Schnellboot S-204

After the Treaty of Versailles most of Germany's military production was severely curtailed. Small patrol craft were not. The S-boote trace their lineage back to a private motor yacht — a 22 ton dispacement 34 knot craft called Oheka II, which had been built in 1927 for wealthy financier and patron of the arts, Otto Kahn, by the German shipbuilding company Lürssen. Scale: 1:36
Size of Model: 1050mm x 145mm x 200mm
Material: FRP Hull, resin & metal parts
Drive System: 3 x motors, 3 x shaft & propellers
R/C system: ESC and servo installed. Radio and receiver not included This design was chosen because the theatre of operations of such boats was expected to be the North Sea, English Channel and the Western Approaches. The requirement for good performance in rough seas dictated the use of a round-bottomed displacement hull rather than a flat-bottomed planing hull that was more usual with small, high speed boats. Lürssen overcame many of the disadvantages of such a hull and, with the Oheka II, produced a craft that was fast, strong and seaworthy. This attracted the interest of the German Navy who, in 1929, ordered a similar boat but fitted with two torpedo tubes. This became the S-1 and was the basis for all subsequent S-boote.

S-boote were used in the English Channel to intercept shipping heading for the English ports in the south and east. As such they would be up against Royal Navy and Commonwealth contingents in Motor Gun Boats (MGBs) and Motor Torpedo Boats (MTBs) and Motor Launches and frigates and destroyers.Crews could earn an award particular to their work - denoted by a badge depicting an E-boat passing through a wreath. The criteria were good conduct, distinction in action, participating in at least twelve enemy actions. It was awarded for a particularly successful mission, displays of leadership or being killed in action. It could also be awarded under special circumstances such as when another decoration was not suitable.