Dragon Models 1/350 1062 Scharnhorst German WW2 Battlecruiser plastic Kit

This time it’s launching an equally fabulous kit showing how the Scharnhorst looked in 1940. In 1940 she was involved in the invasion of Norway, during which she sank the British carrier HMS Glorious. The size, accuracy, ease of assembly and inclusion of bonus parts have all contributed to the roaring success of Dragon’s 1/350 scale kits of the Scharnhorst. Now the warship has been given an overhaul to backdate her to the correct configuration for the 1940 time period.
Scharnhorst was a famous German World War II battlecruiser, the first of her classbuilt by the German Kriegsmarine. 'Lucky' Scharnhorst, as she was known in Germany, was a focus for national pride ... she had been described as one of the most beautiful warships ever built. The 31,500 t (31,000 long tons) ship was named after the Prussian general and army reformer Gerhard von Scharnhorst and to commemorate the World War I armored cruiser SMS Scharnhorst that was sunk in the Battle at the Falkland Islands in December 1914. Scharnhorst often sailed into battle accompanied by her sister ship, Gneisenau. She was sunk after being engaged by Allied forces at the Battle of North Cape in December 1943. See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_battleship_Scharnhorst For the History of the Scharnhorst The ship was built at Wilhelmshaven, Germany, launched on 3 October 1936, and commissioned on 7 January 1939. The first commander was Otto Ciliax (until 23 September 1939). After initial service, she was modified in mid-1939, with a new mainmast located further aft and her straight bow replaced by an "Atlantic bow" to improve her seaworthiness. However, her relatively low freeboard ensured that she was always "wet" in heavy seas. The gunnery report after the engagement with the British battlecruiser HMS Renown reports serious flooding in the "A" turret that severely reduced its effectiveness. Her armor was equal to that of a battleship and if it had not been for her relatively small-caliber guns she would have been classified as a battleship by the British. The German navy always classified Scharnhorst and Gneisenau as Schlachtschiffe (battleships). These two ships considered handsome and fast, with a top speed of 31.5 kn (58.3 km/h; 36.2 mph), were invariably mentioned at the same time, often fondly being referred to as "the ugly sisters because they prowled together and wrought havoc on British shipping. Scharnhorst's nine 28 cm (11 in, in fact, 28.3 cm (11.1 in), main guns, though possessing long range and quite good armor-penetration power because of their high muzzle velocity, were no match for the larger caliber guns of most of the battleships of her day, particularly with the flooding and technical problems that were experienced. The choice of armament was a result of their hasty commissioning. If a later proposal to upgrade the main armament to six 38 cm (15 in) guns in three twin turrets had been implemented, Scharnhorst might have been a very formidable opponent, faster than any British capital ship and nearly as well armored. But due to priorities and constraints imposed by World War II and later the war situation, she retained her 28 cm (11 in) guns throughout her career. Both Scharnhorst and her sister were designed for an extended range to allow for commerce raiding. See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_battleship_Scharnhorst