Dragon Aircraft - Ma-1 1/48 He 162A-2 Salamander - D5576

The Heinkel He 162 Spatz — better known by its propaganda name "Salamander" or "Volksjäger" (People's Fighter) — was Nazi Germany's crash emergency jet fighter programme of 1944-45, designed and rushed into limited production in a matter of months using largely wood and non-strategic materials. The A-2 production variant carried a single BMW 003 turbojet mounted dorsally above the fuselage, and the few examples that reached front-line unit JG 1 in the closing weeks of the war were flown by pilots with minimal jet conversion training.

Dragon's 1/48 He 162A-2 reproduces the aircraft's compact, slab-sided fuselage and shoulder-mounted wings with crisp engraved detail, including a finely moulded BMW 003 engine and intake/exhaust assembly, a detailed cockpit tub, and clear canopy parts that display the type's simple, angular lines.

The kit is supplied with a decal sheet offering authentic late-war JG 1 markings, allowing builders to finish the model as one of the small number of Salamanders that actually reached operational squadrons before Germany's surrender.

A compelling subject for anyone building a late-war Luftwaffe collection, this kit tells the story of the world's first mass-produced jet fighter design rushed to war in desperation.