¹⁄350

Latest news in from across the mighty Pacific Ocean - the hard working and dedicated folks at Trumpeter have now announced the release of their 1/350th German Cruiser Admiral Hipper 1941.

This kitset is to contain 418 parts on 12 sprues together with photoetch.

As is usual with most Trumpeter releases the kit will also include the upper hull, lower hull, waterline plate, & stand plus aeroplanes.

The designated kit reference is Kit no. 05317.

The expected release date and the suggested retail price at this stage are not known.

We will of course update you on this kitset as and when we have more detail.

Ships History

The German cruiser Admiral Hipper was the lead ship of the Admiral Hipper–class heavy cruisers which served with the Kriegsmarine of Germany during WW2.

The ship was named after Admiral Franz von Hipper, commander of the German battlecruiser squadron during the Battle of Jutland in 1916 and later commander-in-chief of the German High Seas Fleet. Admiral Hipper was the first of five ships of her class. Two others, Blücher and Prinz Eugen, were completed and served with the Kriegsmarine in the Second World War; a fourth, Lützow, was sold to the Soviet Union in 1939 before completion; and a fifth, Seydlitz, was to be converted into an aircraft carrier but was never completed.

Admiral Hipper took part in the German invasion of Norway (Operation Weserübung). On 8 April 1940 she encountered the British destroyer HMS Glowworm north-west of Trondheim (Norway's third largest city, roughly half way up Norway's west coast). After exchanges of fire and despite fatal damage, Glowworm turned to ram Admiral Hipper, causing damage to her before sinking.

On 9 April 1940, she passed the Norwegian coastal forts in the Trondheimsfjord, being fired at ineffectively, and entered Trondheim's harbour. Troops landed from Admiral Hipper occupied the city in the early hours, flying the Nazi flag on the city's old Kristiansten fortress and other municipal buildings before most of the inhabitants were even awake.

After repairs to minor damage, Admiral Hipper operated with the battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau off Norway to disrupt British supply routes. By October, 1940, Admiral Hipper needed serious overhauls to her machinery and returned to Kiel. Despite this work, two attempts to break out to the Atlantic were abandoned due to machinery breakdown and fires. Repairs were made at Kiel and Hamburg, delaying active service until December.

At last, Admiral Hipper broke out undetected into the Atlantic and operated as a merchant raider, based at Brest, France.

The first attack, on troop convoy WS-5A, took place in December 1940. Although one of the escorting British cruisers, HMS Berwick, was heavily damaged, the impact on the convoy was limited to damage to two merchantman. Engine problems and low fuel stores obliged Admiral Hipper to return to Brest. En route, she encountered and sank the freighter Jumna. Repairs took about a month to complete.

Admiral Hipper sailed on her second Atlantic cruise on 1 February 1941. On 12 February, she intercepted the unescorted convoy SLS-64. Seven ships out of 19 were sunk, but the convoy scattered and poor weather aided their escape. Short of 203 mm ammunition, Admiral Hipper returned to Brest on 14 February 1941.

The cruiser returned to Kiel via the Denmark Strait, arriving on 28 February 1941. Repairs were carried out and modifications made to increase fuel storage and hence her cruising range.

From March 1942, Admiral Hipper was based in Norway for operations against Arctic convoys and in preparation against an anticipated British action against Norway. On New Year's Eve 1942, she took part in the failed German attack on convoy JW-51B; where she sank the minesweeper HMS Bramble and the destroyer HMS Achates. Despite its strength, the German attack was repelled and Admiral Hipper was damaged. She returned to Wilhelmshaven, where she was decommissioned and moved to Gotenhafen.

Due to Hitler's disillusionment with the Kriegsmarine surface fleet, Admiral Hipper was not ready to re-enter service until January 1945, when she was used, partly repaired, to evacuate refugees and wounded troops from the Eastern Front.

Admiral Hipper was scuttled in dock at Kiel Deutsche Werke yards on 2 May 1945. Raised and moved to Heikendorfer Bay in 1946, she was broken up there between 1948 and 1949.

Box art and CAD Images courtesy of Trumpeter.
Wartime image and history courtesy of Wikipedia.