13th Field Hospital – Falaise, July 1944

Brainchild of Dave Revelia, this work kept me busy for about six months. The original project should have foreseen only the three foreground figures (nurse, combat medic and wounded POW), but one day Dave has scored a great shot, by winning the auction for that tent (a rare and remarkable Hasbro’s piece)… from that point on, everything has become biggest and hardest!

Gran Sasso raid – September 12, 1943

On 25 July 1943, a few weeks after the Allied invasion of Sicily and bombing of Rome, the Italian Grand Council of Fascism voted to depose Mussolini and replaced him with Marshal Pietro Badoglio. Mussolini was subsequently arrested on King Victor Emmanuel’s orders.

After his arrest, Mussolini was transported around Italy by his captors. Intercepting a coded Italian radio message, Otto Skorzeny used his own reconnaissance[citation needed] to determine that Mussolini was being imprisoned at Campo Imperatore Hotel, a ski resort at Campo Imperatore, an alpine meadow at the Gran Sasso massif, high in the Apennine Mountains. On 12 September 1943, Skorzeny joined the team—led by Major Harald Mors—to rescue Mussolini in a high-risk glider mission.
Mussolini leaving the Hotel

The operation on the ground at Campo Imperatore was led by Lieutenant Count Otto von Berlepsch, planned by Major Harald Mors and under orders from General Kurt Student, all Fallschirmjäger (German Air Force Paratroopers) officers. According to Otto Skorzeny’s Memoir, he commanded this mission and was on the ground while rescuing Mussolini.

The commandos crashed their nine DFS 230 gliders into the nearby mountains, then overwhelmed Mussolini’s guards without a single shot being fired. The carabinieri guarding Mussolini were ordered to not put up any resistance by an Italian general, Fernando Soleti, that the Germans had brought along on the raid. Skorzeny attacked the radio operator and his equipment, and formally greeted Mussolini with “Duce, the Führer has sent me to set you free!” to which Mussolini replied “I knew that my friend would not forsake me!” Mussolini was first flown from Campo Imperatore in a Luftwaffe Fieseler Fi 156C-3/Trop Storch STOL liaison aircraft, Werknummer (serial number) 1268, initially flown in by Captain Walter Gerlach, then taking off with Mussolini and Skorzeny (even though the weight of an extra passenger almost caused the tiny plane to crash) to the military airport of Pratica di Mare (near Rome) then embarked in an Heinkel He 111 on to Vienna, where Mussolini stayed overnight at the Hotel Imperial and was given a hero’s welcome. The Storch involved in rescuing Mussolini bore the radio code letters, or Stammkennzeichen, of “SJ + LL” in motion picture coverage of the rescue (font Wikipedia).

WWII German Officers Collection

Series limited to six figures, depicting officers of some the best known Elite Corps by German Army, during WWII.

“Climb to Shuri Castle” – Okinawa, June 1945

The Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, was fought on the Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa and was the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific War of World War II. The 82-day-long battle lasted from early April until mid-June 1945. After a long campaign of island hopping, the Allies were approaching Japan, and planned to use Okinawa, a large island only 340 mi (550 km) away from mainland Japan, as a base for air operations on the planned invasion of Japanese mainland (coded Operation Downfall). Four divisions of the U.S. 10th Army (the 7th, 27th, 77th, and 96th) and two Marine Divisions (the 1st and 6th) fought on the island while the 2nd Marine Division remained as an amphibious reserve and was never brought ashore. The invasion was supported by naval, amphibious, and tactical air forces.

The battle has been referred to as the “typhoon of steel” in English, and tetsu no ame (“rain of steel”) or tetsu no bōfū (“violent wind of steel”) in Japanese. The nicknames refer to the ferocity of the fighting, the intensity of kamikaze attacks from the Japanese defenders, and to the sheer numbers of Allied ships and armored vehicles that assaulted the island. The battle resulted in the highest number of casualties in the Pacific Theater during World War II. Japan lost over 100,000 soldiers, who were either killed, captured or committed suicide, and the Allies suffered more than 65,000 casualties of all kinds. Simultaneously, tens of thousands of local civilians were killed, wounded, or committed suicide. The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki caused Japan to surrender just weeks after the end of the fighting at Okinawa (font Wikipedia).

Created on the heels of  “The Pacific” (produced by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks for HBO), and more precisely at episode on the Okinawa’s  Battle; this figure was inspired by U.S. Marine Corporal Eugene “Sledgehammer” Sledge.

“Hey Jap, do you understand what I’m saying?” Roi-Namur (Marshall Islands), 4th Marine Division – February 1944

In January 1944 the 4th Marine Division sailed from San Diego for the Marshall Islands, Roi-Namur in the Kwajalein Atoll. Operation “Flintlock” was the first objective for the Division.  Six hours after landing on 1 February 1944 Roi Island was declared secured, and Namur Island was secured just 24 hours and 15 minutes after the first troops landed.

The 4th Marine Division set three new records on its first operation: it became the first Division to go directly into combat from the States; It was the first to capture Japanese mandated territory in the Pacific; and it secured its objective in a shorter time than any other important operation since the attack on Pearl Harbor (font www.semper-fi.us)

Body: modeled with Fimo on DML base
HS: by Tony Barton, modified and repainted
Tattoos: drawn with pencil, directly on skin
Campaign Hat: by “Stevo Toys”, modified (repainted in Olive Drab, rebuilt chin strap and added USMC crest by Tony Barton)
Leggings: by Be-Com Shop
Boots: Soldier Story
USMC Utility Uniform: DML, modified
Helmet: DID, modified (redone chin strap and hooks)
M1 Garand: Soldier Story, repainted with oils and enamels
Palm leaves: drawn on yellow paper and painted with airbrush

On display at the Suncoast Center For Fine Scale Modeling, Tampa (FLA)

“SCHEISSEEEEEE!”

No historical reference this time, but just fun. A technical virtuosity for showing what you can pull up by the Sixth!

On display at the Suncoast Center For Fine Scale Modeling, Tampa (FLA)

“The Island Owners “- Peleliu, november 27, 1944

“The bitterest battle of the war for the Marines”.
The Battle of Peleliu, codenamed Operation Stalemate II, was fought from September–November 1944 on the island of Peleliu, present-day Palau. U.S. Marines of the First Marine Division and later soldiers of the U.S. Army’s 81st Infantry Division, fought to capture an airstrip on the small coral island. This battle was part of a larger offensive campaign known as Operation Forager which ran from June 1944 to November 1944 in the Pacific Theater of Operations.
Major General William Rupertus, USMC—commander of 1st Marine Division—predicted the island would be secured within four days. However, due to Japan’s well-crafted fortifications and stiff resistance, the battle lasted over two months. In the United States, it was a controversial battle because of the island’s questionable strategic value and the high casualty rate, which was the highest for U.S. military personnel of any battle in the Pacific War (font Wikipedia).

Point Du Hoc, D-Day June 6th, 1944

Pointe du Hoc is a clifftop location on the coast of Normandy in northern France. It is situated between Utah Beach to the west and Omaha Beach to the east, and stands on 100 ft (30 m) tall cliffs overlooking the sea. Marking the Western end of the Omaha beach sector, it was a point of attack by the United States Army Ranger Assault Group during D-Day.

Work commissioned by the Suncoast Center for Fine Scale Modeling of Tampa (Fla)
Each single component of the equipments, was appropriately improved (or rebuilt), repainted and aged.

FJ Flamethrower – 1st Fallschirmjäger division, Montecassino (Italy), 1944

In the Battle of Monte Cassino, 1st Fallschirmjäger division held the ground near the Monastery of Monte Cassino. After the monastery had been bombed by the Allies, the Germans moved into protected positions among the bricks and cellars. The Fallschirmjäger held out for months against repeated assaults and heavy bombardment. Here they gained the nickname “Green Devils” from the Allied forces for their distinctive jackets and their tenacious defence. Inflicting huge losses on the Allied forces, they ultimately retreated from their positions only to avoid being outflanked (font Wikipedia).

The creation of this figure dates back to 2006. In 2021 it was taken up by Jeffshìu’s Miniatures which made a 120mm figure from it.

Captain John H. Miller – 2nd Ranger Battalion, C Company – D-Day, June 6th, 1944 (from “SPR”)

Saving Private Ryan

 is a 1998 American epic war film set during the invasion of Normandy in World War II.

It was directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Robert Rodat. Noted for its graphic and realistic portrayal of war, the film is especially notable for the intensity of its opening 27 minutes, which depicts the Omaha Beach assault of June 6, 1944. The film follows United States Army Rangers Captain John H. Miller (Tom Hanks) and his squad (Tom Sizemore, Edward Burns, Barry Pepper, Vin Diesel, Giovanni Ribisi, Adam Goldberg and Jeremy Davies) as they search for a paratrooper, Private First Class James Francis Ryan (Matt Damon), who is the last-surviving brother of four servicemen (Font Wikipedia).