Re: Herpa mysteries...
 

Completely agree! Very often i don't understand Herpa marketing policy and i would work for them to share my suggestions.

Re: Herpa mysteries...
 

Everything helps...;)

Re: Herpa mysteries...
 

A new mystery.
Herpa produces everything from Germany...ooops...almost everything.
Yes, we all know Herpa produces each airline and model about Germany. But, is it true? Unfortunately for me, a charter/leisure airlines lover, Herpa did not produce at least five German charter airlines. And this is a pity and a shame, because they were colorful and important for holiday market.
Let me start:


XL Airways Germany: German brand of UK XL Airways (previously Excel Airways), the same for XL Airways France. Then XL Airways Germany and France owned to a Icelandic Group. The fleet were formed by B737-800WL and some leasing A320.

https://cdn.jetphotos.com/full/5/25268_1532186100.jpg
https://worldairlinenews.files.wordp...-dub-pdlrw.jpg
https://www.planephotos.net/photos/4...800_D-AXLD.jpg
https://cdn.planespotters.net/43133/...35f556ab_o.jpg
https://cdn.planespotters.net/33227/...c0b0796b_o.jpg


Blue Wings: based at Dusseldorf Airport, charter airline flying A321, A320 and A330-200.
Started operations in 2002 and ceased them in 2012.
https://www.aero.de/content/pics/p_225.jpg
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...Nussbaumer.jpg
https://cdn.planespotters.net/01836/...e4f61556_o.jpg

Small Planet Germany: beautiful German subsidiary of Small Planet Lithuania. It started operations in 2016 and ceased them in 2018. Fleet of A320 and A321.
https://live.staticflickr.com/4894/4...573ea6f9_b.jpg
https://cdn.jetphotos.com/full/5/23823_1533824999.jpg


OLT Express Germany: subsidiary of Polish charter airline OLT Express, ceased operations in 2013.
10 Fokker 100 in fleet.

https://worldairlinenews.files.wordp...pg?w=625&h=416


Sundair: startedoperations in 2017 and yes, for me this airline is wonderful!


https://photos.smugmug.com/Airlines-...%2846%29-M.jpg
https://photos.smugmug.com/Airlines-...%2846%29-L.jpg




I don't remember how many times i asked Herpa to produce XL Airways Germany fleet, Blue Wings fleet, Small Planet fleets, just one time for OLT Express Fokker 100, many times for Sundair A320 (still in service).
The mystery is: for a manufacturer producing all the airlines of its country, Germany, why these five airlines have never been produced? I don't think there were license problems, because they were/are from Germany, so why i have to suffer so much for the missing of these WONDERFUL charter/leisure/holiday airlines???

Re: Herpa mysteries...
 

Ale, honestly....these airlines are or were peanuts in the German market. There are models which were far more common and which were from more important airlines from Germany and they were also not produced. Missing a bit common sense. I know you love each charter airline and would like every plane that ever flew.....

We havent seen for example Condor in the new livery, we havent seen Condor A310, A300 or any 737 or 727.

We havent seen Hapag A300 or A310 nor have ween seen 737 (apart from one) or 727.

We havent seen Eurowings A319, a real workhorse in German aviation.

Re: Herpa mysteries...
 

I second that.

Re: Herpa mysteries...
 

Talking abt NG only of course.

Re: Herpa mysteries...
 

Even Germanwings A320...
You're right my friend, even if i remember you Herpa produced Novair A321neo (and i am extremely happy, of course), an airline flying just two airplanes! But the mystery is: why almost everything from Germany and not everything? Is like Herpa is always missing something:
- a model of a fleet
- a detail on the fuselage
- an important airline
- a less important airline but useful to finish all the airlines of the manufacturer country
- less flaws
- a timetable on the production
- enough licenses
- etc. etc.

Re: Herpa mysteries...
 

Free Market, supply, demand and economical sense.
Not much more to add I am afraid.

Re: Herpa mysteries...
 

A dear friend wrote this beautiful phrase, regarding Herpa:
"the correct one looks wrong, and the wrong one seems somewhat accurate. Crazy..."
I think it is more than correct, it is Gospel!
In fact there is a real mystery regarding B787 landing gear: why the Herpa B787 with the RIGHT landing gear seems weird, seems sitting on the wheels, seems wrong while the Herpa B787 with the WRONG landing gear seems perfect, seems the same of the 1:1 airplane? WHY? A mystery!
I am talking of neos B787-9, in fact Herpa produced the model with a nose landing gear 5 mm long: this means 2,5 meters in the real scale, with the real airplane. But, in the real scale e with the real airplane, the nose landing gear is 2 meters long, there are 2 meters of space among the fuselage belly and the ground. 2 meters are 4 millimeters in 1:500 scale, and Herpa produced the B787 models with the RIGHT measure, 4 mm. But Herpa B787s with the 4 mm long nose landing gear are weird, strange, they look sitting on the wheels, they are ugly!
While with the nose landing gear 5 mm long (2,5 meters in the real scale, 50 cm longer than the right one) Herpa B787s seem more similar to the real ones. This is incredible, a real mystery, and i return to the great phrase of the start:
"the correct one looks wrong, and the wrong one seems somewhat accurate. Crazy..."

Here a comparison between Vietnam Airlines B787-10 and neos B787-9.
Vietnam Airlines B787-10 has the RIGHT size landing gear while the neos B787-9 has the WRONG size landing gear...Vietnam Airlines seems ugly while neos seems perfect.
Mah.
https://hosting.photobucket.com/imag...080&fit=bounds


https://hosting.photobucket.com/imag...080&fit=bounds


https://hosting.photobucket.com/imag...080&fit=bounds

Re: Herpa mysteries...
 

MLG is the problem!! Too short, I have the feeling.
And the way they glue the FLG is also important: there are differencies from model to model (same mould, same batch).
Unfortunately I think in this case I prefer the lower-but-levelled one, the NEOS is a bit too nose-up.

Hi to all.
There are two new mysteries catched by fellow collectors about Herpa production.

The first is the announce of Austrian Airlines Dash 8-400 OE-LGN for March-April 2022 news.
A collector noticed that this model, exactly the same model with the same registration, has been produced in 2018.
The mystery is: why to produce the same model four years later with the same livery and the same registration?
I wrote to Herpa and i hope to have an answer soon.



The second mystery is a question by a fellow collector about the Herpa announcement regarding the Boeing B747LCF Dreamlifter.
This Is Herpa announcement:
"The original mould for the Dreamlifter was badly damaged during transportation. A repair turned out to be uneconomical and Herpa decided to redesign the mould with some modifications. All existing orders are cancelled. The model will be reannounced once the new mould is finished".
Now, why to spend money and time to re-create a new mould for a model with just one livery and no airlines (B747LCF), when Herpa definitely abandoned moulds like A300 and L-1011 with a lot of potential airlines and liveries to produce?
I can understand a possible high demand for the Dreamlifter but the her life is really short and with no future...a future moulds like the A300 and the L-1011 might have had.
A real mystery.

Re: Herpa mysteries...
 

Mistery solved for the re-release of the Austrian Q400 OE-LGN:
"As for the Austrian Q400 the important detail was the SERVUS message (Greeting/Farewell) on the belly. OE-LGN was unfortunately the only Austrian Q400 to receive this title".