TMN: Preview: MiniArt's German Field Communications Unit in 1/35th scale...

MiniArt's accessories sets continue with interesting items that we could have only had in resin in the past. We look at their field communications unit in our preview...

Preview: MiniArt's German Field Communications Unit in 1/35th scale...

German Field Communications Unit

From MiniArt

Kit No. #53002

1/35th scale

The kit contains eight sprues in plastic

Note - no figures are included in this set

Product Link on the MiniArt Website

German Field Communications Unit in WWII

German field communication units in World War II, known as 'Nachrichtentruppen' (Signal Troops), were highly specialised branches tasked with organising the complex telephone, radio, and visual communication networks vital to Blitzkrieg warfare. By the start of the war, these units were integrated down to the platoon level in mechanised divisions, operating within armoured command vehicles or utilising backpack radio sets (Torn.Fu.d2) to coordinate armour and infantry teams. They were essential for maintaining command and control in the field, tasked with establishing wire lines, running switchboards, and operating radio nets, often serving under the lemon-yellow collar branch colour of the Signal Corps.

A German field radio / communication unit in a similar scene to the one shown in the box art, sometime during WWII.

The backbone of German tactical communication was wired, not wireless, relying heavily on the robust Feldfernsprecher 33 (FF33) field telephone and the intensive manual labour of linemen to lay miles of telephone cable. These units (Kabeltrupp) used Rückentrage (back-mounted) reels for cable laying, often guided by field-service standards requiring double-wire connections near the front to prevent enemy interception of their "OB Fernsprechen" calls. When wire could not be laid, such as with fast-moving Panzer divisions, signal troops relied on a variety of Funkgerät (radio equipment), including high-frequency and very-high-frequency sets that allowed voice and Morse code communication between command units.

A German unit with a field radio set up and in operation in 1940.

As the conflict progressed and the technology became more sophisticated, the Nachrichentruppen expanded to include specialised surveillance companies for intelligence gathering, radio intelligence (Funkaufklärung), and, in the final years, secret optical systems like the Lichtsprechgerät 80/80. Despite advanced radio technology in vehicles, the reliance on manual wire-laying by dedicated signal companies remained crucial because wireless transmissions were easily intercepted or jammed. By 1944–1945, these specialised units were stretched thin across the Eastern and Western fronts, struggling against dwindling resources and an increasing demand for instantaneous communication under retreating conditions.

German Field Communications Unit kit from MiniArt

MiniArt's latest set of modelling accessories features plastic parts of a table, chairs & radio equipment replicating a simple field communications / radio unit in German service during WWII in 1/35th-scale plastic.

There are eight sprues in this kit, giving you plenty of options with what you have at your radio unit.

- This double set of sprues makes up the operator's stools & chairs...