Dutch 103rd Reconnaissance Battalion

Hello 2024 - a year I've decided that I will attempt to have a focus, and that focus will be Americans!  I have 3 US WW2 armies that need to be completed (and started!) and various USAEUR forces and a USMC force for the Cold War that need to be completed.

At the same time, I'm also trying to complete some Cold War Recce units for my (completely in my head at the moment) new Cold War game.

So what better way to start 2024, than with a Dutch force!  It all makes perfect sense to me!

So this is both a new project and more importantly, a completed project.  It's a full strength a platoon from the Dutch 103rd Reconnaissance Battalion based at Seedorf in West Germany circa 1985.  I think it has a great mix of vehicles - including a couple (the standard M113 and the M106) that you don't really find much in the Royal Dutch Army.

Here's all the vehicles that make up the unit.

The unit consists of the Platoon Commander in his M113 C&V command and reconnaissance vehicle, armed with a 25mm autocannon (centre front), a reconnaissance group (centre back), a tank group (obvious), a rifle group (in the M113) and a mortar group (in the M109).

Here's a close-up of the Commander in his M113 C&V


The reconnaissance group is made up of 4 x M113 C&V split into 2 teams, each with 2 M113 C&V.


Here's some close-ups of the various M113 C&V's that make up the two reconnaissance teams. Team leaders are shown in the the turret hatch.





All the M113 C&Vs are 3D prints. The Platoon Commanders vehicle has been further modified by drilling out the drivers hatch and making a new open hatch. The commanders are all AB figures and the driver of the Platoon Commander's vehicle is an Airfix figure from their Dakota Skytrain kit, with a green-stuff dodgy headset added.

The tank group is made up of 2 Leopard 2NL





Both Leopards are old Matchbox models, and I've added 3D printed Dutch style smoke launchers and wire reel, plus Elhiem FN MAGs which they used rather than the German MG-3s. The Tank Commander is an Elhiem figure.

The rifle group is mounted in a standard M113




Again the M113 is a 3D print, the M113 commander is an Elhiem NATO driving figure, while all the infantry are also Elhiem NATO figures

The mortar group is mounted in a standard M106


The M106 is a 3D print and the mortar crew are again Elhiem figures

So that's my first completed non-American project for 2024.

Thanks for looking and have a great New Year!

Richard