across the English Channel.
The village has long been abandoned, after several allied sorties had targeted the village as a German hideout in 1942. The Germans returned to the village by 1944, shortly before D-Day (6th of June, 1944). The team was tasked to intercept incoming planes on their way to attack the towns of Caen, Juvisy-sur-Orge, Lisieux, Noisy-le-Sec, Orléans, Paris, Rouen, Sartrouville, and Vire.
Featured in the diorama are:
- An Sd.Kfz.251/20 Ausf.D Schützenpanzerwagen “Uhu” (named after the Eurasian Eagle Owl / Bubo bubo) medium armored halftrack with 60 cm infrared searchlight
- An Sd.Kfz.250/9 leichter Schützenpanzerwagen armored light halftrack with a 20mm KwK 38 (Kampfwagenkanone) autocannon and 8mm MG34 (maschinengewehr) machine gun
- A damaged Krupp L2H43 Protze “Boxer” 1 ton 6X4 KFZ.69 Towing Truck
- A 20mm Flakvierling 38 MITSd.Ah.52 anti-aircraft gun, with the SDAH 52 (short for Starrdeichselanhänger / semi-mounted trailer) carrier
Other equipment in the diorama are:
- A Feldküche (Field Kitchen) by Gebrüder Roeder
- A Das Truppenfahrrad (troop bicycle)
The German troops are armed with the following weapons:
- 8mm Mauser Karabiner 98 kurz Rifle
- 9mm MP40 (maschinenpistole) submachine
- 8mm MG34 (maschinengewehr) Machine Gun
- 8mm MG40 (maschinengewehr) Machine Gun
Note:
For most of the German war machines, I use Tamiya scale models with the exception of the AFV Club’s Uhu halftrack. For the German soldiers, I used both Tamiya and 3D printed models.
Disclaimer:
This diorama is not supposed to be 100% historically accurate; as some vehicles show markings of the 24th Panzer Division, which did not serve in France during that period. This is just a hypothetical setting that was limited to the materials and decals available.
