Kaltes Fleisch

 

The first illustration for The Larks series is complete. It's the BE2c of which Andy finds himself the reluctant pilot, while Colin soars ahead in the Bristol Scout. The BE2 was a lacklustre performer, too slow and stable to be anything other than a liability in a dogfight. The German pilots called it Kaltes Fleisch - cold meat - testifying to its chances against the agile Fokker Eindecker.

Producing these images is something of a labour of love. I'm becoming more and more obsessed with detail. The gun for this aircraft, for example, took around five hours on its own. The enlarged view below will give you an idea why it took so long. That's not a photograph!

Maybe I should do a series on Guns of the Great War?