This is a 1:144 scale model of a Martinsyde G.100 "Elephant" single-seat scout with a camera mounted on the fuselage side. A G.102 with bombs is also available. Since many painters choose their own mounting system, no peg is included on the plane. Pegs can be purchased separately in the Accessories section of this catalog.

In the early days, the term "Scout" referred to a plane that could do both reconnaissance and fighting. Martinsyde desired to make a scout that could do much longer-range scouting than the typical plane. To carry the extra petrol, the plane had to be larger than the typical single-seat scout, and that is what led to the Martinsyde G.100s nickname, the "Elephant". Due to its size, it was never as maneuverable as smaller scouts, but as well as long-range patrol, it could sacrifice some of its large fuel weight to carry bombs, so it also saw use as a light bomber.

Martinsyde desired to make a new fighter/scout to replace the venerable Martinsyde S.1, and the Martinsyde G.100 was the result. It mounted a 120hp Beardmore engine and two Lewis guns -- one firing forward above the propeller from the top wing, a second behind the cockpit on the left for firing rearward. The G.100 was scattered to various units in ones and twos except for No.27 Squadron. It fared all right as an escort, but it wasn't well-suited for dogfights. Its good lifting capacity made it into a fair light bomber, though, and it was used in this capacity in the summer-autumn of 1916 until the arrival of the Airco D.H.4. Its greatest limitation was the view from the cockpit, which was quite restricted.

The G.100 served on the Western Front with six squadrons, with home defense, in Mesopotamia, and in Palestine, and as a trainer. The less-competitive fronts allowed the Elephant a longer lifetime, still serving missions at the Armistice -- an impressive record for an almost-forgotten machine.

For more data and gaming info on this plane, see https://linen.miraheze.org/wiki/Martinsyde_G.100.