Tintin in the Syldavian - Bordurian Air War

[Macrossmartin]

"The personal aircraft of Lt. Tintin during his involvement in the Syldvian - Bordurian Air War of 1937. Sparked by the kidnapping of King Muskar XII by Bordurian-sponsored reactionaries, the war marked the blooding of several iconic aircraft of the Second World War, including the Supermarine Type 300 'Pelican' which became the land-based 'Spitfire' in RAF service.

Only 20 Pelkans were in service with the Royal Syldavian Air Corps at the outbreak of war, yet they succeeded in defending the Syldavian side of Lake Polishov from more numerous Bordurian Bo-109 and 110 fighters. At the climax of the fighting, Tintin and Eskadril 6 were instrumental in rescuing King Muskar, and securing a truce which lasted until Borduria joined the Axis powers in 1941. "


I can't draw flying saucers all day long... https://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=124474.0

...but I do have a love of machines that fly, and if they're a little fantastical, well, so much the better.

So, after stumbling on a fan-made map of Syldavia — the land that Hergé made famous in Tintin's adventure King Ottokar's Sceptre — I am revisiting an idea I had ages ago for a 'what if' air war between Syldavia and their bitter rival nation of Borduria. 

To start with, I liked the idea of setting the campaign around this 50+ km long lake which is split by the Syldavian / Bordurian frontier:



This is primarily because I rather like floatplanes, and have always wondered what would happen if the Schneider Trophy racers had been armed... 
I also have an idea for a storyline about something large and mysterious that lurks beneath the waters of Lake Polishov...

I have some 1/100th scale Axis and Allies Air Force miniatures currently doing nothing much. These are from the Battle of Britain starter sets, and consist of Spitfires, Hurricanes, 109's and 110's. They require a lot of correction to get them close to historically accurate, (see my old modelling blog for that story:) https://sites.google.com/site/martinsmodels/the-miniatures/battle-of-britain-1-100

— so I am thinking their inaccuracies could be explained away as quirks of local sub-types serving with the Syldavian and Bordurian services. (Saving me a lot of time and Tamiya putty.)

I'll need to sculpt floats for the Pelikans, and get them printed up. Not too hard to do.

We know from King Ottokar's Sceptre that the Bordurian's have Bf109's, although the exact model is impossible to pin down; The story is set before WW2, but the re-draw seen here dates from 1947:



I think just rounding the wingtips and replacing the flat-cone spinners of the A&A 109's will suffice for the Bordurian's prime fighter. Decals will need to be designed and printed, but I can take care of that. But should I make the 109's floatplanes as well?

Now I need to decide on aircraft for Haddock and the Thompson twins to fly! Any suggestions?

[Keith]

Bordurian's planes look like the Bf109A to me (would make some sense seeing as that model also flew in Spain).

[Macrossmartin]

Bordurian's planes look like the Bf109A to me (would make some sense seeing as that model also flew in Spain).

I'm not absolutely sure; from what I've read of the way Studio Hergé approached the redraws, they gathered a lot of reference images for cars, aircraft, etc. However, I don't think there was a concerted effort to portray any particular aircraft with 100% accuracy. This official, pre-built model from a few years ago almost suggests the 109 should be an 'F':



But of course, that wouldn't fit the timeline.

More significantly, I don't have any F's to convert (the A&A models are E's), so they're going to become Bordurian-specific 109's, assembled in the freshly rebuilt state munition factories outside of Szohôd. And the less said about the ammunition 'mishap' that cleared the way for that glorious rebuild, the better!

[Plynkes]

Now I need to decide on aircraft for Haddock and the Thompson twins to fly! Any suggestions?

The Thompsons would fly whatever the aerial equivalent of a Citroën 2CV is. 

Of course, Tintin had not met Haddock at this stage in his adventures, but don't let that stop you. I'm thinking something British (Georges Remi did refer to Haddock as being English on occasion), maybe another seaplane of some sort? An old rickety Sopwith Schneider or Sopwith Baby, maybe?

[Hammers]

The Thompsons would fly whatever the aerial equivalent of a Citroën 2CV is. 

Like the Boeing P-26 Peashooter.

[FramFramson]

Second and third image from the first post not showing up for me. Looks like you used the google search address rather than the actual source page address?

[Dr Mathias]

Neat thread, I've entertained making a Syldavian force of some sort in the past. I love Prisoner of Zenda. Imaginations have a great appeal to me for some reason.

[Doug ex-em4]

Second and third image from the first post not showing up for me. Looks like you used the google search address rather than the actual source page address?

Same here....

Doug

[Macrossmartin]

Take a 100 lines, Martin: "I must not trust GooglePhotos to display images properly." 

Photos should behave themselves now.

Speaking of photos, someone on another forum just reminded me of this delightful aircraft; the Dewoitine HD 780:



That is a rather pretty waterbird. 

And there is a D.520 available in the Axis and Allies 1/100 range...



... although this would involve sculpting a new wing as well as pontoons. Still, I think it would make a wonderful stable-mate for the Pelikan.

[leadboy]

If you want something cheep and cheerful and 1930s looking with a big radial engine (or a squadron or two) -

https://hereford1938avbcwtng.blogspot.com/2020/04/aircraft-reach-for-vbcw-sky.html

[Commander Roj]

To start with, I liked the idea of setting the campaign around this 50+ km long lake which is split by the Syldavian / Bordurian frontier:



Isn’t that lake full of sharks?

[Sir_Theo]

Amazing. King Ottakars Sceptre was my favourite Tintin book.

I can see the Thompson twins in some sort of two seater biplane.

[Plynkes]

I can see the Thompson twins in some sort of two seater biplane.

That's what Georges Remi thought, too...

[Blackwolf]

That looks like a Tiger Moth.
Great thread Of course Porco Rosso might be worth a look for inspiration 

[Etranger]

Amazing. King Ottakars Sceptre was my favourite Tintin book.

I can see the Thompson twins in some sort of two seater biplane.

How about a Breuget  XIX? Luis at Minarons was planning one in 15mm/1/100 IIRC. He has one in 1/144.