Ar 234 R short range high altitude reconnaissance plane, Resin Conversion Kit 1/48 scale

Facts on the

There is less information on the Arado Ar 234 R, which can be taken as secured. While investigating on it only a few facts could be discovered and are collected here.

One source that can be seen as secure is a book within the edition “Luftfahrtdokumente” which was released in 1976 named “ARADO 234, Der erste Strahlbomber der Welt” by Karl R. Pawlas. Taken from this book on the Ar 234 are the data sheets below. Unfortunatly here is also less to find on if the Ar 234R ever was built. The technical drawing released in the "Flugzeug Profile" No. 33 shows that from the technical point of view the Ar 234R was developed very far at the time.
The 48 Special Models conversion kit was maunfactured from this drawing.

Ar 234 R short range high altitude reconnaissance plane

The Ar 234R would consist of a regular Ar 234 frame, without TL-engines, that had two so called “ovens”(rocketengines) mounted in the rear section. Therefore a cowling would have been installed in the rear fuselage underneath the rudder. Like to be seen in the sketch below two propellant tanks would been installed behind the pilots seat and another right behind the wings. The fueltank behind the pilot contained “C-Stoff” and two other ones “T-Stoff” (rocketfuel). By help of the outboard, underneath a cover, installed fuelpipes the components should have been transported to a triple turbopump, which forwarded it to the rocket engines in the rear.
The upper rocket engine called “Steigofen” delivered the power for climbing to altitude and was used therefore only. The lower rocket engine had less power and was used as a “Marschofen” to drive the plane during flight.

Contradictory are the sketches and the text under point 4. Here the C-series cabine is discribed as the one to be used with the plane, while all drawings show a B-series cabine! The armour behind the pilots seat protected the pilot probably more of the propellant than of gunfire. A problem known well from the Me 163.

From: "ARADO 234, Der erste Srahlbomber der Welt, LD21"

Drawing from: "Flugzeug Profile" Nr.33

How detailed the project was planned shows the second data sheet from 20.04.1944.
Here the whole mission is explained in detail. To save propellant und expend the range the Ar 234R would have been towed by a He 177 in "Mistelschlepp" to an altitude of 8000 m. Startingpoint was Paris. Shortly before Calais the plane was released. Now it would climb over the Canal to an altitude of 17 km and a speed of 814 km/h, been driven by the „Steigofen“ before it went to marching flight over Dover with a speed of 915 km/h. During that period it did its reconnaissance job by use of two RB-cameras in an altitude and speed inaccessible for any fighter plane of that time. After a 344 km flight the Ar 234R turned around over London with a speed of 870 km/h. Reaching Dover again the propellant would have been almost used up and the descent in a glide to the home airfield in Paris followed. Here is the weakness in the mission! The glide path is more than 250 km long. 200 km of it through airspace accessible by hostile fighter planes. A quite dangerous trip for a less or none armed, unpowered plane and only feasible while air sovereignty is guaranteed. Something which couldn’t be talked of in 1944.
At the end of the page it is pointed out that by use of so called “Sackbehältern” (inflatable fueltanks) for storeing the propellant (instead of heavy aluminum tanks) an increase of range about 30 km could be reached.

From: "ARADO 234, Der erste Srahlbomber der Welt, LD21"

The basic kit is the Hasegawa Ar 234 B-2 kit. It was built with the RB-cameras but without the TL-engines. Because the information on the to be used cockpit are contradictory the B-cabin was used (the c-cabin also can be used too). The plane was built apart from that by use of the assembly instruction. The gaps underneath the wing, where the engines rest, are filled with a piece of styrene sheet and sanded over. The engine cover on the top of the wing was leveled by sanding.
After finishing the fuselage assembly the cover part is fixed on the lower side. After that the edges are matched by sanding. The part needs to be positioned so the grooves match with the ones on the fuselage.
The rocket engine in the rear can be fitted on in two different ways. By sanding it rounded, matching to the fuselage ( takes time) or leveling it and the section of the fuselage it is fitted to (this is faster). The parts rudder extension needs to align with the groove of the rudder. Filling and sanding the gaps follows as usual.

Painting and Markings

The colouring of the aircraft as well as the markings are fictitious. It can be assumed, that a current camouflage scheme as it was used in late war, would have been used on the Ar 234R.
As a high altitude reconnaissance plane the Ar 234R would have had a low visibelty colour scheme in light sky colours, like light blue or light grey. Also a three colour camouflage scheme is possible, like it was used on some FW 190 in shades of grey or the standard black green/ dark green/ light blue splinter scheme. The insignia used would be the late war crosses in low visiblety design in white and black (only lower Wing).

The pictures shown here may be helpful im making the model.
They show the positions of some parts and important detail which can be hardly disribed.


The conversion kit contains all necessary parts.	The engine part needs to be seperated along the groove of the surplus and sanded to fit.

The lower side of the Ar234R, good to be seen the conversion in the rear and the lower fuselage. The landinggear is put in place after assembly of the cover part!	The cover part covering the fuelpipes on the lower fuselage. The gapin the lower wings are filled with 1mm styrene sheet.

The rocket engine in the rear.	The cockpit was fitted with the right wiring. The windowplanes were covered inside and outside with scotch tape and cut out carefully. Then the cocpit was painted from the inside.

The instrument panel is a bit flat, so it was detailed with the instruments backs and the wiring.	The wiring is made from single copperwires cemented into the back of the instruments and painted yellow.

The instruments are made from surplus parts that can be found on several kit parts. This round parts fit exactly and need only to be glued to the back of the panel! By hand 0.3mm holes ar drilled to them afterwards.	The air hoses made from 0.5mm wird fited to handdrilled holes. The hose can be found on the original wheels and goes through the hollow axis and up the landinggear leg (see pictures of 234 B-2).

Model built and photographed by:
Thorsten Schrecke


The final Ar 234R model. The colours are a lightned up light blue (Humbrol 122) on the lower side and a camouflage pattern in RLM 76 and the darker RLM 02.	From a birds eyeview the effect of the camouflage can be seen quite good.

The tailsection of the rocket engine in detail. The insignia come with the hasegawa kit except for swatikas and extra markings. As crosses for the lower wing single coloures, black low visiblety makings were used (like the white ones).	The rearview shows the change clearly. The production figure on the rudder is made up from two different decals and fictitious of course.

The rocket engines are different in diameter and power.	They have been drilled up with a conical router bit.

In opposite to the regular Ar234s the wire antenna ends right behind the RB-camera section and has no rig!	To make the decals almost invisible they have been spraypainted with clear varnish several times and wet sanded with 800 grid sandpaper everytime!

The cockpit canopy after sanding and polishing down the unnecessary fin. After hours of polishing it was spraypainted with acrylic clear laquer and became even more transparent and correct!	View from a crewmans point of view. Good to be seen the position of the fairing underneath the fuselage.

Cockpitview from below. Good to be seen the wiring of the instrumentpanel. Without it the cockpit looks almost naked. The wireties are made from Special Wrap.	Wheel detail. The hose goes through the hollow axis up the landingear leg. For tieing it to the leg stips of Special Wrap were used.

Not much left to be seen of the RB-cameras. But we know they are beautiful detailed. Right of it the end of the fairing is visible.	Here the position of the rocket engine part is clearly visible. The dome is a skid, protecting the engine while landing.

The fairing below the fuselage. Its position needs to fit the grooves of the landingear flaps.	The position of the engine section must align with the rudder.

This kit is a model following historic documentations.
The markings are equivalent to the markins of its time.
They do not represent a political oppinion of the modelmaker!