1/400 ORP Burza (Mirage)
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by Michal Lason |
1/400 ORP Burza (Mirage)
The Polish destroyer ORP (Okr?t Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej - Ship of the Republic of Poland) Burza (Storm) built in France from 1927 to 1932 alongwith her sistership ORP Wicher (Whirlwind) were the first modern ships of the Polish Navy (Marynarka Wojenna). They were slightly modified French Bourrasque class ships and inspite of some design flaws, constituted the pride of the Polish Navy. Just before the outbreak of WWII Burza and the two latest Polish destroyers, ORP Grom (Thunder) and ORP B?yskawica (Lightning) were sent to Britain, as, facing the might of the Kriegsmarine, their fate in the confined spaces of the Baltic Sea was sealed. Once in Britain, the Polish ships participated in all the campaigns. ORP Grom was lost during the Norwegian campaign but Burza and B?yskawica survived the war and returned to Poland.My model represents the ORP Burza in 1942 in her beautiful Western Approaches blue and white livery. The ORP Burza participated in the Battle of Atlantic as an escort destroyer and sunk U 606 together with American sloop USS Campbell.
After the war the ORP Burza was modernised and re-classified as an anti-aircraft defence ship. From 1960 she served as the museum ship in Gdynia. Then, she was replaced in this function by the magnificent ORP B?yskawica, and finally she was scrapped in 1977. The Polish shiplovers still mourn this beautiful destroyer. My model is made as per the 1/400 scale from the kit by the Polish company Mirage. It’s a very well made kit and with the addition of the Eduard PE elements, the final product is very satisfying.
