CASA C-41A "US Transport Plane"

In the late 1960s, the Spanish Air Force (Ejército del Aire) was looking for a new type of transport aircraft to replace obsolete types such as the three-engined Ju 52, which had been in service since the 1930s.
Thus, specifications were drawn up for the new transport and multi-role aircraft.
To meet the needs of the Luftwaffe, the Spanish company CASA (Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA) proposed a twin-engine, turboprop-powered, high-wing cargo aircraft without retractable landing gear with STOL capabilities.
The aircraft, of all-metal construction, had the tail relatively high behind the sloping rear fuselage section with a hinged tailgate that allowed either light military vehicles to be carried on board, large cargo to be loaded or paratroopers to be dropped from the aircraft.
Known as the CASA C-212 Aviocar, the project was eventually accepted and two prototypes took off for the first time in 1971.
The Spanish military evaluated the C-212's suitability by fielding a small pre-production run of eight aircraft.
The type was given the military designation T.12.
Due to numerous orders from almost all parts of the world, large-scale production was started and the type was also built under licence in Indonesia.
The original C-212-100 was equipped with TPE331-5-251C engines, the subsequent versions were the C-212-200 with more powerful TPE331-10-501C engines and the C-212-300 with a longer nose, winglets and even more powerful TPE331-10R-513C engines as well as other propellers.
Since 1984, the C-212-400 has been produced with TPE331-12JR-701C engines, upgraded avionics systems and increased payload.

The large number of customers and the diversity of their requirements were the reason why so many versions have been produced to date. These differ not only in the engines described above, but also in the many different designs of the fuselage side panels and entrance doors.
The Ejército del Aire alone used several other C-212 versions, from the VIP transport C-212 AV/T.12C to maritime patrol aircraft with large radomes and/or sensors in the forward fuselage section and on the tail (T.12D), in addition to the pre-production T-12B, which was later converted for photo reconnaissance and is known as the TR-12A.
The C-212 has been in service all over the world and on all continents, and the number of civilian users is considerable.
In North America, the C-212 has been used by the United States military (type C-41), and in Central and South America by the air forces of Mexico, Panama, Chile, Ecuador, Colombia and Argentina.
In Europe, the Casa flies with the air forces of Sweden, Spain, Portugal, France and Malta.
In Africa, the Casa can be seen from the far north to the southernmost areas; users have been or are, for example, Chad, South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe and others.
Down Under, the Australian Army uses its C-212 in training the Red Beret Parachute Display Team, and the Australian Department of the Environment uses its C-212 as part of the Australian Antarctic Division over Antarctica.
In Asia, the type is of course operated by Indonesia, but Thailand, Vietnam or the Philippines are also among the user nations.

Plastic model kit

scale 1:72

unbuilt / unpainted