The Best-Selling International Aircraft Modelling Magazine

February 2021 • £4.95

Volume 42 • Issue 12

www.guidelinepublications.co.uk

• Bisnovat SK-1 in 1/72

• Gloster Javelin photo feature
• Workbench – waste not,
want not…
• Phantom Pylons –
the Devil in the detail
• IPMS, Updates, News, Reviews
and more… Trimotor in Resin

IAF Lavi Cat by Night QRA CUBA!

Aermacchi M-346 Master Grumman F6F-3N F-104A conversion
Kinetic’s 1/48 trainer Trumpeter kit in 1/32 Starfighter in 1/48

First and Best for Reference and Modelling

CO N T E N T S

T H I S M O N T H
www.guidelinepublications.co.uk
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Book Reviews: Ernie Lee
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Design: Lincoln Rodrigues 22 28
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STORE FINDER
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www.booksamillioninc.com/store_finder/index.html 63 68

4 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
’ S F E A T U R E S EDITORIAL
The Dynamic Record Breaker 14
Bisnovat SK-1
By Aleksandr Schastniy

Delivery for Il Duce! 16

Harvey Low tackles a Milanese Multi-Motor
E V A’s Caproni Ca-133T in 1/48

Photo Essay 22
Gloster’s Last Thrust
Gloster Javelin in pictures
By Tony O’Toole

The Future Lions of Judah 28

Yoav Efrati gives a Lion Cub Tiger’s stripes
Aermacchi M-346 Master Advanced Fighter Trainer

Night of the Hunter 34

Mark Casiglia slims down Trumpeter’s nocturnal fat cat.
By Gary Hatcher
Grumman F6F-3N Hellcat in 1/32

A
pologies to those readers who had been
Aircraft in Profile 41 anticipating our ‘Aircraft in Profile ‘on the
Tempest in last month’s issue. The piece
Ilyushin IL-28 Beagle has been delayed due to our artist becoming
Scale plans and colour profiles by Sam Pearson indisposed with COVID. We wish Jan a speedy
recovery and look forward to presenting the
QRA CUBA! 54 piece in due course. In the meantime we are
grateful to Sam Pearson for stepping in at
Modelling a post-crisis Quick Reaction Alert F-104A Starfighter in 1/48
short notice to deputise and produce this
By Stephen J Di Nucci month’s scheduled piece on the IL-28 Beagle,
an aircraft brought to the attention of many
Phantom Pylons 60 modellers by virtue of an unlikely kit by Airfix
The Devil is Always in the Detail back in the olden days, and a subject long
By Keith Peckover overdue some fresh attention from the
modelling community.
Colour Conundrum 63 In this issue we are pleased to present the
usual mix of disciplines, so whatever your
RAF High-Altitude Fighter Schemes 1940 - 1945
approach to the hobby we hope you will find
Part 1 something of interest. It has always been SAM’s
By Paul Lucas contention that we can all learn from one
With artwork by Sam Pearson another, and by dipping into articles that may
not initially appear of interest – wrong scale,
Workbench 68 wrong type, wrong colour – we can pick up
Waste Not, Want Not tips and ideas that we can apply to our own
projects. Thus, while the modeller delighting in
Using Up those 1/72 Mitchells
all-new hi-tech kits who wants to build out-of-
By Brian Derbyshire the-box may recoil in horror at the kind of
surgery undertaken in our monthly
‘Workbench’ features, there is a lot to be
With: learned from reading how obstacles are
Update – our monthly news round-up section with new product previews and reviews 9 overcome, accuracy improved, and
IPMS UK Column with John Tapsell 84 conversions effected. One piece that I found of
particular interest this month was Mark
Books – presented by Ernie Lee 86 Casiglia’s Hellcat build, in which the ‘old school’
Tailpiece by Mike McEvoy 88 meets the new, and some serious corrective
surgery is applied to a kit that really shouldn’t
Coming Next Month 89 need it.
Readers are always responding to surveys
with requests for more ‘How To’ pieces. Well
here they are - have a look beyond your
comfort zone. Most of the articles in this
magazine include hints and tips of one sort or
another and I take some pride in the
knowledge that between them, our team of
contributors can build pretty much anything.
Just as well really, as it gets me off the hook
while I’m still waiting for an all-new
Cover: E V A’s 1/48 Caproni Ca-133T by Harvey Low 1/32 Skua…

FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12 5

U P D AT E S

By Colin ‘Flying’ Pickett

CLEAR
PROP
MODELS
www.clearprop
models.com
Renders of the
new MiG-23 series
of models from
Clear Prop have
been released,
showing that a
huge amount of
effort has been
put into the kit
already. This will
make for a superb
addition to their
expanding range.

AIRFIX
www.www.airfix.com/
Airfix have re-released their 1/48 Spitfire Mk Vb
(ref. A05125A) with a pair of new decal options.
The new 1/72 Avro Vulcan B.2 (ref. A12011)
rumbles ever closer, with the announcement of
the chosen decal options for the delta wing
bomber in either camouflage or overall anti-
flash white. These are:
Avro Vulcan B.Mk 2 XM594, of the Scampton
Wing (Nos.27, 83 and 617 Squadrons), RAF
Scampton, Lincolnshire, England 1966.
Avro Vulcan B.Mk 2 XM602 (No.12 Squadron),
RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire, England 1963.

6 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
U P D AT E S

SPECIAL HOBBY
www.specialhobby.eu
Due very soon from Special Hobby
are their long-awaited 1/32
Whirlwinds, the family of 1/72
Mirage IIICs, and a collection of
1/72 two-stage Mosquitoes. Prior to
these we can look forward to the
following offerings:
A-20A/B/DB-7C Havoc/Boston
‘Early Gunships’ 1/72
(ref. SH72423)
The American A-20 Havoc light
bomber and ground attack aircraft
was adopted by the
Commonwealth air forces as the
Boston, and saw service in nearly
every theatre of operation. In order
to undertake the low level ground-
attack role they often had
additional machine guns installed
in the forward fuselage creating
‘gunships’, which forms the basis of
this kit. As well as utilising the
previously released sprues, the kit
contains resin parts to enable the
alterations necessary for this
version to be created.
Meteor Prone Pilot Version 1/72
(ref. SH72424)
A re-release from the Special
Hobby stable, this kit allows you to
build a one-off version of the
meteor F.8, modified to test the
characteristics of the prone pilot
system with a view to increasing
the G-loads that a pilot could
withstand. The original is currently
held in the test aircraft collection at
Cosford and is a highly unusual
design, making it a must have for
collectors of Meteors, test aircraft
and aviation oddities alike.
German Ace H. Wick's Bf 109E-4
Stipple Camouflage Scheme
(ref. K72031)
An additional item for the excellent
1/72 Bf 190 E-4 from Special Hobby,
this decal set allows you to
replicate the complicated mottle
scheme on Wick’s machine,
something that only the brave,
skilled, or foolhardy might
otherwise attempt, making it a
definite must if this scheme is on
your modelling radar.
EoN Eton TX.I/SG-38 ‘Over West
Europe’1/72 (ref. SH72442)
Based on the German SG-38
training glider this kit depicts the
aircraft as used by users from
various western countries. The SG-
38 was arguably the most
widespread training glider of the
inter-war era as well as during
World War II. It was also
manufactured in the UK as the Eton
TX.1. The decals and colour options
offer two British schemes, and one
French, Swedish and Belgian. This
highly detailed kit contains a single
injected polystyrene sprue,
photoetch, decals and full colour
instructions.
Focke Wulf Fw 189B-0/B-1
‘German Trainer’ 1/72
(ref. SH72430)
The twin-boom Focke Wulf Fw 189
was not only used as the
reconnaissance Fw 189A version.
Alongside the ground attack
prototypes a batch of Fw 189B
training aircraft were built. These
differed from the others by having
a streamlined fuselage pod housing
a crew of five. This kit was offered
previously under the Condor series
of model kits. Now, almost ten
years later, it has been returned to
production containing a new set of
decals and resin air intakes that
were not offered in the original
boxing.

EDUARD
www.www.eduard.com
First up from Eduard this month is the re-release
of their 1/48 Bf 110G-4 in its ProfiPACK form (ref.
8208). Alongside the photoetch parts and mask
set the kit will also include decals for five aircraft.
The 1/48 Bf 109G-6/AS makes its return in a
Weekend Edition (ref. 84169). The box features
artwork by Adam Tooby and as part of an
upgrade to the weekend range it will now
include four decal options, making it even better
value for money.
Also out as a Weekend Edition is the North
American P-51D-5 in 1/48, (ref. 84172), which
will feature artwork by Piotr Forkasiewicz. Again
the decal options have been increased to four
different aircraft. In addition every Weekend
Edition of the P-51D-5 ordered on the Eduard
webstore in January 2021 will be supplied with a
P-51D-5 SPACE set for free!
In 1/72 Eduard offer the ‘Fokker Fokker’ DUAL
COMBO (ref. 2133), containing two complete kits
for the Fokker IV with a colourful selection of
twelve marking options, along with mask sets
and photoetch parts.
The Super44 1/144 range gains another kit in
the form of a P-47D Razorback (ref. 4469) in this
shelf-friendly scale.

HOBBYBOSS
www.www.hobbyboss.com
As we await the arrival of
the HobbyBoss MV-22
Osprey in 1/48 (ref.
81769), they continue to
tease with sprue shots of
the forthcoming model.
The kit will feature some
240 parts over nine sprues
and require a fair bit of
shelf space being 371mm
long and 496mm in span.

8 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
BRENGUN
www.brengun.cz
The injection-moulded
1/144 Messerschmitt
Me-309 V1/V2 (ref.
BRP144015) kit
previously mentioned
in these pages has
been released by
Brengun, adding to
their range of
excellent small scale
Luft’46 subjects. Also
in 1/144 is the release DORA WINGS
of the diminutive www.dorawings.com
Kokusai-Ta-Go Ukranian manufacturer Dora Wings have revealed their plans to produce a
Japanese kamikaze highly detailed 1/48 Vultee A-31/35 Vengance. While very much a work in
plane (ref. BRS144053), progress, the renders of the 3D design show that there should be a wealth of
which is produced as a detail in the kit including the bomb bay, an area omitted from previous
resin kit. models of the type in any scale.

HONG KONG MODELS
www.www.hk-models.com
The highly detailed 1/48 B-17 in the markings of
the ever popular B-17F 'Memphis Belle' (ref.
PKHK01F002) has been on the cards for a while
and will be with us imminently. The kit will
contain markings for both 41-24485 ‘Memphis
Belle’ DF-A, and 42-5360 ‘Old Faithful’ VK-G, and
should make for a highly impressive and
desirable model.
Moving to 1/32, the well-received Dornier Do
335 makes its return in a highly modified form as
the A-10 two-seat trainer version (ref.
PKHK01E09). The kit will include three different
marking options, covering German, captured US,
and the RAE Farnborough aircraft.
The kits will be available via your local stockist,
who in turn can obtain them for you via
Bachmann Europe Plc.

FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12 9

U P D AT E S

ICM
www.www.icm.com.ua/
Last month’s exciting
announcement of a DH.
82A Tiger Moth in 1/32
(ref. 32035) has been
followed up with some
photographs of test shot
sprues of the ninety-three
parts from the kit, allowing
us to speculate how much MODELCOLLECT
enjoyment we’ll get from
building this classic www.modelcollect.com
training aircraft. Even though they are renowned for their
Meanwhile the Fiat CR. 42 unusual subjects, especially in their ‘Iron Fist’
Falco Italian World War II range of tanks, the announcement of a ‘WWII
biplane fighter (ref. 32020) Luftwaffe Secret Project Focke-Wulf 0310239-
has also become available, 10 Fast Bomber’ in 1/48 (ref. UA48002) was a
a kit of some 161 parts, bit of a surprise, but one that will add a bit of
adding another elegant interest to the modelling bench of Luft’46
design to the ICM 1/32 modellers and those looking for a bit of
line-up. respite from the mainstream.

RS MODELS
www.rsmodels.cz
Airspeed Envoy 1/72 (ref.92250)
The Airspeed Envoy is an elegant-looking but often overlooked twin-
engine aircraft that was used for communications and utility services
during World War II.
The RS kit offers a 1/72 replica of the type, with sixty-four injection
moulded parts providing the main elements of the kit, however there are a
number of parts included to allow numerous versions from the same
sprues so your spares box gets a free meal. The main fuselage has the
correct delicate fabric effect, while the wings have smooth sections to
replicate the plywood covered areas, so this should make for a convincing
model on completion, especially as the parts all feature finely engraved
surface detail. The interior includes the full seating arrangement, so the
Envoy looks every bit as sophisticated as its name with the rows of
armchairs. This version of the Airspeed Envoy uses the Armstrong Siddeley
Cheetah engine so RS have provided the correct parts including
replacement cowls, exhaust rings, and the correct fairings for the wings. A
fret of etched brass provides fine details, such as push rods for the engines
and seat harnesses.
The kit includes decals for four users:
1. AS.6J, P5528 RAF, 1940
2. AS.6J, 41.3 Spanish Nationalist, 1936
3. AS.6J, F-AQCT Spanish Republicans, 1936
4. AS.6J, Kwangsi Air Force, 1937
While it is not a kit for the beginner, with a little effort and test fitting of
parts it will be possible to construct a highly acceptable model from this
kit and add some Envoy comfort to your collection.
P-38 H Lightning (ref.92249)
The Lockheed P-38 is a classic aircraft in every meaning of the words -
attractive, high performance, and exceptional in its role. It is also
surprisingly large, even in 1/72. This kit by RS is a re-release, but very
welcome as it is the only P-38H available. Based around three medium grey
injected plastic sprues with 101 parts, as well as a single injected canopy,
the kit features fine engraved detail, with a smattering of flash on the
majority of the parts, though nothing a clean-up with a sharp knife and
sanding stick won’t cure. The parts are warp free and should make for a
very respectable model with a little effort. The A5-sized instruction booklet
is very comprehensive, covering sixteen pages in all and is well illustrated.
The kit includes decals for four aircraft, each featuring the standard Olive
Drab over Neutral Grey colour scheme:
1. P-38H, of 39th Sq., 35th FG, Guadalcanal, 1943
2. P-38H, of 9th FS, 49th FG, Capt. Richard Ira Bong, New Guinea, 1943
3. P-38H, 37th FS, 14th FG, Maj William L Leverette, Libya, 1943
4. P-38H, 8th AF, 55th FG, 38th FS, Great Britain, late 1943
The decals themselves are well printed, having sharp outlines and good
density, especially important when being placed over the green portions
of the painted model.
This will be a kit that rewards the effort that you put into it with an
attractive model of an aviation icon.
RS Models Heinkel He-280 V2 1/72 (ref. 92251)
The He-280 is recorded as being the first jet-powered aircraft and could
have entered serial production as a combat aircraft had the Nazi
government had the foresight. In the end only nine aircraft in total were
built, but this is enough of a platform for modellers’ imaginations to work
from. A kit that has been released before in various guises by RS, this
version consists of fifty-three parts spread across two sprues with an
additional clear sprue containing a one-piece canopy. A single resin
component forms the nose wheel bay. The parts have fine engraved detail
and are moulded in a medium grey plastic. There is a reasonable amount
of flash on the parts, which will need sanding and cleaning off before use.
The box includes four decal variants, the first for the actual prototype, the
remaining three being imaginary service markings that may have been
worn should the type have reached combat units prior to 1946, making for
an interesting variation on the theme. The decals are cleanly printed, being
sharp and in good register, with minimal carrier film:
1. Heinkel 280 V2, 1943
2. Heinkel 280, 3./JG7, 1944
3. Heinkel 280, 7./JG11, 1945
4. Heinkel 280, 4./JG4, 1945
Certainly a valid subject for modellers of early jet aircraft or indeed the Luft
’46 modeller looking to expand their line-up with what will be an attractive
model when completed.

10 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
U P D AT E S
Kit No: SH72439
Scale: 1/72
Type: Injection Moulded Plastic
Manufacturer: Special Hobby
www.specialhobby.eu
W
hen Special Hobby revealed the initial
sprue shots of their brand-new Battle of
Britain Bf 109, they caused a ripple of
excitement across social media. Although this
seemed like just another 109 kit, when the
pictures were released, the level of detail and
engineering seemed to raise the bar for 1/72
scale kits of this iconic aircraft.
Once I got to open and examine the contents
for real, the hype seemed justified. Two sprues of
grey parts make up the aircraft along with a
sprue of transparencies with some remarkable
panel and rivet detail across the surface. Four
decal options are included, and it appears there
will be subsequent versions of the kit released as
a number of optional parts are present on the
sprues that are not used on this boxing.
Beginning as always with the cockpit interior,
the first six stages are dedicated to the cockpit
floor and gun bay. I had decided from the outset
to have the panels off the engine and gun bay in
order to display the model to it’s full potential
12 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
Special Hobby Bf 109-E4
and this being a relatively simple kit, it wouldn’t
be a difficult job. It only took an hour or so to get
the cockpit together and primed, as there is a
fairly low parts count. The detail is still pretty
good even in this small scale and everything
began to go together with no issues. My only
concern was the very first stage in which the rear
cockpit bulkhead is attached to the floor pan –
the angle is crucial here to get a good fit into the
fuselage side walls so I diverged slightly from the
instructions by attaching the bulkhead (part
B52) directly onto the fuselage first then
bringing the completed cockpit together with it
right before closing up. The cockpit was sprayed
RLM02 from the Hataka Orange Line Luftwaffe
Early set (used throughout the build) with just a
small run of dark wash to bring out the details.
The instrument panel decals are very basic but
suffice at this small scale as do the decals
provided to represent the seat harness. I would
expect the usual aftermarket manufacturers to
be releasing upgrades very soon to satisfy the
super detailers out there, but out of the box
there really is no problem with what Special
Hobby give you.
The engine came together very quickly and I
took my time painting it up before I attached it
to the cockpit assembly. A nice matt black with
some Uschi Van Der Rosten metal powder lightly
brushed across gave it the required look, with
the wiring picked out in light grey. The engine
bearers come in two pieces and I again took a
slightly different approach here. I attached the
main bearers to either side and superglued the
engine block to the front fire wall. I then fixed
the whole assembly in and brought the fuselage
halves together, but I left of the (very) thin
bottom struts (parts B12) until the end as I
suspected they would be susceptible to
breakage during masking/handling. They would
also have been extremely difficult to fit at the
correct angle, and have a strong enough bond, if
the instructions were followed. Maybe that was a
lack of confidence in my own ability, but the
By Ade Bailey
approach did work much better for me.
Within a very short space of time, I had the
wings together – the fit being superb, and zero
filler needed anywhere. One impressive part of
this kit are the flaps/aileron assemblies, which
are so precisely engineered they clipped into
place and with just a run of liquid poly were
firmly in place with no fear of dislodging during
painting.
I decided early on that I would go for Gerhard
Schopfel’s distinctive aircraft (one I’ve built a few
times in 1/48) so it was out with the airbrush.
The editor had kindly supplied me with the
Special Hobby canopy mask along with the kit,
so this saved an awful lot of time prepping for
spraying and I also masked the engine and gun
bay completely using tape. My preferred priming
method is to use Mr Surfacer 1500 Black through
my airbrush. This gives absolute control and a
perfect base to add colour. I began with the
yellow wing tips using Hataka Insignia Yellow,
gradually using a marbling technique with the
airbrush to build up a modulated effect slowly
rather than ‘blocking out’ the whole area. The
fine detailed panel squares on the plastic were
used as a guide, adding slightly more paint in
the centres while leaving a subtle darker shade
of the black primer at the edges. This is an easy
technique to master with a little practice and can
give some great effects with very little effort.
Next I masked the areas for the RLM02 camo
colour, repeated the process as before and left to
dry for an hour. I re-masked for the RLM71 dark
green area and applied this in a similar marbled
fashion. Finally, the main RLM65 on the fuselage
and undersides was applied.
The whole model was them given a blast of
Alclad Aqua Gloss prior to decaling. Here I would
add a note of caution – the decals had an odd
feel about them, seemed to have an awful lot of
carrier film around each one and were extremely
fragile. I did tear several on application, despite
being very careful, and had to touch them up

with
suitable colours after curing.
Once the decals were sealed with more Aqua
Gloss, I mixed a thin wash of good quality Burnt
Umber oil with odourless thinner and began
brushing it all over in stages. I let the wash dry
for about 15 mins
(or until it looked flat)
then carefully removed it
with paper towels and
cotton buds. The wash revealed all the
wonderful rivet detail in all its glory and toned
down the paint work to a subtle weathered
appearance.
I finally varnished the model with Galeria
Matt varnish.
The undercarriage was superglued on and
was a perfect fit, with the distinctive angle of the
legs achieved with no problems. The spinner and
prop were attached after spraying RLM70, the
canopy masks removed, and an HF antenna
added using EX Line. The yellow pennant that
FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12
U P D AT E S
Schopfel’s aircraft sported is included
as a decal however this isn’t really up
to the job. I therefore fashioned a
replacement from some scrap photoetch
sheet. The final touch was a little weathering
added to the wheels using Warpigs Mud
pigment. Once the engine was unmasked and
the tiny MGs popped on, the kit was complete.
Conclusion
Special Hobby have really delivered with this
kit. I’m sure there will be aftermarket releases to
give a little more detail to the engine, cockpit,
and gun bays however, what is provided in the
box is more than sufficient to produce a real
gem of a build. This is not just another 109 kit.
13
B I S N O VAT S K  1

By Aleksandr Schastniy

Bisnovat SK-1
Kit No: 7229
Scale: 1/72
Type: Resin
Manufacturer: Prop&Jet
www.propjet.ucoz.ru

M
atus Ruvimovch Bisnovat was the head
of a group of TsAGI (Central Aero and
Hydro-Dynamics institute) specialists
that was engaged in researching the
performance of different wing profiles at high
speeds. It was as a result of this work that the SK
aircraft series was designed. In the second half of
the 1930s many countries with an advanced
aviation industry were looking for ways to
increase the speed of their aircraft. In the course
of this research some interesting experimental
machines appeared.
The first aircraft of this SK series, the SK-1, was
manufactured at the beginning of 1939 to study
the performance of wings with different profiles
and aerodynamic properties, given a high wing
loading. High speeds were attained using the M-
105 engine thanks to refined aerodynamics and a
retractable pilot’s cockpit. When in flight the
canopy would merge into the contours of the
fuselage to reduce aerodynamic drag. On landing
it would open, forming a windscreen, and to
ensure the pilot had the required forward vision,
his seat would be raised using a hydraulic jack.
The cantilever wing with a thin NACA-23014.5
profile was manufactured without any wing
joints as a single unit, and could be easily
replaced. The basis of the wing was a torsion box
formed of an external skin and spars. The wing
was covered in a thin layer of primer made from a
cork powder on marquisette that was attached to
the metal using a glyptal primer as a base. The
surface of the wings was polished to a mirror
finish.
A new cooling system was also tested on the
SK-1. The area of the heat exchanger was 0.17m2
(almost twice as small as a conventional
example), and the water in the cooling system
circulated at a pressure of 1.1kg/cm2. The
ailerons and control surfaces were fully weight-
balanced.
Early in 1940 test-pilot G.M. Shiyanov began
test flying the SK-1. The aircraft was tested using
a wheeled chassis as well as non-retractable skis.
An insufficient lateral and longitudinal stability
was noted once the engine oil had been heated.
On landing on 26 March deployment of the
landing flaps was not synchronised, which
almost led to an accident. On further testing of
the aircraft with a take-off weight of 2,100kg a
speed of 577km/hr was attained successfully at

A view from the port side showing the inside of the main well doors.
This head-on view of the SK-1 doesn’t show much, but some traces of Note the configuration of the pilot’s windscreen and canopy, in the
the detail in the wheel wells are visible. (From archive of Mikhail Maslov) ‘landing’ position. (From archive of Mikhail Maslov)

Starboard view of the aircraft with the windscreen

retracted. (From archive of Mikhail Maslov)
The basic
cockpit – no
images
survive of the
prototype so
the kit parts
are based on
contemporary
Soviet types,
with a little
guesswork.

14 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K

The assembled airframe. No filler was required
at all. The pilot’s cockpit is very clearly visible
through the crystal clear canopy.
an altitude of 5,500m. Stability testing
concluded on 5 July 1940 and the report on
testing had been prepared by 1 August. The lack
of a conventional pilot’s cockpit was recorded as
the aircraft’s principal shortcoming. The next
example the SK-2 had a normal cockpit.
SK-1 in Scale
A new model from Prop&Jet is always eagerly
awaited since it is unlikely that any other firm
will have produce models of such rare
prototypes, and if they do, they are unlikely to
match Prop&Jet in terms of quality. The SK-1,
which was released by Prop&Jet at the end of
last year, is no exception. The minimalist design
of the box with a very attractive illustration, and
furthermore the instructions, which are laconic
and yet as comprehensive as possible, have
become a hallmark of Prop&Jet. The small packet
containing the resin components is packed
carefully in the box, and these are ‘sorted’ into
blocks within the various pockets. This sort of
packaging prevents damage to the components,
but even if this were to happen, then the vast
majority of them are duplicated.
As with previous kits the manufacturer
provides two cockpit canopies in case one of
them breaks. The clarity of the transparency is
ideal, but the walls of the cockpit are sufficiently
thin that the canopy flexes under slight pressure
– so be careful. A new innovation for this
company is the provision of a set of masks in the
box, produced in the form of a yellow low-tack
Self-adhesive pre-cut painting masks supplied
with the kit makes painting the model much
easier.
tape, similar to that used by Eduard. The logic is
clear: the aircraft has characteristic red elements
to its colour scheme, which it would be
complicated to replicate in decal form. Masks
have been provided as a ‘bonus’ for the cockpit
and the main undercarriage legs, so the
modeller does not have to think about cutting
out masking at all during painting.
Assembly, as is traditional for a propeller
aircraft, begins with the pilot’s cockpit. It has to
be said that no information is available on the
SK-1’s cockpit so the model kit’s developers
probably used their imagination. Nevertheless
we are presented with a standard pilot’s seat, the
control yoke and the floor with the pedals cast
into it, and an instrument panel, nothing
unusual there. The finish in the cockpit is of the
highest standard, although there is no
embossing on the inside of the two fuselage
halves, but if desired the modeller can fashion
the ‘ribs’ of the cockpit, as it will all be visible
through the canopy. I did not attempt to re-work
anything, only adding seatbelts made from
photoetch.
The undercarriage bays are completely bare,
as these are also an unknown entity as far as the
prototype is concerned. The undercarriage legs
are cast very accurately and only the brake
system hoses were added. I decided to paint the
radiator separately to avoid any issues with
masking the apertures. This is easy to do: all the
components line up perfectly. The small air
intake for the carburettor in the nose of the
aircraft was made using a drill.
FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12
B I S N O VAT S K  1
The masks supplied allow the red nose design
to be painted with a minimum of extra work
As mentioned above the aircraft did not have
any joints in the outer skin panels on the wing,
fuselage and tailfin, but in the nose there is a
join, as well as rivets. The latter were formed
using a riveting tool produced by RB. I decided
to replace the pitot tube with a small metal tube.
Although the one supplied with the model is
very finely made, the resin is very brittle for a
component as small as this. No other changes
were made to the kit and assembly was very
quick and easy.
There were no problems either with painting
the SK-1 as there was only one example of this
aircraft and several very good quality
photographs are available showing all the
features of the livery. I replicated the silver nitro-
lacquer with an aluminium powder that the
prototype was covered with using a Mr Color
Silver Metallic Gloss (C008) lightly mixed with a
matt lacquer. The rest of the colours are also Mr
Color paints. The masks supplied with the kit
have very good adhesion and flexibility but
leaving them on the model for too long is not
recommend, as metallic surfaces can be very
capricious and may be damaged by the sticky
tape. No decals are supplied with this kit, so after
the paint had dried and without applying an
interim layer of lacquer I added some
weathering using oil-based paints and added in
the soot deposit from the exhaust gases. A
decision was taken not to apply a final layer of
lacquer so as not to defuse the shine on the
‘metallic’ surface.
15
C A P R O N I C A  133 T

Delivery
for Il Duce!
Harvey Low
tackles a Milanese
Multi-Motor Caproni Ca-133T
transport, an air ambulance, and a light bomber
in the Second Italo-Ethiopian War, the Spanish
Scale: 1/48 Civil War, and World War II.
Type: Resin model with PE and Decals The aircraft was a robust design, easily
maintained in difficult climates, and a stable
Manufacturer: E V A Models flying platform. It had a welded steel-tube
structure with fabric covering, with the wing

T
he Caproni Ca-133 was a three-engined
transport-bomber operated by the Italian
Regia Aeronautica. Originally developed as
a civilian airliner to serve Italy’s new colonial
routes, the Ca-133 entered production in 1935.
The military version of the aircraft was used as a
made of wood with steel frames. The civil (and
paratrooper) versions could accommodate up to
sixteen passengers, while the more martial
variant had two internal bomb bays that held up
to 500kg of ordnance, with larger bombs
mounted externally if required. It was armed

Resin kits will often need parts replaced, due to the inconsistency of the
medium, So check what you need beforehand. Internal bracing was replaced with items scratch built from plastic rod.
The hard part is ensuring consistency.

The modeller must be prepared to make good components that in Once primed the interior had large plastic tabs applied to help align the
normal plastic kits would be taken for granted. Here the wing detail will fuselage halves. The chunkiness of the resin is typical of kits produced in
need restoring. this way.

16 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K

A little bit of paint can work wonders bringing detail to life. The open access
door leads directly onto the gun position, which provides additional interest.
Turner Prize winning modern art or everyday
resin fuselage building? Even strong
adhesives benefit from proper support and
clamping. Better safe than sorry.
with four 7.7 mm Breda-Safat machine guns, one
dorsal, one ventral, and two lateral. The
Transport version, as depicted in this model, had
only one gun of limited traverse on the
starboard side. The type saw action on all fronts
from the fields of France and Belgium, to the
frozen steppes of Russia.
Like its German equivalent the Ju-52, reports
showed the Ca-133 was slow and vulnerable to
both enemy aircraft and anti-aircraft fire
(although one Ca-133 is credited with shooting
down an Avro Anson over Somalia in 1941 in
what must have been WWII’s slowest dogfight).
During the Battle of Britain twelve Ca.133Ts
were employed as light transport aircraft,
supplying the fighter and bomber squadrons of
the Corpo Aereo Italiano in Belgium. My model
represents a Transport (‘T’) aircraft of the 95th
Squadriglia, 56 Stormo, Corpo Aereo Italiano,
based in Belgium, November 1940. Over 250 Ca-
133s were in service in September 1939. The last
was phased out by the Aeronautica Militare in
1947. None survive today.
For many years, the only kit of this unique
aircraft was Aviation Usk’s 1/72 vacform kit,
which was released in 1994 and is no longer
available. This model, released in 2018, is a high
quality 1/48 resin kit by the former E V A Models
of Italy.
There are some jobs that filler isn’t right for.
The underside displays casting damage that
requires a better solution.
The kit comes bubble-wrapped in a rather
flimsy box, so it was worth checking for broken
and missing parts. Upon inspection, I decided
that the struts, internal bracing, and propellers
all needed replacement as they were simply
unusable, being either too thin, warped or
poorly cast. Replacement propeller blades were
cut-down from Vector’s Douglas A-26B/C
propeller set.
I also replaced the machine gun with a Lewis
Gun from GasPatch Models. I added an AK
2.7mm lens to the underside landing light
housing, navigation lights by CMK, and a small
Gas Patch turnbuckle on the tail for the
antennae mount.
The kit’s interior is rudimentary but
acceptable. The biggest challenge was the
cockpit floor and seats, which just did not fit.
Mounts were added to the cockpit walls to get
the correct height for a new cockpit floor, which
I made from styrene sheet. I also added styrene
rod to the seat undersides to get them to sit at
the proper height. New control columns were
also made from 1mm styrene rod. The
instrument panel was excellent and just needed
the details to be picked out over a matt black
base using Vallejo paints. The seats themselves
were improved with ready-painted Italian
seatbelts from Eduard (49105). Radios from the
Aires 1/48 resin German Radio Set (ARS4045)
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C A P R O N I C A  133 T
‘Weapons Grade’ cyanoacrylate adhesive is
required to get the fuselage together. The
correct adhesive can make all the difference
between a joint that stays together or one
that pings apart.
Re-skinning with
thin Plasticard
saves lots of filling
and clean-up and
gives a nice
smooth base on
which to reinstate
the details.
were also installed.
The Ca-133 had a sliding crew access door on
the port side, so I had to paint the interior details
as I planned to leave this open. As there are no
original interior photos, the colours I used are
speculative. The overall colour was first applied
using Tamiya Dark Yellow (TS-3) from a spray
can, followed by modulated coats of a Tamiya
Buff (XF-57) and Dark Yellow 2 (XF-88) mix. The
flooring, cockpit, and internal framing were
painted Tamiya NATO Green (XF-67). Weathering
was achieved using washes of Winsor-Newton
dark brown oil paint.
Dry fitting parts to test them is essential with
this type of model. The fuselage halves, when
test fitted, showed a large gap along the spine
so I used a strong super glue called HPD IC-2000,
which has carbon and rubber in its mix. This stuff
is excellent because it is slower-setting than
other super glues, and thicker so it acts as a gap
filler too. It works with any accelerator for instant
bonding. Clamps were needed to allow the glue
to set while working from the front to the rear
and the result was a very sturdy fuselage
assembly.
The undersides of the fuselage halves had
been damaged during the casting process
resulting in large holes and surface
imperfections. I decided that the easiest solution
was to re-skin the entire lower fuselage with
17
C A P R O N I C A  133 T

The fuselage top was

rebuilt from styrene.
Again it’s often simpler
to rebuild parts than
repair what’s provided.

Clear cast resin

canopies are difficult
to make and this part
was best replaced.

The new canopy matched the kit’s dimensions

Like a tailor’s pattern, the canopy’s flat panes perfectly and was masked like any normal Large brass tube locators are needed to take
were perfected in white Plasticard first before clear part once installed. This completes the weight of the solid resin wing. Careful,
cutting the actual clear sheet. fuselage assembly slow work ensures that everything is aligned.

The rear empennage

is pinned and glued
in a similar way. Note
the hinges re-
applied from styrene
sheet to sharpen up
the detail. Those brass main wing supports really do a lot of work. You can also see
the offset elevators here on the tailplanes.

.015” (.4mm) sheet styrene, cutting any excess
and trimming to fit. I finished the new
undersurface by re-adding the bomb bay chutes
with circular styrene detail. The remaining task
was to replace the top cabin part (which was
warped and overly thick), with thick styrene
sheet, reinstating the piping detail with styrene
rod.
The canopy in the kit was thick, discoloured,
and warped. As this aircraft possessed a canopy
made from flat panels, I scratch built a new one
from sections cut from clear styrene using
Squadron’s Clear sheet. Vacforming was not
really an option here, as it tends to be more
suitable for rounded canopies. I first made a
template of each canopy section using white
styrene to get the right dimensions. Then I
carefully used this to make each panel from the
clear sheet. This was then assembled to match
the exact dimensions of the cockpit canopy base
– a long but rewarding process. The entire new
canopy assembly was then attached with Weld
Bond. Once the fuselage halves were buttoned
up, the canopy was masked off.
The wings on this kit are made from a solid
piece of resin and are thus very heavy, requiring
solid structural integrity. Holes in the wing roots
were drilled out and K&S brass rods (about 4mm
in diameter) inserted to act as mounting rods.
Corresponding holes were drilled into the
fuselage where these would be inserted. To
attach them, I used 5-minute epoxy, which gave
me time to adjust the wings to the correct
dihedral with the aid of an alignment jig. The
vertical rudder and horizontal stabilizers were
then affixed using a similar process. The model
began to take shape.
As with all limited-run kits, planning assembly
steps is vital. In this case I glued the landing gear

18 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
 C A P R O N I C A  133 T

These brass welded ‘Vee’ struts will be the main anchor point of the
Simple circular firewalls cut from plastic sheet are perfect for mounting engine nacelles, so strength was vital. The plastic outer struts have pins
the engines. They may not be prototypically accurate but sometimes it’s added to aid their location too. Lots of work, but necessary in a model of
a balancing act between realism and practical construction. this complexity if it’s to sit properly and look correct

The top nacelle shows the plastic beam and stand-off alignment jig You can see how the jig works here, setting the correct offset from the
fashioned to assist in attachment. fuselage and height from the underwing surface.

All the careful work with the engine nacelle jigs pays off to reveal the A good view of the plastic, brass, and resin parts all required to get the
final complex structure in all its glory. ‘floating’ nacelles into position.

spats to the engines to create their own sub-
assemblies, ensuring proper alignment. The kit
engines were excellent and only required
firewalls, made from .015” (.4mm) styrene cut
with a circular cutter.
Apart from the canopy, the struts were the
most complex part of construction. Not only
were the kit parts useless, but the engines are
mounted to all of them, resulting in a complex
web of around thirty struts and braces in total.
Each required strength and proper alignment.
All of the struts were replaced with styrene from
the old Contrail range. The wire bracing struts on
the tail and between the main wing struts were
fashioned from steel rod and left in their natural
metal finish.
The entire integrity of this model however, lies
in four tiny ‘Vee’ struts that attach the engines to
the wings. Because these ‘Vee’ struts have to
hold the engine and landing gear in place, they
must be very strong. To ensure this, I welded two
sets of two brass 1mm rods together (one for
each engine) and mounted them to the engine
sub-assembly: the other styrene struts only
provide secondary strength. To give these
styrene struts a more positive fit, I drilled and
inserted tiny pins into them for a rigid
attachment. To allow the proper positioning of
the engine to the model, I created a styrene jig
to hold things in alignment while the complex
arrangement of struts and wires was then glued
in place. With this done, the model was now
ready for painting.
The model was first primed using GSI Mr
Surfacer 1200 thinned with lacquer thinner and
applied by airbrush. This first primer coat makes

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C A P R O N I C A  133 T
Painting in progress as the
mottle pattern is slowly created.
it easier to identify and fix pin-holes and other
imperfections. You can then apply thicker Mr
Surfacer 500 by brush to specific areas and re-
sand where needed. A Shadow Hobby Circle
Cutter was used to create round masks for the
base white foundations of the national
markings. This prevents bleed-through of the
camouflage on the decals when they are applied
over the top.
The camouflage on this aircraft was called the
‘C6’ pattern scheme. I used an Iwata HP-B Plus
with a .2mm nozzle, spraying very low at 5-8psi,
with Tamiya paints thinned with Tamiya ‘orange
cap’ Lacquer Thinner with retarder at a ratio of
60% thinner to 40% paint.
For the base background Giallo Mimetico 3
(sand-yellow) only two hobby paints, MRP Paints
315 and Italeri 4645, are available, but these are
difficult to get in Canada. The colour is close to
RLM79 but lighter, with a touch more
yellow. I mixed my own using AK
paints: two parts AK RLM79
1941 (RC282) and one
20 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
Each ‘frog’s footprint’ squiggle was individually airbrushed on, over the
course of a fortnight’s airbrushing.
part AK Earth Yellow RAL 800 (RC064) with a few
drops of AK White (RC004) and AK Yellow
(RC007).
If you can find them, you can use MRP 312 or
Italeri 4723 for the Verde Mimetico 3 (olive green).
I used Tamiya NATO Green (XF-67). The
underside colour, Grigio Azzurro (light blue-grey),
is available as MRP 301. I mixed my own using
Tamiya Royal Light Gray (XF-80) two parts to one
part Light Blue (XF-23) and one part White XF-2
for scale effect.
One should always test decals before use and
this project was no exception. I tried them in
warm water and found that while the register
was good they were very thin and fragile so I let
them sit a little longer in the water and then
used my trusted decal setting solutions, Micro
Sol and Micro Set. My ‘go-to’ varnish is GSI Super
Clear UV-Cut, thinned half and half with Mr Color
Levelling Thinner, or with Tamiya ‘orange cap’
Lacquer Thinner with Retarder (Both thinners
work well). I mixed UV-Cut Gloss (GX-112) with
UV-Cut Flat (GX-113) to obtain a
semi-gloss finish. Some subtle weathering was
done with a few light washes of Windsor &
Newton Raw Umber oil paint, with some
weathering powders of dark and light mud
along the wing roots and landing gear to top it
all off.
Final details included the antenna using EZ-
Line, a scratch built pitot tube from a medical
syringe, and flap actuators made from styrene
rod. After three months the model was
complete.
References
Ali D’italia No.20 Caproni Ca 133 Gregory Alegi. La
Bancarella Aeronautica, Italy, 2005.
www.alchetron.com/
Caproni-Ca.133
www.alamy.com/
stock-photo/
caproni-ca-
133.html
G LO S T E R J AV E L I N

By Tony O’Toole
(All Photos- T.O`Toole Collection
unless stated otherwise)

Javelin FAW.1s of 46 Sqn, which was the first unit

to receive the type at RAF Odiham in February
1956. Aircraft `T’, which is nearest the camera, is
XA624 and has the unit’s initial tail marking
comprising a red arrow on a white band, but not
the red and white arrow nose marking. The
middle aircraft, coded `H’, is XA624 and has the
nose marking but not the tail marking, while
XA618, which is banking away, is the same, with
only the unit’s nose marking applied. Standard
camouflage is applied, consisting of Dark Sea
Grey and Dark Green with High Speed Silver

T
he Gloster Javelin undersides and a black radome.
served with the
Royal Air Force from
the mid-1950s until the Javelin FAW.1, XA549/M of 87 Sqn. at RAF Bruggen in West Germany, seen here during the
late 1960s. The last aircraft late 1950s wearing the unit’s early insignia of a small red and white dagger on the tail.
design to bear the Gloster
name, it was introduced in
1956 after a lengthy
development period and
received several upgrades
during its lifetime to its
engines, radar and
weapons, which included
the De Havilland
Firestreak air-to-air
missile. The aircraft served
for much of its life
alongside the Lightning,
the last aircraft being
withdrawn from
operational service in
1968 following the
introduction of
successively more capable
versions of the Lightning.
Sadly neglected by the
model industry for years,
and still under-
represented in most
scales, the recent Airfix
reboxing of their 2013
FAW.9/9R in 1/48 has
rekindled interest in the
type. The following
pictures show this classic
British aircraft in all its
diversity, and should help
any modeller building the
new kits, or tackling some Preserved Javelin FAW.1 XA549, seen here wearing a spurious colour scheme and markings that seem
of the many repackaged to be based on 87 Sqn, the last unit to which this aircraft belonged while in service. It went to RAF
versions of the vintage Swanton Morley for display purposes during the 1960s as a Ground Instructional (GI) airframe 7717M.
FROG tooling.

22 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
 G LO S T E R J AV E L I N

Javelin FAW.4 XA764 of the All Weather Development Squadron

(AWDS), whose marking it wears behind the nose roundel.

Javelin FAW.4 XA632/A of 11 Sqn. seen visiting a UK airshow from its

base at RAF Geilenkirchen in West Germany during the early 1960s.
This is a good view of the so called `pen nib’ tail section used before
afterburners were incorporated onto later versions of the Javelin.

A UK-based Javelin FAW.4 from 72 Sqn. at RAF Leconfield, which used

Javelin FAW.4, XA724/F of 11 Sqn. based with the 2nd Tactical Air Force
at RAF Geilenkirchen in West Germany, seen alongside a 31 Sqn.
Canberra PR.7 from RAF Laarbruch.
this version from April 1959 to June 1961. This is XA731 coded M (in
white), wearing the unit’s dark blue and red fighter bars alongside the
roundel and the arrow on the fin, upon which is superimposed a white
disc containing a light blue swift. The black radome has weathered quite
a lot, maybe to a brown colour.

Javelin FAW.5, XA657/L of 5 Sqn. serving with the 2nd TAF at RAF Laarbruch in West Germany. Having previously been a
Meteor NF.11 unit, 5 Sqn. operated the FAW.4 version of the Javelin from January 1960 until November 1962 and this one
wears a rarely seen version of the unit’s markings consisting of a red band on the tail containing a golden Canadian maple
Leaf upon which was superimposed a white code letter, in this case L. This would appear to have been the first style of
markings applied by 5 Sqn. to its Javelins, before a green maple leaf was superimposed upon a white disc inside the red band.

FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12 23

G LO S T E R J AV E L I N
The Javelin FAW.6 had a very short nose containing American AI.22 radar
but it incorporated the increased fuel tankage in the wings from the
FAW.5 version and only thirty-three were built, entering service during
1957. This FAW.6 is XA815/E of 89 Sqn. at RAF Stradishall wearing the
light blue and dark blue squadron bar on the fin, circa 1957/58.
Another short-nosed version of the Javelin equipped with American
radar as an insurance policy in case of trouble with the British-built
equipment. Only sixty Javelin FAW.8s were built and among these was
FAW.8, XJ116/X of 85 Sqn. seen here soon after the type arrived with the
unit at RAF West Raynham during March 1960. It wears the unit’s red and
black chequered bars on the fin with the famous white hexagon
superimposed upon them. The Javelin was the last operational fighter
type to be flown by this famous squadron, which disbanded in March
1963 to become a target facilities unit on Meteors and Canberras and
later still operated Bloodhound missiles before disappearing forever.
A nice side on view of Javelin FAW.9 XH709/K of 64 Sqn. seen here during June 1966 at RAF Tengah, Singapore. This unit had deployed to the region
from the UK during February 1965 to reinforce 60 Sqn. during the Indonesian Crisis and between them they provided all-weather fighter protection.
Note the stencils on the wing pylons and the unit’s black scarabee insignia, which is superimposed within a circle upon a white tail band and
surrounded by the famous blue and red zig zag fighter bars worn in pre-war days by Hawker Demon biplanes.
24 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
The later and more
usual form of 5
Sqn. marking is
seen here on
Javelin FAW.4
XA704/J. This
comprised a green
maple leaf inside a
white disc
superimposed on
the red fin band,
and the white
code letter was
now lower down
on the fin.
Javelin FAW.7 XH833/V of 33 Sqn. at RAF Middleton St George wearing
the unit’s light blue, dark blue and red band across the tail. The code
letter V, which appears on the nose, is light blue edged in black.
The FAW.9 version of the Javelin was in fact a reworking of the Javelin
FAW.7 airframe to give it the engines, aerodynamic improvements, and
various avionics associated with the FAW.8 while retaining the British
AI.17 radar. A total of 124 airframes were modified and Javelin FAW.9
XH712/K of 29 Sqn. was one of these. It has the unit’s red and white bar
on the tail but the red `triple X’ marking that is usually incorporated
appears to be missing in this instance, indicating that this may be a new
arrival. As can be seen from the 4 x 230 gallon drop tanks under the
wings, this was one of the forty FAW.9s that were `plumbed’ to carry long
range tanks and a huge twenty foot detachable refuelling probe, giving
them the designation FAW.9R, the R standing for `Range’. The location
appears to be Cyprus where 29 Sqn. was based between 1963 and 1966,
first of all at RAF Nicosia but later at RAF Akrotiri.
 G LO S T E R J AV E L I N

Javelin FAW.9 XH834/PDW of 64 Sqn. seen flying over inhospitable

Malaysian jungle from its base at RAF Tengah in Singapore during June
1966 in the hands of the unit’s CO, whose initials it carries on the tail.

Javelin FAW.9, XH716/W of 11 Sqn. with the twin black eagles still inside
the black and Yellow squadron flash on the tail. Note how the black nose
radome is beginning to weather.

Javelin FAW.9, XH890/M of 23 Sqn. possibly while based at RAF Coltishall

in Suffolk before the unit moved up to RAF Leuchars in Scotland during
March 1963. The famous red eagle from the unit insignia appears on the
fin within a white disc, without the falcon prey that is also part of this
unit’s official badge.

A heavily weathered Javelin FAW.9 XH847/U of 23 Sqn.

Another Javelin from 23 Sqn, XH793/A is one of the FAW.9R long-range

conversions capable of carrying four drop tanks and the detachable
refuelling probe, which is ably portrayed in this view. This was only used
for ferry purposes and the fact that a number of the unit’s Javelins have
their probes fitted here but no drop tanks to accompany them indicates
that practice air-to-air refuelling sorties are the order of the day, in
preparation for an overseas detachment in the not too distant future.

Javelin FAW.9s of 33 Sqn. at RAF Middleton St George with XH907/C nearest to the camera. By this time the light blue, dark blue,
and red band on the fin had been modified by the inclusion of a light blue disc containing the squadrons `harts head’ insignia.

FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12 25

G LO S T E R J AV E L I N

Continued political tension over Berlin had led to missile-equipped Javelins deploying from Fighter Command in the UK on temporary detachments to
West Germany to give the 2nd Tactical Air Force its own missile capability in the all-weather fighter role. 33 Sqn. was sent from Middleton St George to
RAF Laarbruch with its Javelin FAW.9s during November 1962, to replace the gun-equipped Javelin FAW.5s of 5 Sqn. Upon arrival some personnel from
5 Sqn. were taken on but it came as a shock to find that the unit numberplate was to be changed to 5 Sqn. Due to the high percentage of ex 33 Sqn.
personnel in the `new’ unit the 5 Sqn. insignia was altered to incorporate the light blue of 33 Sqn. and the much thinner red band of 5 Sqn. was edged
using this colour whilst the green maple leaf also appeared on a disc of the same colour. Over the years this blue seems to have become lighter and in
some photos it can often appear white and in fact the 5 Sqn. markings within the Frog Javelin kit were red and white. One of the ex-33 Sqn. Javelin
FAW.9s to serve with 5 Sqn. at RAF Laarbruch was XH713/B, seen here.

Javelin FAW.9s provided air cover over Singapore, Malaysia, and Borneo
during the Indonesian Crisis and 60 Sqn’s XH839/M is seen here on a wet
ramp area in distinctly tropical surroundings with a tow.
At the head of this busy ramp area at RAF Laarbruch, West Germany, is
Javelin FAW.9, XH958/Y of 5 Sqn. It wears the unit’s later red tail band
containing a green maple leaf, which was edged in light blue (from the
markings of 33 Sqn.) and the standard camouflage is weathered to a
matt finish. A `zap’ sticker of some description appears behind the
roundel and there are paint chips on the tailfin and along the wing
leading edges. This aircraft had previously served with 23 Sqn. as an
FAW.7 and following conversion to FAW.9 it moved between 33 and 29
Sqns until the former was renumbered to become 5 Sqn. during
November 1962. It finished its time with 228 OCU and suffered a landing
accident at Leuchars on the 11 June 1966, when it was damaged
beyond repair.

Perhaps the most colourful of Javelins was this red and white FAW.9,
XH897, operated by A Flight A &AEE Boscombe Down during the early
1970s. On the nose is a Yellow A Flight motif comprising of an arrow with
a letter A superimposed on top and underneath is the text `Fighter Test
Squadron’. It later had a camera `slit’ made in the nose radome but this is
not visible here.
The two-seat trainer version of the Javelin was the T.3, which had the
radar removed and an enlarged canopy. XH392, coded C, is seen here
while in use by the Javelin Instrument Rating Squadron (JIRS). It also flew
with 228 OCU but was struck off charge on 20 November 1967 and
ended up as a fire training aide at RAF Catterick.

26 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
 G LO S T E R J AV E L I N

Javelin T.3 XH395 serving as D of 226 OCU based at RAF Middleton St
George during the 1960s. The unit marking consisted of a red arrow
head edged in white and the unit badge was usually superimposed on
top. After service with 46 Sqn. it was with 25 and 29 Sqn., 226 OCU, the
JIRS and 228 OCU, retiring to the Wattisham fire dump in November
1967.
Showing one of the side-mounted periscopes for the rear seat instructor
to advantage, this Javelin T.3 is XH435/Z of 85 Sqn. at RAF West Malling
circa 1959. Of note are the red-painted air intake blanks, which were
removed before flight, while the intake surround itself is bare metal.
Following initial service with 85 Sqn. this T.3 went on to serve with 64
Sqn., the JIRS and 228 OCU until March 1968 when it was retired.

Perhaps the best known Javelin T.3 is XH437 flown by 33 Sqn., which had the distinctive code 3T3 or 33T on the side of the nose, indicating that it is 33
Sqn’s Trainer. This side view depicts the side-mounted periscope to advantage above the bare metal air intake surround. The distinctive light blue, dark
blue, and red fighter band of 33 Sqn. is on the tail, while the very tip of the nose is painted black. After initial service with 33 Sqn. this aircraft only
served with 23 Sqn. as it was destroyed by fire upon start up at Leuchars on 19 August 1964.

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K I N E T I C ’S 1/48 M  346 M A S T E R A D VA N C E D T R A I N E R

Yoav Efrati gives a

Lion Cub Tiger’s
stripes

1969 and 2005, IAF pilots earning their wings
had practiced inflight engine shut-down
procedures and asymmetrical thrust handling on
the Fouga Magister and IAI Tzokit. However,
when these were retired in favour of the single-
engine, turboprop-powered Raytheon T-6A
Texan II, it created a void in twin-engine flight
training. Forty years of continual service,
technical obsolescence, metal fatigue and lack of
spare parts, meant that the TA-4J/H Ahit
(Skyhawk) was also in need of replacement. So,
in 2002, a year-long evaluation of advanced jet
trainer replacements for the Skyhawk, boiled
down to the Korean KIA T-50 and Leonardo
Aermacchi M-346 Master Advanced
(Aermacchi) M346 Master. Twin engine
Fighter Trainer familiarisation, advanced glass cockpit avionics,
Kit No: K48063 commonality with Italian Air Force M346 and F-
35A operations, and a full offset purchase of the
Scale: 1/48 Gulfstream/IAI G550 AWACS by the Italian
Type: Injection Moulded Plastic government, weighed in the IAF's decision to
obtain thirty-six M346 trainers, which were given
Manufacturer: Kinetic the name ‘Lavi’.
www.kineticmodel.com Kinetic is the only model company currently
offering a model of this fifth-generation trainer
trees, featuring sharp recessed detailed panel
lines. The separately packaged clear parts tree
offers HUD glass panels, taxi lights, wind shield,
two bulbous-shaped canopy options (with and
without explosive chords), and a further two
identical weapons sprues which provide a pair of
each of the following: AIM-9M, AIM-9X, AIM-
120B, AIM-120C, GBU-16, CBU-87 and GBU-38. A
brass photoetch fret gives the HUD frames, wing
root leading edge fences, canopy frames, seat
belts, and experimental nose boom ‘flag’ sensors.
In addition to the kit's innovative canopy design,
the upper fuselage section is moulded integrally
with the wings to which the complex-shaped
lower fuselage section is fitted from underneath.
At rest the M346 leading edge slats and trailing
edge flaps are lowered and this option is
provided in the kit.
Assembly
The build proceeded with cementing
together as many sub-assemblies as possible,
including the ejection seats and cockpit tub,

T
he Israeli Air Force ‘Flying Tiger’ 102 nose gear and wheel well, intakes, main wheels,
in use by the air forces of Italy, Singapore, Israel
Squadron at Hatzirim air base provides control surfaces, radome, pylons and fuel tanks,
and Poland. The kit contains a twenty-two page
advanced pilot training for the graduates of and the AIM-9M Sidewinders and their rails.
A4 size instruction booklet and four grey parts
the IAF flight school also located there. Between

I also drilled the nose

gear strut and wheel
inserting a metal rod
through them both to
strengthen this area.

Holes were drilled through

the landing gear struts and
a metal rod was inserted
between them for External stores applicable to ‘2020
additional strength. vintage’ Israeli Air Force Lavi include the
fuel tanks and AIM-9M Sidewinder, all
provided in the kit. These were all
assembled first giving them time to dry
thoroughly.

28 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
 K I N E T I C ’S 1/48 M  346 M A S T E R A D VA N C E D T R A I N E R

The port fuselage large photoetched

The upper wing-root fairing panel line is
missing from both wings, shown here as
a red line.
vent shown cemented in place.
Photoetch brings an extra level of detail
Here, the wing root panel outboard line and finesse here.
has been scribed into the wing and the
upper fuselage engine closed bleed-air
door part installed.

The photoetched wingtip position lights
require sanding to match the wingtip
contour and could actually be left off as
the decal works perfectly well on its own.
The
canopy’s
internal details
were installed using
cyanoacrylate cement,
with excess removed using
Debonder. My chosen airframe Cockpit parts were painted Revell
was fitted in 2020 with an Light Grey after studying photos.
explosive canopy Miniature Detonation
Cord, so this canopy was used.

The kit supplies instrument panels with

lovely raised details that benefit from
Wheel wells, landing gear and wheel hubs careful painting, as shown here.
were airbrushed Tamiya Gloss White.
Oxygen hoses and Remove Before Flight tags
were added to extra add
colour and interest to the
cockpit seats.

Thirty
A dry fit of Here the cockpit grams of
the seats tub is shown cemented fishing weights
shows that to the forward fuselage were cemented
even a modern halves and the single-piece ahead of the cockpit
cockpit can look upper fuselage and wing. Clever tub, and more aft of
rather colourful with mouldings and gluing from inside on the the rear cockpit
some thoughtful painting nose parts means only a tiny seam line on bulkhead as the forward
and detailing. the nose remains. space was limited.

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K I N E T I C ’S 1/48 M  346 M A S T E R A D VA N C E D T R A I N E R
Engine parts painted Testors Model
Master Metalizer Gunmetal and dry
brushed Humbrol Chrome Silver - a
classic technique that is still just as
useful as ever.
The fully painted cockpit with HUD
assembled gives an idea of the high level
of detail supplied in the kit.
Photoetched wing fences cemented to
the fuselage with some two-part epoxy
used to fill the over-large gap between
the intake chine and slats.
Due to my propensity for breaking landing
gear, I drilled through the nose gear strut part
A24 and the nose wheel and inserted a metal
rod through them both. To enable nose gear
installation at the final stages of assembly, I cut
off the two stubs that locate the nose gear strut
between the wheel well side walls and extended
the metal rod to fit into a hole I had drilled
through the wheel well roof. I left off the strut’s
detail parts until the painting stage was reached
due to their very delicate edges and also drilled
the lamp to accept a reflective lens at the
finishing stage.
The main landing gear wheel well assembly
parts (A88 and A89) are shown in the wrong
wheel well, so I swapped their placement in
order to have the required detail inside the
wheel wells. Air intakes and exhaust ducts have
ejector pin marks inside them that required
sanding smooth prior to assembly, lest they
were visible once installed
I strengthened the main undercarriage in a
similar manner, adding an additional metal pin
to attach the upper and lower sections more
30 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
The four angle of attack probes were
replaced with metal needles and
masking tape used to protect the kit's
plastic nose tip from damage.
Inner intake lips were also painted
FS35237 prior to installation, which
saves some tricky masking at the
painting stage.
Sponge was used to mask the wheel
wells and intakes voids, with masking
tape protecting the edges and legs.
securely. The shock strut scissors were left off at
this stage to avoid breakage. Skipping to the
upper fuselage and wing sub-assembly, the
outboard wing root access panel lines are
missing. On the actual aircraft, these panels are
slightly proud of the upper wing skin, but I
opted for an easier solution by only scribing the
missing panel lines. The upper fuselage vents are
closed when the aircraft is unpowered and these
parts are provided as options so were installed.
The port aft-fuselage photoetched vent was
attached to the fuselage using cyanoacrylate
glue, while the starboard exhaust brass piece
was found to be redundant and not used. I
added the stage speed brake at this stage and it
needed a slight sanding of the surrounding
fuselage to match its contour.
I opted to use the late-type canopy with an
explosive charge wire embossed inside the clear
areas. The sequence of assembly required
installation of the inner clear windshield using
Revell Contacta cement along its rim. This was
followed with the attachment of the
photoetched mirror attachment using
Intake lips were painted FS35237 Gray
and added to the assembled fuselage,
but their raised locating channels
needed removal to obtain a flush fit with
the fuselage.
Fin,
horizontal
stabilisers,
leading edge
slats, trailing
edge flaps, and
ailerons were
installed after the
intake lips, as were the fin blade
antennas, clean-up of which was
deemed better now even though
this made decaling a little
trickier.
Blade antennas were trimmed and
added atop the nose section. The kit
gives different configurations for
different versions so watch out.
cyanoacrylate glue. Once the part took hold,
excess glue and fog were removed with a cotton
swab whetted with Deluxe ‘Glue Buster’
cyanoacrylate glue remover (check that your
debonder doesn’t fog or craze the plastic on
some spare clear parts or sprue first though -
Editor). Photoetched rear view mirrors were
attached on the forward canopy bow, using
cyanoacrylate glue again.
I could now concentrate on painting the
cockpit. The kits instructions don’t give a Federal
Standard 595 colour for this area, so using
photos I ‘eyeballed’ the main colour to be close
to Revell Light Blue Grey FS36375 (374). The
ejection seats were brush-painted and set aside
for installation during final assembly, with the
instrument panels and coaming also being left
off to be added at a later stage after painting.
The cockpit tub assembly was tacked into the
forward nose section halves using liquid cement
and, once satisfied with their correct fit,
cyanoacrylate glue was applied internally to
provide greater strength, while avoiding a messy
external joint line which would some heavy
 K I N E T I C ’S 1/48 M  346 M A S T E R A D VA N C E D T R A I N E R

Cockpit masking
shown in progress.
To obtain the
proper
luminescence
from the
mixed red-
orange
colour, it was
sprayed over a layer of white.
This ‘underpinning’ trick also
works with yellow paints too.
Humbrol Semi-Gloss Black was sprayed on
the radome and upper anti-glare
section. It’s unusual to see a black A Van Gogh black and white oil paint
radome on a twenty-first- mix diluted with mineral
century jet. It could be to spirits was applied to
aid forward visual enhance the kit's recessed
recognition. panel lines.

Excess oil paint was
removed with Q-tips
to leave the wing
relatively clean and
the detail gently
highlighted.
sanding. At this stage the main upper fuselage
was added to this forward fuselage-cockpit sub-
assembly and bonded with cyanoacrylate. To
prevent tail sitting, a fishing weight was glued
forward of the cockpit tub and extra weights
were also added aft of the rear cockpit bulkhead.
The main landing gear wheel well sub-
assemblies were now painted Tamiya Gloss
White (X-2) and given a wash of enamel flat
black to enhance their detail. Engine parts were
painted Testors Model Master Metalizer
Gunmetal (1405) and dry brushed Humbrol
Chrome Silver (191). The intakes were installed
separately, with the backing plate for the twin
engine fan blades installed after they were in
Oil wash
shown on
the upper
fuselage
with the
wing's
Future
gloss
finish
reflecting
the
lighting.
place. With the intakes and exhausts in place, the cemented in place with cyanoacrylate glue. The
upper and lower fuselage halves were brought radome then was added and its plastic tip
together. Their fit was precise with minimal protected with masking tape to avoid accidental
sanding required at the lower intake and aft chipping. I airbrushed the intake lip parts with
fuselage joint lines. The vertical fin, lower wings, Testors Model Masters FS35237 Medium Gray
leading edge slats, and trailing edge flaps were (1721) and added them to the lower fuselage. I
added next, cemented in place with could now insert the previously painted cockpit
cyanoacrylate glue to prevent softening the instrument panels, combings and HUDs
plastic and provide a strong bond. although the seats and joysticks were still left
Trial dry-fitting of the fin’s blade antennas out for final assembly. Once done, the canopy
showed that they were better added prior to internal frames, moulded in grey plastic, were
painting in order to avoid alignment and glue brush painted flat black then the outside of the
smears at the later critical decaling and finishing canopy and windscreen masked and sprayed
stage. The kit’s four plastic nose angle of attack Humbrol Semi-Gloss Black (85) followed by
probes were replaced by metal needle pins Testors Model Master FS35237 Medium Gray.

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K I N E T I C ’S 1/48 M  346 M A S T E R A D VA N C E D T R A I N E R
Painting
Fuel tanks and pylons were
sprayed overall Testors Model
Masters FS35237 Medium Gray
with their leading edges and fins
brush-painted Revell Grey Silk (374).
Missile rails were painted Testors
Model Master FS36231 Interior Gray
(1740) with the AIM-9L/M missiles in
FS36375 Light Ghost Gray (1728). On the
airframe the fuselage nose section,
radome, windshield and vertical fin tip were
sprayed Humbrol Semi-Gloss Black (85). The
lower wing sections were sprayed Revell White
(04), followed by a
blend of Revell
enamel
paints, two
parts Red (36)
to three parts
Yellow (310),
mixed to match
the real aircraft's
FS31302 red-orange.
The entire model was
then sprayed with a
layer of acrylic Future
(Klear) in preparation for
decal and oil paint
weathering.
Decals
The kit's decals are tough and
can be moved around without fear
of tearing them. They were all applied
atop a brushed-on layer of Future, with
no need for decal softener. The stencil
application instructions are confusing
however, due to multiple numbers pointing to
the same location. I resorted to photos to
confirm many of their locations.
In hindsight, I’d recommend performing the
following actions prior to painting: sand off the
vertical fin root strip-light raised detail, as the
decal is longer than it and is printed with the
frame anyway. Don’t bother attaching the
wingtip brass tip lights, as the kit decals provide
the frame details and again, the decals are
longer than the brass parts anyway. I had
applied the elliptical
transparent plastic
ejection handle
32 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
windows
with clear
epoxy, but it’s
not necessary
since decal 105 is
opaque and covers
the clear area, so
they can simply be
installed prior to this
stage and painted grey
with the rest of the model.
Once all decals were in place,
the kit's panel lines were
enhanced with an oil paint wash,
the excess being removed with Q-
Tips to leave the recessed details suitably
darkened.
Final Assembly
To preserve the oil wash while handling the
model during final assembly, it was sprayed with
a layer of clear semi-matt coat consisting of a
mix of Tamiya Flat Base (XF-21), Future and
isopropyl alcohol. The nose gear lamp
and main gear taxi lights were drilled
out and silver reflective lenses
installed with two-part clear epoxy
cement. Next the main landing gear
was assembled.
On
reflection,
the pegs
moulded to the
main gear doors
would best be dry-fitted
to the landing gear struts
before painting to ensure their
proper location and fit. The
forward parts of the intake position
lights were trimmed off and
replaced with reflective
lenses, as was the tail light. The
upper and lower fuselage
strobe lights are clear when
viewed from the sides, but have a
yellow bulb inside. I replicated this by
painting just the base of the bulb inserts
yellow. Lower fuselage antennas were
added next, painted black. I’d opted for a
relatively aerodynamically clear display, so
just added a pair of underwing external fuel
tanks. These were painted and decaled as
per photos before securing under the wings
using cyanoacrylate glue.
There is an error in the instructions when
it comes to installation of the canopy in the
open state. The canopy’s hinge pin goes into
the side of the rear instrument panel
combing, but if part 52 is attached following
the instructions it seems to prevent this. I
think this part should be installed only if the
closed canopy option is chosen. With most of
the assembly out of the way, It was now finally
safe to add the delicate upper fuselage chine
probes.
Conclusion
Kinetic’s M346 Master/Lavi does require some
prior experience in model building due to the
intricate photoetch and clear part sub-
assemblies. Kinetic should be commended for
the excellent recessed detail, fit, and for the
decal accuracy and quality. I built this kit straight
out of the box, with no need for any
aftermarket items.
 K I N E T I C ’S 1/48 M  346 M A S T E R A D VA N C E D T R A I N E R

The author wishes to thank Shay Finkelman for his permission to use his images in this article. Copyright is retained by the owner.

A clear shot of the front

cockpit provides
modellers valuable
colour callouts for
various details. Note
the general cleanliness.

Rear underside showing

the demarcation of the
heat resistant metal
panelling and other details
that can just add ‘that
certain touch’ to a model.

Intake trunking. It looks creamy A useful shot showing

white but that is just lighting stencil placement and
effects. ‘Normal’ white is fine. the exact demarcation of
the anti-glare panel
ahead of the windscreen.
This machine has canopy
breakers on the ejection
seats, and a canopy with
no MDC.

A close up
of 125’s
nose giving A perfect shot
a clear view for the modeller
of the 50th of the nose leg,
anniversary showing wiring
badge as and pipework
well as routing and
more stencil connector
details. colours.

A shot of
the
outside
of the
main
Brake dust and gear legs
dirt on the inside provides
of the main wheel further
leg. Note how the details.
hydraulic tubing
anchors onto the
rear oleo scissor
link and then
coils below.

FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12 33

F 6 F  3 N H E L LC AT N I G H T F I G H T E R
Mark Casiglia slims down
Trumpeter’s nocturnal fat cat.
M
y preferred genre in modelling is 1/32
World War II single-engine piston-
engined aircraft. A noticeable gap in my
collection, especially considering its significance,
was the Hellcat. I was aware that Trumpeter
offered some Hellcat variants and when I saw a
kit for sale at little more than half price at a local
IPMS meeting, I promptly snapped it up.
This model was of the F6F-3N, a night fighter
variant of the initial Hellcat introduced in 1943. It
served in the Pacific Theatre for several months
before being replaced (although never entirely)
by the ‘dash-5N’ variant. The outer starboard
Grumman F6F-3N Hellcat wing leading-edge carried a characteristic pod
Kit No: 02258 containing a radar antenna dish.
Pleased with my budget acquisition into the
Scale: 1/32 stash it went, awaiting its turn on the bench. In
Type: Injection Moulded Plastic the interim though a problem occurred. I
became aware of some significant errors in
Manufacturer: Trumpeter Trumpeter’s treatment of the fuselage shape.
www.trumpeter-china.com While Hasegawa’s offering, released in 1975, is
widely regarded as true to form regarding shape,
UK Distributor: building it would mean dealing with raised
www.bachmann-europe.co.uk panel lines, more sparse detail and various other
issues related to a 45 year-old tooling.
My choices therefore were to sell the kit,
build it as presented or try to modify
the kit to correct, or at least
minimise,
Trumpeter’s
34 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
mistakes. The shape issues concerned the
fuselage from the nose to the area aft of the
cockpit. It is too wide from the cockpit forward to
the spinner and shows a pronounced bulge in
the fuselage aft of the canopy. Hellcats are
characterised by their fuselage slimness and as
such, Trumpeter’s bulbous offering missed the
mark completely.
Perhaps stupidly, and most likely due to my
yearning for a Hellcat on the shelf, I decided to
tackle some shape alterations and get this thing
built. I knew it wouldn’t be an easy task, but it
became a classic Pandora’s box where one
apparently simple change led to a range of
follow-on effects that all needed attention to get
this model over the line.
Things started with a good look at the parts
and an assessment of what might be needed.
The most obvious change was going to be
straightening and narrowing the outwardly
bulged fuselage aft of the canopy. Although
the fuselage is too wide forward of the
cockpit I couldn’t envisage a way to deal with
it short of major surgery, so the plan would
be to merge this into the narrowing of the
fuselage over the length of the cockpit. I
started with the bulkhead behind the pilot’s
seat. I reshaped it to straighten and narrow
the sides, creating a more triangular shape
with a pointier peak rather than the
rounded kit version. This bulkhead
became a template for the reshaping
of the fuselage halves. I used
boiling water to soften the
plastic to try to flatten it,
which is not at all as easy as it
sounds because the styrene
seems to have a lot of elastic
memory. Once I’d
 F 6 F  3 N H E L LC AT N I G H T F I G H T E R

The cockpit floor also needed

Removal of styrene was marked out to some plastic removal to allow for
The rounded, swollen fuselage cross section is the main create the more characteristic triangular the fuselage’s newly- tapered
problem with the Trumpeter kit. cross section. construction.

Despite cutting away

plastic, there was still
‘bulging’ along the
upper spine.

Plastic removal for the upper

midline was marked out as far as the
first light fitting along the spine.

Internal ribs were

trimmed to allow a
snug fit of the A check fit of the modified
adjusted, narrower cockpit floor with extension of
bulkheads. cut-outs for fuselage ribs.

managed to get the fuselage halves to match
the reshaped bulkhead, I observed an expected
rise in height of the spine, as pinching the sides
inwards had caused them to extend upwards.
The cleanest way to deal with this was, I decided,
to remove plastic from the midline on both
fuselage halves up to the point of the first light
fitting aft of the cockpit. It was then a matter of
using boiling water again with pliers, to bend
the top of the fuselage halves and curve back
inwards to meet each other.
Once the major fuselage changes were made,
it was time to build up the cockpit. I needed to
be mindful, however, that the rear of the cockpit
assembly now needed to fit the narrower
fuselage width I’d created, with the forward
section as is. This meant I needed gradually to
change the dimensions over the length of the
cockpit assembly so that it would fit neatly.
There were also several ribs on the inside of the
newly narrowed section of the fuselage halves
that needed trimming to allow them to fit
against the cockpit assembly. Similarly, once the
floor was trimmed to taper and conform, some
cut-outs that fitted around fuselage ribs needed
to be re-jigged to give a positive, snug fit. Side
instrument panels were trimmed and pushed
inwards to conform with the new shape.
So far, and surprisingly, so good. With the
cockpit built and test-fitted, I painted it and
added detail using Eduard’s ZOOM interior detail
set (ref. 33235) and their coloured photoetch
seatbelts set (ref. 33236). Both these sets really
made the cockpit pop with detail and made a
definite improvement. An interesting
observation about the cockpit was the width of
the pilot’s seat. To my eye, it looks over-wide and
I can only assume that this is a side effect of
matching the girth of it to the dimensional
problems in the kit. The main cockpit colour was
GSI Mr Hobby Interior Green (H58) over Mr
Surfacer 1500 Black primer. Tamiya Rubber Black
(XF-85) and Chrome Silver (X-11) were used to
pick out details and add chipping. The cockpit
was finished with a coat of Tamiya Clear (X-22),
followed by a wash of Tamiya Panel Line Accent
Color Brown (87131), some light dry-brushing
and, finally, a coat of XF-86 Flat Clear (XF-86)
thinned with Mr Levelling Thinner to reduce the
flatness of the final finish slightly.
The cockpit was then fitted and reaching the
moment of truth, the fuselage halves joined.
Since there was still a fair amount of elastic
memory in the styrene, I needed to ensure
things were well clamped and bonded to the
cockpit assembly as this was obviously serving
as the main former for the shape change. As a

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F 6 F  3 N H E L LC AT N I G H T F I G H T E R

Bulging also occurs on the lower rear centreline as a result of the

fuselage squeeze, seen here prior to any styrene removal.
Comparing the Hasegawa cross section (left) with the adjusted
Trumpeter (right) shows how effective the remedial work is.

Test-fitting of the kit canopy prior to the fracture shows the large
difference created with fuselage alteration. The canopy should be almost Finished adjusted cockpit assembly with Eduard interior detail and
flush to the sides. photoetched harnesses. The latter really does add an air of authenticity.

result, once it had all cured, the rear cockpit
bulkhead to fuselage area needed cleaning up,
repainting and finishing.
The kit offers many interior components for
the fuselage, which I left out as there was no way
they would be seen. Similarly, large parts of the
engine were omitted for the same reason. I
chose only to build and paint the front part of
the radial engine, adding some copper wire as
an ignition harness to make it look a little busier
and more realistic. The engine was painted in Mr
Hobby Metal Black (H-18), Tamiya Neutral Gray
(XF-53) and detailed with Tamiya’s Copper (XF-6)
and Chrome Silver (X-11). The next step involved
mounting the engine onto the fuselage and
installation of the exhaust pipes. This seemed
rather over-complicated and I’m sure Trumpeter
could have engineered this much more simply. I
painted the interior of this area silver and
masked it off since I wanted to pose the cowl
flaps open and these areas would be seen.
Finally, the cowling, with interior primed and
finished in the interior green, was bonded to the
fuselage.
The project’s next phase saw some major
snags regarding the clear canopy parts. The
sliding canopy threatened to create problems
which I still hadn’t resolved in my mind at the
start of the build, namely ‘How would I deal with
the bulbous canopy now that I had slimmed
down the fuselage?’ I wanted to pose the sliding
canopy open, but when placed over the newly
reshaped area of the model, it was very obvious
that It was now completely the wrong shape
with a large gap under it rather than the snug fit
that would be expected. I attempted to reshape
it using hot water but only managed to craze the
plastic, before finally cracking it right down the
midline. I investigated a number of solutions.
First, I emailed Trumpeter to ask for a
replacement, but received no reply, which was
probably just as well because I’m not sure what I
might’ve done. Then there was the idea of a
Squadron vacform canopy. These are designed
to fit the Hasegawa Hellcat and, well … I just
wasn’t sure about using vacform either…Then I
thought about it. What if I could pick up a cheap
Hasegawa kit? After a quick eBay search revealed
something at a very good price, I decided to buy
it. I was also curious about many other aspects of
the shape so I thought it would be a good
reference too, and If it became nothing else,
eventually a new paint mule. (Anything to justify
spending more money - proper modeller’s
reasoning in fact. Editor). So, one whole kit later, I
now had a new sliding canopy. Of course, and in
typical fashion, I now had the opposite problem
– the canopy was a little small. I decided to press
on with the build and work it out at the end.
The windshield was next to be attached.
Having slimmed the fuselage with the taper
returning back to normal at around the level of
the instrument panel, there was a small amount
of residual narrowing where the aft portion of
the windscreen bonds to the fuselage. I didn’t
think it would be a big deal, but there was too
much flex in the windscreen to bond it in one go
and hot water had no effect at all. So I elected to
cement the windscreen’s port side with Tamiya
Extra Thin Cement and let it set for a full 24
hours before clamping and bonding the
opposite side. I was nervous about residual
stress in the styrene as it was forced together
against its will. A day later, my fears were made
real as the stress released itself in the form of a
large crack on the starboard pane of the
windshield. By now I felt like I was being
assaulted from all sides and pondered what my
options would now be. The Hasegawa
windscreen actually worked out at a scale 13cm
(about 5 inches) too narrow, so no wonder it
cracked when trying to force it 4mm wider on
the model.
Looking at the Squadron vacform again, I
realised that too had the same problem in that it
was modelled off the Hasegawa parts. Then it
dawned on me. There was an alternate
windscreen on the clear parts sprue, albeit for a
different Hellcat variant. Fortunately, the sides
were the same from one to the other, so I
proceeded to cut the cracked starboard pane off
the main windscreen. After carefully removing
an exact same-sized piece from the alternate
windscreen it was bonded in place with Revell
Contacta cement along the sill and framing. My

36 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K

Fuselage joining was done under constant
pressure with cyanoacrylate reinforcement,
to ensure the sides really did conform to the
new ‘slimline’ shape.
Fitting of engine and exhausts, and checking seams and repairs with
black primer to detect any flaws.
Stress fracture of the starboard windshield
pane, caused by trying to spread it across too
wide a gap. Clear polystyrene will often do
this, or craze if subjected to this treatment,
and often it occurs only after a little time, so
can return to haunt the builder.
thought was that the paint would mostly
obscure these joins and this proved to be largely
correct in the end. Now the windshield was
fitted and repaired, I masked off the canopy.
Next, it was time to install the non-folding
wing root stubs and tailplanes. Fitting the wing
roots presented another set of problems which
came as a result of narrowing the fuselage. The
wingroots have a single piece underside
containing both lower sides and the belly of the
fuselage. Just as the upper spine had pushed
upwards with the inward pinch of the fuselage,
so the belly had pushed downwards. While
efforts had been made to trim the midline belly
plastic to circumvent this prior to joining the
fuselage halves, there was still a noticeable step
The wing root needed filling with a
cyanoacrylate and dental acrylic mix, to
eradicate the gap created by the fuselage
width change at its rear.
The bulge looks decidedly better with a straighter, more triangular
shape now achieved.
Removal of cracked pane and marking up a
replacement section from the alternate
canopy.
between the wing’s belly portion and that of the
rear main fuselage. This was solved with a
combination of more plastic removal and
addition of filler, in this case Tamiya Putty White.
Re-scribing and adding new rivets was simple
enough if painstaking, but some larger ‘Dzus’
type fasteners also needed to be reinstated. I
don’t own a punch and die set, so I looked on
eBay again and found some biopsy punches in
different sizes. I used the 1mm diameter punch
to reproduce the lost fasteners’ outer circular
shape and they were neatly finished by scribing
a diagonal line across each one.
Another side effect of fuselage narrowing
were gaps at the upper wing root joints. These
were quite large, so I wanted something with a
FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12
F 6 F  3 N H E L LC AT N I G H T F I G H T E R
Finished engine front, with the added copper
wire ignition harness. The rest of the engine
was ignored, as little would be visible
Bonding the new pane into position. Note the
poor surface of the clear styrene (but still
better than a crack).
little more body than regular putty. I considered
using sheet styrene but settled on a mix of
cyanoacrylate and dental acrylic powder, which
creates a good strong filler. I also noticed that
the inward surfaces of the inboard wing flaps
were now too far away from the narrowed
fuselage. This was easily solved by adding a layer
of correct thickness of Evergreen styrene sheet
to extend them.
With these areas addressed I could then add
the wings in my chosen extended pose, which
would to complete the main building work.
The landing gear had lead wire added to
simulate hydraulic lines before it was glued into
position. I chose to replace the kit’s rubber
wheels with resin offerings by Res/Kit but left
37
F 6 F  3 N H E L LC AT N I G H T F I G H T E R

Fully assembled and ready for painting, now is the time to check for any
The repaired windshield with joints that will disappear along painted
final imperfections, faults, and forgotten tasks.
frame lines – a neat solution to an otherwise nightmarish scenario.

Upper paintwork with the preliminary fading underway. Paints for naval
aircraft were hard wearing, but these machines saw a lot of use in often
adverse conditions.
Underside painted in white with subtle weathering being applied once
the entire camo scheme had been added.

The starboard wing home-cut mask. Beats decals every time, especially The painted serial code using USAF Amarillo font, which matches the
when it comes to getting the port ‘bar’ to go over a big lump like the decals exactly. This is also called ‘US 45 degree corner lettering’ and was
AN/AP-6 radar pod. used by the Navy until the mid-1950s.

these off for the time being. Prior to priming, the
entire model was then thoroughly checked
before applying Mr Surfacer 1500 Black. Once
defects were identified and rectified I painted
the underside in Mr Color FS17875 White (C-316)
with the prop assembly, landing gear, bombs,
rockets and fuel tank being completed and
painted now too.
After using Blu Tack to create a soft edge mask
for the lower white colour, the next colour to
apply was AK Real Colors FS35164 Intermediate
Blue (RC235). This was my first time using this
paint and I must say I was impressed. After
further Blu Tack masking, the upper fuselage and
wing top paintwork was done in Mr Color
FS15042 Gloss Sea Blue (C-365). Both blues were
applied with varying shades, created by adding
differing amounts of the white into the mix. I
wanted to replicate the patchy fading typical of
carrier-based aircraft but tried to keep the effect
subtle yet noticeable.
The real fun now began with what was to
come. I had recently purchased a Silhouette
Portrait 2 cutting machine with the intention of
creating homemade paint masks. Having found
some sheets of Oramask 810 vinyl film, I
embarked on the steep, but achievable, learning
curve of how to make masks. I used the
software’s auto-tracing function to produce
exact replicas of the decal sheet’s main insignia.
The serial codes were trickier because there
wasn’t enough contrast between them and the
decal sheet background to allow the auto-trace
to produce a faithful set of masks. Asking online,
I was pointed to the website dafont.com where I
could source the Amarillo USAF font and import
it into the Silhouette’s software. (Most ‘free’ font
websites will allow you to download typefaces for
your own personal use, but you should consult the
licensing agreement or creator if you intend to use
them for commercial purposes - Editor).
With the font loaded, it was simply a matter of
typing in what I needed, specifying the exact
dimensions, and cutting the masks. It was
literally that easy and my only problem with it
now, is that I can’t complete projects fast
enough to allow me to play with it as much
as I’d like.

38 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K

The insignia were painted using Mr Hobby
FS15044 Insignia Blue (H-326) and Mr Color
FS17875 White (C-316). The blue was then faded
and patched by diluting with the white and the
serial codes were simply painted white. I’d used
Montex masks plenty of times before so knew
how things worked, but using home cut masks
was particularly satisfying. At this point I added
some subtle chipping effects to various areas
using Tamiya Chrome Silver enamel paint (X-11)
and a dental probe.
The entire model was then gloss-coated with
Tamiya Clear (X-22) and the kit’s decals were
applied for the various stencils with varying
degrees of success. I’m not sure what it is about
decals, but I’ve always found them to be hit-and-
miss, despite using the same technique for all of
them with my chosen solutions of Micro Set and
Micro Sol and following instructions to the letter.
I disguised any minor silvering with varying
opacities of paint, which also served to create
the effect of faded markings.
The model was once again clear-coated, this
time using Tamiya Semi-Gloss (X-35). An overall
oil paint wash, mostly of black mixed with a
touch of burnt umber, heavily thinned with
odourless solvent, was applied and allowed to
dry before being wiped away to reveal the panel
lines and rivets. I varied the amount of removal,
allowing it to stay heavier in places where dirt
and grime would naturally accumulate. More oil
paints were then used to build up grime over
the fuel tank and to create streaks on both sides
of the wings and tail surfaces.
The ‘breakables’ were then attached, including
the wing machine gun barrels, the pitot tube
and the antenna mast. Exhaust and cordite
F 6 F  3 N H E L LC AT N I G H T F I G H T E R
stains were then applied using black and burnt
umber Liquitex acrylic inks, mixed sparingly with
isopropyl alcohol and airbrushed on. The beauty
of this method is that the mixture is so thin its
opacity can be built up gradually allowing the
result to be checked progressively to prevent
overdoing things.
Soft edges are also very easy to create as
many passes are needed to create any kind of
density to the colour. The same mixture was
used to add grime to various other areas.
After the completion of this build I realised there
was an error with the wing armament. Trumpeter's
kit provides, and the instructions only mention
using, the later-5N armament of the 20mm cannon
and wing guns, rather than the all-machine gun
armament of the -3N. By the time this was realised,
and research confirmed it was the case, the model
was photographed and the article submitted. At
the Editor's recommendation I have decided to
leave the piece unchanged except for this notice to
advise modellers of the potential pitfall.
The model was then brought to completion
by adding Modelkasten 0.2mm black elastic
thread for the radio wires with small amounts of
cyanoacrylate. The wheels were located onto the
landing gear and the entire model was coated
with Testors Dullcote Lacquer. The tyre rubber
was then brush-painted with AK Ultra Matte
varnish to create a different lustre and masks
were removed from the windscreen, canopy and
various navigation lights. The too-tight sliding
canopy was carefully (and fortunately without
damage) coaxed into position and secured with
AMMO Ultra Glue. With that this often painful,
but interesting, build was now complete.
FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12 39
AIRCRAFT IN PROFILE
ISSUE 58
The frontline Ilyushin Il-28 bomber and its modifications
By Nikolai Yakubovich
T
he first attempts at creating jet
bombers in the USSR, based on the
use of captured German Jumo-004
and BMW-003 engines, were not
successful. The British Nene-1 and Derwent
V gas turbine engines, supplied by the
British and copied by the Soviets, became
the ‘lifeline’ that lifted Soviet aviation up to
a higher level. The first of these developed
more than 2,000kgs of thrust and had,
according to assessments made by
indigenous specialists, considerable
reserves. By all accounts, when the UK
Government discovered the ‘deception’
they sued the USSR for illegally copying
their engines. In the USSR, however,
provision had already been made for this -
while attempting to increase the thrust of
the Nene up to 2,270kgs Soviet specialists
had expanded the air ducts within them,
having increased the air flow rate. This,
then, was no longer a Nene, but a Soviet
RD-45F engine…
On 31 October 1947 the Chief Designer
of OKB-240 Sergey Ilyushin sent a letter to
the leadership of the aviation industry with
a proposal to create a bomber fitted with
two ‘Nene’ engines, with a deadline for
commencing flight-testing in July of the
following year. In the end, designers
The Il-28 during state testing.
succeeded in creating the first indigenous,
production jet bomber the Il-28. Ilyushin
approved the outline design for the Il-28
on 12 January 1948.
By summer 1948 a prototype example of
the aircraft was almost ready. In
accordance with the specification the
speed at low-level was to be no more than
750km/hr and 825 – 850km/hr at an
altitude of 6,000m. The flight range was
provisionally no less than 2,400km at an
altitude of between 10 – 13km with
1,000kg of bombs (the maximum bomb
load was 3,000kg), and the practical ceiling
was 13km. The take-off roll without rockets
The prototype example of the
Il-28U during state testing.
AIRCRAFT IN PROFILE
was not to exceed 850m.
The bomber was protected in the
forward hemisphere by two fixed guns
placed in the forward fuselage, while
another feature of this aircraft was the
‘two-seat’ cockpit for the navigator, which
combined the duties of a navigator and
bombardier. On take-off and landing they
would be seated in an ejection seat, and in
flight they would sit at their desk alongside
the bomb sights.
The layout of the Nene gas turbine
engine with its centrifugal compressor
caused the designers some concerns, but
these were largely resolved by moving the
bulk of the engine forward of the leading
edge of the wing so that only the extended
exhaust pipe passed under the lifting
surface. After rotating through 90° the
main undercarriage wheels would sit flush
into a recess under the rear of the engine,
and when lowered the undercarriage bays
were enclosed behind doors, which
prevented the ingress of any dirt. For the
first time in Soviet practice on a front line
bomber a PSBN radar system was
envisaged, which was designed not only
for bombing but for surveying the terrain
for navigation. The OPB-6sr optical sight
was linked to the PSBN radar. The OPB-6sr
was automated for longitudinal aiming,
while directional aiming was achieved
using the AP-5 autopilot.
A prototype Il-28 was handed over for
A pair of Il-28s in flight in
echelon formation.
flight-testing on 29 May 1948 and the first
flight was performed in this aircraft on 8
July of that same year by test-pilot Vladimir
Kokkinaki. This aircraft displayed excellent
handling and stability, and was able to fly
on one engine. On two engines the well-
balanced airframe could be flown with no
hands on the controls, and there was no
tendency for the aircraft to stall or to enter
a spin. The swept tail plane design enabled
stability and handling to be retained up to
a flight speed that corresponded to Mach
0.82, which was the limit for an aircraft with
a straight wing, but at this point vibration
would develop in the tailfin, which would
develop into a shaking of the entire
aircraft. In order to increase flight safety the
An Il-28Sh ground attack aircraft.
 AIRCRAFT IN PROFILE

Harbin H-5, 3608, 3rd Sqn Albanian Air Force, Rinas, Albania, 2000
The finish is overall aluminium; the radome appears to be dark green. The codes are in red.

Harbin H-5, 310, Romanian Air Force, Fetesti, 2001

This was specially painted to attend RIAT in 2001 but was written off in a landing accident weeks
before. The undersides are white-grey with Light Sea Blue while the upper surfaces are Dark Sea Blue.
The trim tabs are red and the codes are black. Note the polar bear motif.

Il-28, 211, Algerian Air Force, Algiers, 1966

Overall finished in aluminium; the radome appears to be black. The codes are also in black.

Il-28 (AVIA B-228), DE-50, Czechoslovak Air Force, c. end of 1950s

Overall aluminium, with the radome painted in what appears to be light green. A similar colour seems
to be used for blinding the rear section of the canopy. The codes are in black.
AIRCRAFT IN PROFILE

Il-28, 'Blue 35', unidentified unit, Soviet Air Forces, c. 1960s

Overall finished in aluminium with blue codes.

Il-28, 184, East German Air Force, c. 1960s

This aircraft was used as the testbed for the Pirna 014 jet engine and entered service with the GDR Air
Force from 1961. It was used mainly for target towing duties. Overall, it is finished in aluminium. The
rear section of the canopy has been blinded out in black. Note the crudely painted codes and the
removal of the radome and cannons.

Il-28, 1733, 77th Independent Tactical Bomber Squadron, Egyptian Air Force, Kom Awshim Airbase October 1973
Sand and dark green upper surfaces with the underside painted in sky blue. Note: The codes are 1733 in Arabic numerals.

Il-28, 34, Hungarian Air Force, c. 1962

The finish is overall aluminium, while the radome is black. The codes are in red with white outlines.
 AIRCRAFT IN PROFILE

Il-28, 552, Nigerian Air Force, Port Harcourt, 1970

Finished overall in light earth with a two-tone dark and Light green camouflage and olive drab.
The codes are black.

Il-28, PLAAF (Chinese Air Force) 0195, Jianqiao, 1965

0195 defected from China to Taiwan in 1965. It is now displayed at the Air Force Academy in Southern
Taiwan. It is finished with light green upper surfaces, similar to RLM82. The lower surfaces are in light
blue, with the codes in yellow.

Il-28, 'Red 15', Soviet Air Forces, Werneuchen, East Germany, 1958
Overall finished in aluminium with red codes.

Il-28, 1714, UARAF, United Arab Republic, Cairo-West AB, 1967

Seen during the Six Days War. Overall finished in aluminium, with black codes.
Note: the codes are the Arabic numerals for 1714.
AIRCRAFT IN PROFILE
AIRCRAFT IN PROFILE
 AIRCRAFT IN PROFILE

Il-28R, NH-2, Finnish Air Force, Utti AB, 1970s

Overall finished in aluminium with orange high-visibility patches on the wing tanks, forward
engine cowlings, and the tail. Primarily used as a target tug.

Il-28R, 'Red 72', 21st Tactical Recon Sqn Polish Air Force, Sochaczew, Poland 1966
Overall finished in aluminium, while the radome is greyish blue. The codes are in red as is the top of
the tail fin.

Il-28R, 'Yellow 05', Brand, East Germany, 1958

Finished with light green upper surfaces. The lower surfaces are in light blue, while the codes are in yellow with black
outlines. The wing tip tanks are aluminium. The radome is a similar to the upper surfaces.

Il-28U, 'Red 02', unidentified unit, Soviet Air Forces

Overall finished in aluminium. The codes are in red. Note: ‘Excellent Aircraft’badge.
AIRCRAFT IN PROFILE

Il-28U, 'Red S3', 7th Assault Regiment, Polish Navy, Siemirowice, 1975
Overall finished in aluminium. The codes are in red as is the top of the tail fin.

Typical upper and lower markings for a standard Il-28


maximum speed of the Il-28 was
subsequently limited to Mach 0.78. State
testing of the prototype Il-28 was
completed in September 1949. In October
1950 an Il-28 fitted with a VK-1 engine
successfully underwent testing with a
bomb load of 2,000kg, while a month later
this was completed with a bomb load of
3,000kg, and in December the aircraft
achieved this with a full load of fuel. At the
beginning of 1951 a brake parachute was
tested on the Il-28, which shortened the
aircraft’s landing roll considerably.
At the end of 1949 series production
began at three factories simultaneously, in
Moscow, Omsk, and Voronezh. The
following year these production aircraft
began to enter service and in total some
6,316 Il-28 aircraft were produced by the
Soviet aviation industry in all variants.
The first modification of the aircraft was
the trainer variant, the Il-28U. In contrast to
the combat aircraft the fuselage nose
section was remodelled up to the sixth
frame, which was where the flight
instructor’s cockpit was placed. Flight, and
engine controls were fitted inside this
cockpit, as well as controls to retract the
flaps and undercarriage. The PSBN radar
system was removed from the aircraft,
together with defensive armament, bomb
sights and racks, camera equipment, and
the crew’s protective armour.
In 1950 the Il-28R reconnaissance
aircraft, fitted exclusively with cameras
enabling aerial photography by both day
and night, appeared. Cameras were fitted
both in the bomb bay, including an AKAFU
revolving assembly, as well as in a small
compartment in the tail of the aircraft.
On 9 January 1951 the Il-28T torpedo-
carrier made its first flight. The aircraft’s
starboard forward cannon was removed,
new camera equipment was installed as
well as electric heaters in the pilot’s and
navigator’s cockpits, along with an LAS-3M
An Il-28R reconnaissance aircraft on one of the airfields in the Primorsk region
prior to scrapping. This photo was taken in the mid-1980s. (I. Mikhelevich archive)
AIRCRAFT IN PROFILE
An Il-28 on take-off with a PM-3zh
target on a rigid towbar connection.
life raft. The wing was moved aft 100mm,
and the pilot’s protective armour was
strengthened. The glazing in the forward
part of the cockpit was changed in order to
facilitate use of the PTN-45 sight when
dropping torpedoes. In the upper part of
the radio-operator/gunner’s cockpit a
hatch was fitted to enable emergency
evacuation of the aircraft when ditching. In
connection with the lengthening of the
cargo compartment from 4.18m up to
6.6m the capacity of the fuel tanks was
reduced by 2,230l, but tip tanks were
introduced. Two high-altitude 45-36 MAV
torpedoes, or one each of either the low-
altitude 45-36 MAN, or the jet-propelled
RAT-52 torpedoes, were carried in the
bomb bay. The aircraft could also carry
AMD-500, AMD-100, and ‘Lira’, ‘Desna,’ and
other mines. State testing was completed
in December of that same year with a
recommendation that this aircraft be
accepted into service. However, due to
AIRCRAFT IN PROFILE
extended delays with development of the
torpedoes these plans remained on paper.
A bomber variant, modified to carry the
high-altitude jet propelled 450-mm RAT-52,
was used as a torpedo carrier in naval
aviation.
In April 1955 testing of the Il-28 with
RAT-52, 45-54VT, and 45-36MAN torpedoes
carried externally was tested. This
established that the use of production RAT-
52 torpedoes, carried externally, was
possible from an altitude of 1,500m up to
8,400m at an air speed of no more than
500km/hr. At high altitudes, however, this
could be achieved across the flight range.
Flight performance characteristics,
however, were seriously affected, reducing
the aircraft’s maximum speed by 107km/hr,
and the ceiling by 1,850m, while the range
was reduced by 400km. In addition, when
flying with a single torpedo, control of the
aircraft became much more difficult.
The final naval variant was the anti-
submarine Il-28PL, which was fitted with an
AT-1 torpedo. The torpedo carrier did not
have any equipment for searching for
submarines and the role of target identifier
was passed to the Beriev Be-6. This anti-
The scrapping of an Il-28U and an Il-28 at Khvalynka
airfield in the mid-1980s. (I. Mikhelevich archive)
submarine system, relying on two different
aircraft, demonstrated its ineffectiveness
relatively quickly, and only one aviation
regiment was re-equipped with the Il-28PL
variant.
In 1953 the carrier aircraft for the first
production atomic bomb, ‘Tatyana’ (article
244N), fitted with an RDS-4 charge with a
yield of 30kt, entered series production.
Several variants of the aircraft were
developed for target towing, and these
were widely used in front line forces. Of
note was the PM-6 diving target tug, which
was designed to train anti-aircraft and
machine gun crews. Two of these diving
targets could be housed on pylons under
the wing of the carrying aircraft. In the
spring of 1958 the aircraft underwent
testing in the Trans-Caucasian Military
District.
Following the Sino-Soviet armed conflict
on Damansk Island in March 1969 some of
the remaining bombers were converted
into the Il-28Sh ground attack variant.
Aside from the traditional bomb armament
the aircraft carried twelve hard points to
carry UB-16-57 S-5 missiles. These aircraft
could also carry the unguided S-24 aviation
missile in various combinations, the
universal UPK-23-250 gun pod with twin-
barrel GSh-23L guns, and various calibres
and designs of aerial bombs.
The Il-28 remained in service with Soviet
aviation up until the end of the 1960s, and
at the Tambov Military Pilot’s College until
autumn 1986. Several dozen Il-28s, devoid
of armament, were used in civil aviation as
meteorological research aircraft and to
deliver mail.
Il-28s served with the air forces of
Algeria, Afghanistan, Bulgaria, Hungary,
Vietnam, the GDR, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq,
Yemen, China, Korea, Cuba, Morocco,
Nigeria, Poland, Syria, Somalia,
Czechoslovakia, and even in Finland.
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS,
IL-28:
Engine: VK-1
Wingspan: 21.45m
Length: 18m
Maximum speed: 800 km/hr
Practical ceiling: 112,300m
An Il-28 meteorological research aircraft.
F  104 A S TA R F I G H T E R

Modelling a post-Crisis Quick Reaction Alert F-104A Starfighter in 1/48

By Stephen J Di Nucci. Photography: Phil Jones

Kit No: PT19-2400
Scale: 1/48
Type: Injection Moulded Plastic
Manufacturer: Hasegawa
Also used: Daco Products’ Starfighter
Improvement and Correction Set
(ref. DCC4802)
Aires resin cockpit set (ref.4107)
Air Master metal pitot tube
(ref. AM-48-044)
Microscale decal sheet
F-104 Starfighters (ref. 48-43)
Astra Decals sheet (T)F-104G Starfighter
(ref. ASD-4816)
Eduard canopy masking set (ref. EX031)
Maketar Canopy Survival Kit
(ref. MMS014)
I
n 1/48, short chord-fin Starfighter variants
haven't received that much attention from the
scale kit industry. Hasegawa, thankfully, have
their fine F-104C offering, which is the subject of
this conversion feature but there's not much else
of any note. The new kits by Kinetic and AMMO
might see future releases with a new fin, but
until then we must be content with what we've
got although at the time of writing the
Hasegawa F-104C is not available as new in
the UK.
As well as the short fin, early Stars had
additional minor differences. Nevertheless, most
of these are covered by Hasegawa, in particular
the wheel hubs and an air refuelling probe,
although the inner winglets on the wing tanks
are incorrect. The C was a tactical fighter-bomber
so ordnance was chiefly air-to-ground. The
earlier F-104A was similar to the C, but was not
equipped for air-refuelling and was armed only
for air-to-air and usually no cannon. As a point
defence interceptor it was intended for straight
up at a rate of knots, use the Sidewinders, and
then land with fuel remaining. If you want a
really early F-104A or one of the developmental
YF-104As, there may be extra issues; for example,
no ventral fin, no arrestor hook, rectangular
nosewheel doors and fewer or perhaps even no
fins on the wingtip tanks.
A further external difference on some F-104As
is one that has eluded all kits and most artworks;
a low-relief cleaver-like shape on the port side of
the forward fuselage, perhaps both sides, below
the canopy. It may be a duct enclosing elements
incapable of being routed within the cockpit.
I had decided early on to convert my F-104C
into an F-104A using Microscale sheet no.48 43,
which had been in my stash a long time. Apart
from the change of markings and ignoring the
refuelling probe, only a little extra is required.
The sheet offers markings for several aircraft in
everyday unit service, in sharp contrast to the
flamboyant markings in Hasegawa's box. C users
were always the showier until the Vietnam era
arrived, but Microscale's subjects are not without
interest either, and I had my eye on an aircraft in
overall light grey. These were machines with the
319th FIS, which had been reclaimed from Air
National Guard use and returned to active USAF
duty following the Cuban Missile Crisis in March
1963. They were given a coat of ADC grey and
were based at Homestead AFB, Florida. The
squadron kept its F-104As through to December
1968, no less. Also involved with a return to
USAF duty and featured on 48-43 were similar
machines with the 331st FIS at Webb AFB, Texas.

Masking tape has been

applied to both sides of
The Hasegawa cockpit consoles received the kit decals on top of the the spine to protect the
moulded detail. To help things, I cut the main panel decal into several fuselage while rubbing
sections. The main panel part, R22, will just fit in as intended by down the filled seams.
Hasegawa at stage 7, but not with the shroud K2 already attached.

54 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
 F  104 A S TA R F I G H T E R

The main
gear is in
place, a
couple of
stages
earlier than
suggested
by
Hasegawa.
The rear of
the air
intake void
has already
been
The nose gear is installed and a
painted
little filler has been used to
matt black.
blend in the Daco replacement
ammo links panel.

Only the upper parts of the

cockpit area still need to be
addressed. Hasegawa’s back The engine air intakes are finished and ready to be added to the model.
bulkhead is nicely handled. The coloured shock cones, a pinstripe around the intake lips, and the letter
‘B’ on a coloured panel beneath the rudder, were features of the 319th FIS.

Here I’ve used a couple of wedges to stand-off the main gear doors whilst The port side intake is in place. Pre-painted shock cones and internal
cement is setting. The doors could be unlatched and hung down for intake detail make for additional masking later on, but it's easier than
inspections and the like. trying to paint them later.

Hasegawa, Daco and Aires
The Hasegawa series of 1/48 scale F-104s was
state of the art at first release, and are still pretty
good and highly accurate. I’ve seen the surface
detail slightly maligned lately, but I can’t agree
with that. The only exception is the rivet detail,
of which more later. I decided to build my model
largely straight from the box, while at the same
time relying on a few detail and corrective items
from Daco Products’ Starfighter Improvement
and Correction Set. I also laid in a copy of Aires
resin cockpit set (ref. 4107); this is to the usual
excellent standard and contains both early
(Lockheed) and later (Martin-Baker) ejection
seats, so I robbed just the Lockheed seat and its
etch for this project, leaving the rest of the set
for another time.
I began work with a fuselage correction
common to both F-104As and Cs, assisted by
Daco's part no A13. This provides a different
pattern throat intake for the air conditioning
system on the starboard side of the front
fuselage. Fitting is a simple ‘cut and paste’, using
the chain drilling technique, with a touch of
filler. Additional amendments to the fuselage
halves were Daco's red/green/clear nav and
formation light lenses in the intake flanks and on
the rear fuselage, holes for which need to be
drilled out before fitting. It’s a good idea to
eliminate the collars around the nav lights on
the intake flanks - they lie far too proud and can
get in the way of effectively settling decals.
Another potential issue for the purist will be the
several reinforcement panels covering parts of
the fuselage skin. The structure of the Starfighter
was beefed-up to produce the ‘Super Starfighter’
F-104G, and so F-104As and Cs are not likely to
have had these. I ducked out I’m afraid.
Onto the cockpit now, assembling the tub, the

FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12 55

F  104 A S TA R F I G H T E R

Perfect wing to All these ejection pin

fuselage joint. mould marks need filling.

The cockpit area is all masked

up and nearly ready to go, just
a whiff of filler to rub down.

Starboard side intake in place.

Unfortunately, I broke off the
extreme tip of the shock cone.

Midships detail showing both L/E and T/E flaps in place, plus Daco’s Midships again but this time underneath. The control surface filler has
anti-collision beacon. been rubbed down.

control stick, the throttle lever and the bulkhead
behind the pilot. I then airbrushed the whole lot,
including the main panels, the seat and inside
the fuselage shells. I used matt Humbrol Light
Matt Grey (64) mixed with a large proportion of
the much lighter Humbrol Light Grey Satin (196),
the mix providing enough gloss to require only
one coat of Klear/Future on top of the
instrument panels, before applying
Hasegawa's decals.
Fuselage and Sub-Assemblies
With the cockpit done there were other
assemblies to tackle, next off being the main
undercarriage bay. The fit is so perfect that Daco
suggest not using glue. I also decided to
assemble the gear legs now. Finish for the wheel
wells, gear, and inside doors was always natural
metal on the Starfighter. The nose wheel bay is
part of a larger belly panel, part L1. I assembled
the nose wheel leg but first it was necessary to
cut out an area from the rear of L1 in order to
substitute Daco's part A16, a different-pattern
ammunition links ejector panel. This didn't
exactly match the curvature of Hasegawa's belly,
but only a little filling and sanding
was necessary.
The final sub-assembly was the afterburner
pipe, one piece and easy enough. Daco
recommend lopping 3mm off the pipe, but be
advised that this is only applicable to the F-104S
and late period Luftwaffe F-104s. Earlier
Starfighters should have the flame igniter
(moulded into part R27) in the six o'clock
position. Cuba Starfighters were fitted with the
hugely upgraded Dash 19 engine, but the
outwards appearance of the afterburner can
does not seem to have been affected.
I could now bring all the sub-assemblies
together and close the fuselage halves. The
completed fuselage gave a good fit although the
dorsal seam needed a little filler. The small area
under the beaver tail will need some filler too
and the separate belly panels might benefit from

56 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K

A little filler was used to
neaten off Daco’s replacement
air conditioning intake.
Getting there now. The ADC Grey has been
applied, and now masking is underway
prior to airbrushing the metal areas.
Ready for the decals to come out to play.
a sliver or two of 5-thou card to get the best fit. I
decided to deal with all seams on the fuselage
carcass before undertaking any
further assembly.
Air Intakes
The air intakes and splitter plates are best
assembled together off the model, but require
painting internally after first treating some minor
ejector pin marks. Colour is natural metal on As
and Cs; they didn't have the de-ice shock cones
and intake lips that later Stars had, so no black
areas are required. I had already painted the
cones and the interiors of the intakes gloss grey
so next up (for my chosen subject) was the outer
parts of the cones in satin red, finally masking off
for the remaining natural metal. I then
assembled the intakes and plates together. They
weren’t a perfect fit to the fuselage but some
time spent carefully shaving and scraping won
the day. A tiny amount of filler was needed.
Wings, Control Surfaces, and Tail
This very high-performance aircraft had its
rivet indents puttied over. Accordingly, the Daco
set includes such large items as replacement
wings. I decided to keep the wings set for a
subsequent model. If you use the Hasegawa
wings, don't use an all over wash at the finish
stage or you'll emphasise the rivets. Correct wing
alignment is easy, via tabs through the fuselage
and into angled slots above the undercarriage
bay assembly. The fit of the wings to fuselage
was excellent. Daco actually include a wing
alignment tool, but I didn’t use it.
I now added the tailplane, the separate
leading and trailing flaps and ailerons, and
Daco's rudder. I debated whether to show the
control surfaces and air brakes displaced (the air
brakes were usually locked shut with the aircraft
on the ground, the only exception being during
inspections), but in the end I thought it might be
a waste not to. Even so, I went only for a partial
displacement for the control surfaces. Starfighter
airbrake recesses have been noted either light
grey, metal, or chromate yellow. I went for the
latter, which seemed more likely for an early
Starfighter. The opened airbrakes had to be
assembled and painted off the model, and they
would be added last of all.
Weapons
To fulfil their Cuba watch alert duties, 319th
and 331st machines went right back to the F-
104's original rationale - even to the extent of
FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12
F  104 A S TA R F I G H T E R
Here the wings have already
been airbrushed, and masking
off has begun.
Aires Lockheed C2 seat
is absolutely excellent.
Here the seat is ready
for installation.
zero external fuel, some available images
showing only a Sidewinder at each wingtip. I
used wingtip launch rails, plus AIM-9B
Sidewinders, from Daco's set. Hasegawa don't
have either, which is not unreasonable for their
F-104C, although the set up was used
in Vietnam.
Cuba aircraft were retro-fitted with the M-61
multi-barrelled cannon so, unusually for a F-
104A, the kit needed no work there - otherwise
for an A you'll need to remember to fill the
cannon port. If you model without the gun,
remember not to use the links ejector chute
part R9.
Canopy, Masking, and More
With most handling out of the way, the
remaining items can be added. The main gear
doors should not quite return to a fully closed
position with the gear extended and the doors
should not make contact with the extension
rams U16 whilst drying. A difficulty is parts U1,
which are the retraction arms for the secondary
doors. The secondary doors themselves need
adding to the model after painting but without
them, positioning the arms is difficult. I used the
secondary doors, dry, in tweezers to get a
positioning for the arms. I also added Daco’s
57
F  104 A S TA R F I G H T E R
wingtip Sidewinder rails. The angle of attack
sensors and temperature probe can sometimes
get in the way of the decals process, and I think
next time I will shorten the temperature probe,
as it looks a little long. The metal nose pitot
probe by Air Master is fantastic. I like to fit pitots
before painting, to ensure they end up looking
lived in, but only immediately before
beginning painting.
I also added and masked the front and rear
canopies. I was a bit concerned with the clarity
of the main and rear canopies, but after a scrub
and, later, some coats of Klear/Future, I thought
it was acceptable, and there was little choice
anyway because the other kits in my stash
seemed the same. The main canopy was to be
opened up, so I painted it off the model. There is
no de-mist tubing around the inside edges.
Daco have the tubing, which I attached using
tiny amounts of thin poly. I used Eduard set
EX031 for the canopy masking but was
disappointed to find that the set didn’t include
inside surface masks. In fact, I soon discovered
the tubing was preventing access to the inside
edges of the canopy. Next time I must explore
assembling and painting this element off
the model.
Paint and Decals
With everything rubbed down, washed and
dusted, and then with a light coat of Klear to seal
the small areas of filler, I was ready to roll. There
were a number of small areas for early painting;
first up was chromate yellow for the airbrake
recesses, and for the exposed wing roots due to
the displaced flaps. I used Humbrol Pale Yellow
(81). The same mix, but with a tiny spot of
brown added, could also be used to paint the
fibreglass parts of the airframe - the aft
section of the ventral fin and the
oblong
58 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
UHF antenna cover in the belly under the
cockpit. Be advised that As and Cs had no fibre
panel in the area aft of the rear canopy section.
Once these were masked off, it was time for
some white for both upper and lower surfaces of
the wings. Whether airbrushed or hand painted,
I always like to combine together gloss and matt
whites, certainly so here because I wanted a
semi-gloss appearance. I also added a tiny spot
of colour, brown or grey, because I tend to think
that a plain stark white looks wrong on a military
model. I was careful with this though, because I
didn’t want the added colour to be
too noticeable.
Leaving several days to cure, I masked off the
wings and then airbrushed an all-over coat of
ADC Grey, including the undercarriage bays and
rear fuselage areas. As usual I airbrushed using
my favourite Xtracolor, this time FS16473 (X138).
This would also provide an excellent gloss
undercoat for the natural metal areas, but if you
follow me on this one the gloss paint will make it
virtually impossible to deal with any last-minute
build flaws. I don’t use matt undercoats.
Next up was a mask-off for most of the
airframe, so as to leave exposed only the
undercarriage bays and the metal areas of the
rear fuselage. I could then airbrush Xtracolor
Natural Steel (X502). Once dry I masked off the
bright panel on each side of the tail, and then for
the remaining darker metal areas I again used
Natural Steel, but this time with quite a lot of
gloss black mixed in, sprayed over the top of the
first application.
I decided to model F-104A 560827 FG-
827 from the 319th FIS, off
Microscale's sheet 48-43. My
chosen aircraft had a
thin red pinstripe
around the extreme lip of the air
intakes, which I found to be very
susceptible to damage so extra
care was needed from now on,
plus the odd touch-up with red
paint. Microscale's decals
performed flawlessly as usual,
despite their extreme
age, a tribute to
the company,
but most
stencilling was from the Hasegawa sheet.
However, I couldn’t verify Hasegawa’s cockpit
emergency markings as accurate for an F-104A,
nor even for an F-104C come to that, so I turned
to my copy of the limited-edition F-104G
Bundesfighter kit by Eduard (ref. 1195) and used
the excellent USAF cockpit safety decals from
this. Incidentally, 560827 was one of few F-104As
to survive its whole career, being withdrawn
from service with the Taiwanese air force in 1988.
Cuba ex-Air Guard F-104As seem to have been
kept fairly smart in appearance, so I decided to
go for a minimalist approach to weathering,
using only highly-thinned dark washes into
panel lines, plus slightly more enthusiastically
into control surface lines. I keep a large dry
brush handy, plus cotton buds, to sweep back
any mistakes in the direction of the airflow
whilst still wet. I almost always use spirit-based
paints, but thinned washes can penetrate, out of
control, through the paint layer, especially if you
have already put down a spirit-based varnish on
top. I therefore apply a coat of acrylic Klear, to
seal the paintwork, before starting to weather. I
finished with a coat of Humbrol Satin Cote,
which turned out a little more matt than
was expected.
Final Assembly
The ring at the front of the afterburner can
needed a slight reduction to get an easy fit into
the rear fuselage. I hand-painted the outside of
the can using my usual mix of matt black, grey,
aluminium, and copper, well thinned, and then
when dry burnished the petals with a cotton
bud, and dry-brushed lightly with grey. For
inside the can I mixed and hand-painted a dark
black-grey, and dry-brushed.
Daco have furniture for the cockpit sills, for
example the explosive bolts that lift the front
corners of the canopy on ejection, and these
details add much. Last of all were the wheels, the
opened canopy, and the Sidewinders.
Conclusion
A dry run of the parts right at the very start
seemed to suggest a kit with perfect fit. Maybe it
was me, with only my first quarter-scale
Hasegawa Starfighter it's hard to be sure, but on
the day, it was only nearly perfect. But be in no
doubt, this is a beautifully engineered kit,
which was a pleasure to build. I find
early Starfighters interesting,
so this won’t be the last.
F  4 P Y LO N S

The Devil is Always in the Detail

By Keith Peckover

A general view of an outboard pylon on the RN F-4K

in the Fleet Air Arm Museum. The pylon is vertical.

T
his article may be of particular interest to
‘phans’ of the McDonnell F-4 Phantom II and
its subject is possibly not well-known. With
modellers being concerned with the accuracy of
their work, it is a matter not to be ignored even in
1/72 scale, let alone 1/48 and 1/32. What is it? The
F-4’s under wing weapons pylons were mounted
vertically, correct? Not always, because the
outboard pylons, stations 1 and 9, were not
necessarily so fitted. Ejector racks mounted beneath
vertically aligned pylons on these stations were not
always orientated to the vertical as would be
expected. The reason for this lies in the requirement
for them to be able to carry a range of ordnance.
Stations 1 and 9 were originally intended for the
carriage of a 370-US gallon fuel tank and a
consequence of this was insufficient clearance
between the main landing gear door and some
ordnance loads.
For reasons unknown the US services adopted A close up of the attachment, which has the angled flange with a
different solutions to this problem. The USAF spacer between it and wing underside. With the spacer removed the
elected to angle the pylon outboard by 7.5 degrees, pylon could be swung outboard and secured at a 7.5 degree angle.
while the USN kept the pylon vertical but mounted
the MER at an angle (see drawing). In the case of the
former, to achieve the 7.5 degree setting, an
adjustable pylon fixing arrangement was
introduced. On this the upper face of the mounting
flange on the outboard side of the pylon was
angled downwards. With the pylon vertical, say
when carrying a tank, this resulted in a gap
between flange and wing surface, which was
bridged with a spacer. With the spacer removed the
pylon was secured in place with the flange against
the wing, resulting in the pylon sitting at the
required angle.
No evidence has been found that USN or US
Marine Corps aircraft carried the angled pylon.
However, if a Multiple Ejector Rack (MER) was
carried outboard it was sometimes secured at the
angle shown in the drawing thereby increasing
stores to undercarriage door clearance.
Frustratingly, it has not been possible to establish
how this was done. An adaptor was required on all
stores stations due to the lack of inbuilt ejector
racks and it is perhaps the case that a specialist
adaptor that secured the MER at an angle was used.
Somebody out there must know.

60 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
 F  4 P Y LO N S

An F-4 with an incredible load out of gun pods at all stations but it shows
the station 1 pylon at an angle relative to the inboard, station 2, unit.

The F-4G in the USAF museum fitted with an angled pylon carrying an An F-4 off Vietnam being prepared for an air strike. An MER is fitted on
AGM-88 HARM. This configuration has also been seen on an in-flight station 1 and although not the best quality image it can be seen that the
photo of an F-4G. Unfortunately its quality is too poor to use. bombs beneath it are skewed outboard.

A USMC F-4 with what is likely to be an air show static display load out. Nevertheless, it shows
the angle taken up by the bombs on station 1 with the superimposed line providing emphasis.

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 CO LO U R C O N U N D R U M

RAF High-Altitude Fighter Schemes 1940 - 1945

Part 1
By Paul Lucas

Spitfire Mk. Vc BR114 103 MU

Aboukir, Egypt, c. July 1942
The upper surfaces are finished
in Dark Earth and Mid Stone to
the 'B' Scheme, and the
undersides are in Light
Mediterranean Blue. The spinner
is in Sky and the individual
aircraft letter is in White. The
serial number is non-standard at
approximately 6 inches high
and is painted in Night. The
primer finish around the panel
lines forward of the cockpit are
something like Sky Grey in
colour. Note the Aboukir filter
and the extended wing tips, as
well as the removal of the
cannons and radio mast.

A
s far as the British flying services of World
War I were concerned, there were no such
things as high-altitude fighters and
therefore there were no specialist colour
schemes for them. Probably the closest
camouflage scheme to be devised for such a role
was that described in Orfordness Report D/62
entitled 'The camouflaging of aeroplanes with
particular regard to their visibility for home
defence service at 10,000ft when viewed from
12,000ft’, dated 18 July 1917. This report
summarised the work that had been done in an
attempt to camouflage an interceptor when
viewed from above as it attempted to climb up
to and intercept the German Gotha Bombers
that had begun to make their presence felt over
southern England and London earlier in the year.
While in modern terms, the altitude was not
that great, the interception problem faced by
the British during 1917 was not significantly
different from that posed some twenty-five years
later in trying to effect an interception against an
aircraft that by virtue of its significantly greater
altitude might be able to escape interception by
altering its course upon sighting the interceptor
in good time. The best scheme tried out, that
termed 'Scheme 7' was recommended for Home
Defence and also trialled in France but was not
subsequently adopted.
In contrast, the camouflage scheme for night-
flying interceptors that was developed at
Orfordness, NIVO, was adopted, as was the
camouflage scheme for low-flying aircraft that
was the subject of Orfordness report E/30A
entitled 'Daylight Camouflage of Low Flying
Aeroplanes Against Observation from Above'.
This is known colloquially today as 'the
Salamander Scheme'. Between the wars, the
Salamander Scheme fell from use with an overall
Aluminium finish being used on day-flying
aircraft, while NIVO continued to be used as an
overall finish on Night Bombers. When the Royal
Aircraft Establishment was commissioned to
investigate the problems associated with the
camouflage of aircraft from 1933, the vast
majority of the work they carried out was aimed
at camouflaging an aircraft that was either flying
at an altitude of less than 10,000ft, or was
stationary on the ground, from observation from
above. This work had resulted in the adoption of
the Temperate Land Scheme of Dark Earth and
Dark Green on the upper surfaces of all RAF
Fighters by the outbreak of World War II in
September 1939.
As has previously been described in the June
2020 issue of Scale Aircraft Modelling, the
development of a suitable camouflage scheme
for aircraft operating at high altitude can be said
to have begun from 1938 as a result of the
efforts of Sidney Cotton and what became the
Photographic Reconnaissance Unit. By the
summer of 1940 there were a number of colours
available for use to camouflage a day-flying
aircraft against a clear sky background at
altitude. The colours that are currently known to
have existed and or are known to have been
used are Sky Blue, Sky, BS 381 No.1 Sky Blue, BS
381 No.16 Eau-de-Nil, PRU Electric Blue No.1, and
PRU Electric Blue No.2. In addition to these
colours, there are possibly whatever shades of
'light blue' might have been procured by the
units of Fighter Command under the Local

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CO LO U R C O N U N D R U M
Purchase Order instructions that were issued on
8 June 1940. In the event, development of high-
altitude camouflage for the RAF's Day Fighters
was to be influenced strongly by the PRU
schemes.
It would appear that the first use of a special
high-altitude camouflage scheme for Fighter
aircraft came about as the result of the
formation of No. 421 (Reconnaissance) Flight at
Gravesend on 8 October 1940. Despite the use of
the term 'Reconnaissance' to describe 421
Flight's operational role, the unit was not
involved in Photographic Reconnaissance but
had been formed as an offshoot of 66 (Fighter)
Squadron with Hurricane Mk IIs to meet a
requirement for a special unit flying standing
patrols over the Kent and Sussex coast to report
on the height, strength, and constitution of
formations of German aircraft to Uxbridge by
R/T. Such a tactic was considered necessary as by
this stage of the Battle of Britain, the Luftwaffe
was increasingly resorting to the use of high-
flying formations of Messerschmitt Bf 109s,
which carried a small bomb load, to try and
entice RAF Fighters into combat where they
might be destroyed without risking the medium
Bomber force, which had suffered a considerable
number of casualties over the preceding two
months.
When the original equipment of Hurricane Mk
IIs was found to offer inadequate performance,
421 Flight re-equipped with Spitfire Mk IIs, and
at least one of these is said to have been finished
in an overall 'light blue' camouflage scheme
intended to conceal it whilst in flight at altitude.
While Spitfire II serial number P7498 is known to
have been coded L-Z-K with a hyphen between
the letters 'L' and 'Z' in the squadron codes,
presumably to distinguish them from the aircraft
of 421 Flight's parent unit, 66 Squadron that was
allocated the squadron code combination 'LZ', it
is not known precisely what shade of blue was
used. Nor is it known whether any other aircraft
of 421 Flight, either Hurricane or Spitfire, was
similarly finished.
It seems highly likely that some of the Spitfires
were finished in a non-standard scheme of some
kind. On 30 October 1940 a meeting was held at
the Air Ministry to consider the colouring and
markings of Fighter and Training aircraft.
64 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
Spitfire HF VI BS124 Aboukir c. October 1942 The upper
surfaces are painted in Deep Sky and Dark Slate Grey to
the 'A' Scheme, and the undersides are finished in Light
Mediterranean Blue. Note that the upper surface colours
extend around the leading edge and back onto the under
surface of the wings for a distance of approximately 12
inches at the root, tapering down to perhaps 2 inches at
the tip. The spinner is Red, the individual aircraft letter 'A'
is White, and the serials are in Night.
While the increased altitudes at which
combats were occurring during the last quarter
of 1940 led to the development of what became
known as the Day Fighter Scheme during the
spring and summer of 1941, the introduction of
specialist 'high-altitude' camouflage schemes on
RAF Fighters was brought about by the
emergence of a completely new threat during
1941 that began to manifest itself from May
1942.
Paragraph 22 of the A New Threat
minutes of this meeting stated that:
The Ju 86 Bomber had been one of the
'Headquarters, Fighter Command referred to para. mainstays of the fledgling Luftwaffe but due to
43 of S.D. 158(1) and asked that No. 421 Flight the emergence of the superior He 111 and Ju 88,
should be allowed the same freedom regarding by September 1939 few remained in front line
colour schemes as is at present authorised for service, with most existing Ju 86s being used to
aircraft of P.R.U. It was agreed that S.D. 158 (1) equip Bomber training units. Junkers, however,
should be amended accordingly.' continued to develop the type with a view to
turning it into a high-altitude Bomber and
Following this decision, Air Ministry Order
Reconnaissance aircraft. The first prototype of
(AMO) A.926/40 entitled ‘Aircraft Colouring and
the new version, designated the Ju 86P, flew in
Recognition Markings' dated 12 December 1940
February 1940 and by the summer of 1940 the
stated:
third prototype is said to have reached an
'8. Photographic Reconnaissance Unit and No.421 altitude of over 39,000ft. One of the first three
Flight. - Aircraft of the Photographic prototypes was delivered to the Luftwaffe for
Reconnaissance Unit and No. 421 Flight are evaluation and is said to have carried out at least
coloured and marked in accordance with one high-altitude sortie over Britain during the
operational requirements and the colour schemes Battle of Britain without incident.
need not conform to the standard system. Special
The order was subsequently given for the
arrangements are to be made by the Photographic
conversion of forty Ju 86Ds into the Ju 86P-1
Reconnaissance Unit and No. 421 Flight with
High-Altitude Bomber and Ju 86P-2 High-
Headquarters Fighter Command for the safety of
Altitude Reconnaissance sub-types, both of
these aircraft.'
which were unarmed as it was thought that the
In early January 1941 No. 421 Flight was Ju 86P would be able to perform its entire
expanded and re-designated as 91 Squadron. It mission at altitudes well above the ceiling of
is not known if the squadron continued to extant defending Fighters. During the summer
operate any unusually coloured Spitfires after of 1940 several Ju 86P-1s and P-2s are said to
this date. have been delivered to 2./Aufklarungsgruppe

Spitfire IX BS354 Aboukir c. July 1943 Finished overall in No. 2 PRU Blue. The roundels used have a diameter of 32 inches with a one-foot square
fin flash. No serial is shown. Note the Aboukir filter and the removal of the outboard wing stubs.
Ob.d.L, which had conducted a number of
operational flights over the UK by the end of
1940. January 1941 saw a reorganisation and
reorientation of the Aufklarungsgruppe with a
fourth staffel being added to operate over the
UK whilst the first three stafflen began to
conduct clandestine reconnaissance sorties over
the Soviet Union prior to the launching of
Operation Barbarossa in June 1941. These sorties
became more overt and intensified following the
invasion.
Following the success of the Ju 86P, the type
was further developed so as to increase its
operating ceiling in anticipation of
improvements in the performance of defending
Fighters. This was done by increasing the
wingspan even further, installing more powerful
engines whose performance could be boosted
by nitrous oxide being injected into the
supercharger, and fitting four-bladed propellers
in place of the three blades of the Ju 86P. As with
the Ju 86P, two sub-variants were envisaged, the
Ju 86 R-1 in the Reconnaissance role and the Ju
86R-2 in the Bomber role. Conversion of a
number of Ju 86Ps to Ju 86R-1 standard are said
to have commenced at Dessau in the spring of
1942, with the first operational flights taking
place over the Soviet Union in the latter part of
July 1942.
Exactly when British Intelligence became
aware of the existence of the Ju 86P is unclear,
but the Air Ministry was aware of German work
on pressurised aircraft and foresaw the eventual
development of some kind of very high-flying
bomber that might pose a threat to Britain. This
led to the issue of Specification F.4/40 for a high-
altitude fighter with a pressurised cockpit in July
1940. This would ultimately result in the
development of the Westland Welkin, Britain's
only production purpose-designed high-altitude
Fighter of the war. By October 1941 Fighter
Command had been made aware of the
potential threat very high-flying bombers posed
and it was decided that a special system of
defence against high-flying raids should be
devised. To this end a series of trials known as
'Quarry Exercises' were carried out between
March and June 1942 using one of the Boeing
Fortress Is that had been obtained by the RAF
from the USA, that had served with 90 Squadron
in Bomber Command, in an attempt to develop
a high-altitude bombing capability against the
Germans during the summer of 1941. It was
while these trials were being conducted in the
UK that the RAF had its first encounters with the
Ju 86P in combat over North Africa.
The Middle East
In May 1942 a number of Ju 86P-2
Reconnaissance aircraft were transferred to 2.(F)
123 based at Kastelli in Crete from where they
began to operate over Egypt at altitudes
somewhere in the region of 40,000ft. It would
appear that the British in Egypt first became
aware of the Ju 86Ps of 2.(F)123 on 5 June 1942
as stated in the following Intelligence summary:
'On June 5th a recce aircraft over Alexandria was
seen through a range finder at an approximate
height of 40,000ft.
The aircraft was almost certainly a Ju 86 because
the wing tips seemed more pointed than usual. On
closer observation the wing tips were seen to be a
light sand colour, while the remainder was
camouflaged light blue.
Vapour trails from the engine obscured the tail
most of the time.'
This was far above the ceiling of the
Hurricanes with which the majority of the RAF
Fighter squadrons in the region were equipped
and was something like in excess of 10,000ft
above the theoretical ceiling of the
comparatively few Spitfire Mk Vs that were the
best performing RAF fighters available.
In an attempt to counter the Ju 86P's
incursions into Egyptian airspace Spitfire Mk Vc
serial number BR114 was specially modified into
an improvised high-altitude fighter by 103
Maintenance Unit at Aboukir. BR114 appears to
have arrived in Egypt during July 1942 having
been flown along the Takoradi Route from East
Africa. 103 MU's ORB is unfortunately quite
useless to the researcher investigating this topic
as on the occasion when there is any kind of
entry, it is almost always nothing more than a
weather report. That said, there are a number of
photographs of this machine, albeit of unknown
date, from which it is possible to compile a short
list of the most obvious external modifications.
Working from the nose back, these
modifications appear to have been as follows:
1) A four-blade propeller with what appears to
be a Sky spinner that appears to be identical
to that fitted to the Spitfire HF VI and might
have been supplied as a spare for the Spitfire
HF VIs that were sent to Egypt, which will be
discussed below.
2) The larger eight-and-a-half gallon oil tank and
its associated cowling that is commonly
associated with the Spitfire PR Mk IV.
3) An Aboukir Filter.
4) Removal of usual armament and replacement
with what is thought to have been a pair of
0.5 in. calibre machine guns in the cannon bay
with the 'blister' hatches in the upper surface
of the wing replaced by flush panels.
5) Extended wing tips that are not the same
shape or necessarily the same span as the HF
VI. BR114 initially retained its radio, but this
was later removed, along with the mast
behind the cockpit.
The removal of the radio to save weight
resulted in a change of tactics whereby BR114
flew in company with another Spitfire that was
still fitted with a radio and cannon armament.
The plan was that the pair of Spitfires would be
vectored into visual range of the Ju 86 with the
conventional Spitfire leading. BR114 would then
effect the interception, either destroying the Ju
86 or alternatively, damaging it so badly as to
force it to descend to a lower altitude where the
other, more heavily armed Spitfire could engage.
BR114 was also apparently repainted at some
FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12
CO LO U R C O N U N D R U M
stage as the photographs that show it without a
radio mast and coded 'B' in what appears to be
White, also show it to have a 'B' Scheme
disruptive pattern on its upper surfaces and a
serial number that only appears to have been
approximately six inches in height. The 'B'
Scheme is in itself indicative of a repaint, since
by the time that BR114 was completed in March
1942 the practice of applying the 'A' and 'B'
Schemes to alternate aircraft during production
had been suspended for about a year. The
difficulty lies in knowing what the colour
combination used on the upper surfaces was.
At the time of writing, the author is unaware
of there being any definite policy with regard to
camouflage schemes for High-Altitude Fighters
as distinct from standard Day-Fighters in Middle
East Command. Therefore, it is perhaps most
likely that the upper surfaces were finished in
the standard Desert Scheme, Dark Earth and
Middle Stone with Middle Stone passing
through the cockpit. The reason why the 'B'
Scheme was adopted is not known but it might
be related to whatever camouflage and marking
instructions 103 MU were working to when they
repainted the aircraft. The under surface colour
is also open to question. In theory, it should have
been Azure Blue, but the available photographs
appear to show BR114 with a somewhat darker
colour that might be indicative of Light
Mediterranean Blue. The under wing roundels,
while being of the standard National Marking II
variety, appear to be located further outboard
than usual.
BR 114 was supplemented by a second
Spitfire Mk Vc, serial number BP985, that is
thought to have arrived in Egypt during August
and about which no further information is
available, followed by five Spitfire HF Vis, which
began to arrive during October 1942. Of the five
Spitfire VIs, only four serial numbers are known –
BS106, BS124, BS134, and BS149 – and of these,
there are clear photographs of only one aircraft,
BS124 which is coded 'A'. This Spitfire appears to
have a most interesting colour scheme.
Spitfire HF VIs were delivered to the RAF in the
UK between December 1941 and November
1942 thus straddling the introduction of the Day
Fighter Scheme, a confusing topic that was
explored in some detail in the 'Colour
Conundrum' articles that were published in Scale
Aircraft Modelling Vol. 41 Nos. 3 and 4, May and
June 2019. For the purposes of this article, it can
probably be assumed that all the Spitfire HF VIs
that were sent to Egypt left the production line
in the UK with either Sea Grey or Ocean Grey and
Dark Green on the upper surfaces, with Medium
Sea Grey on their under surfaces and the Sky tail
band and spinner markings.
BS106, BS124, BS134, and BS149 all appear to
have been delivered to a variety of ASUs in the
UK during July and August 1942 before being
packed for delivery by sea at 76 MU in early
September. It would appear that at some time
between being delivered and being packed,
these Spitfires were tropicalised and fitted with a
Vokes filter and it would appear that at some
65
CO LO U R C O N U N D R U M
Spitfire IX MH931 41 Sqn SAAF Lakatamia Cyprus c. February 1944. Overall natural metal or Aluminium dope silver finish. The serials are in
Night and are 6 inches high. Note the extended wing tips as well as the removal of the cannons and radio mast.
point the aircraft were completely repainted.
What is not known is where the aircraft were
repainted, whether this was done in the UK
before dispatch, or whether it was done
following their arrival in Egypt.
In the apparent absence of a definite policy
for the colour scheme of High-Altitude Fighters
in the Middle East, it might be reasonably
expected that the Spitfire HF VIs that were sent
to Egypt would be finished in the usual Desert
Scheme on the upper surfaces with Azure Blue
on the under surfaces. Bearing all the usual
caveats about trying to determine colours from
black and white photographs in mind, it would
appear from the available photographs that the
upper surfaces are a comparatively low contrast
combination applied to the 'A' Scheme that
wraps around the mainplane leading edge onto
the under surface for a distance. The upper
surface colours do not appear to show a
sufficient contrast for the colours to be either the
Day Fighter Scheme in any of its variants or Dark
Earth and Middle Stone while the under surface
colour appears to be too dark to be either
Medium Sea Grey or Azure Blue.
In the author’s opinion BS124, which is coded
'A' in what appears to be White, has a very similar
overall tonal appearance to those Malta Spitfires
that are currently thought to have been finished
in the Malta blue/slate grey scheme as described
in Scale Aircraft Modelling Vol.9 No.7 September
2017. The Malta blue/slate grey scheme is
currently thought to have consisted of Deep Sky
and Dark Slate Grey on the upper surfaces with
Light Mediterranean Blue on the under surfaces
and is thought to have been first introduced on
the Spitfires that arrived on Malta during
Operation Pinpoint on 15 July 1942. While this
camouflage scheme was initially applied at
Gibraltar, there is the possibility that by mid-
August, the Malta Blue/Slate Grey scheme was
being applied by ASUs in the UK prior to
dispatch.
Thus, there is a camouflage scheme that
resembles that visible in the photographs
possibly being applied to Spitfires destined for
Malta that was part of Middle East Command in
66 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
the UK at about the same time as these Spitfire
HF VIs were being tropicalised for dispatch to the
Middle East. Some of these Spitfire HF VIs are
known to have passed through the same ASUs
that had prepared Spitfires for Malta. When
asked to prepare the Spitfire HF VIs for the
Middle East, was there an assumption made that
these Spitfires were being sent to the same
destination and therefore that the same
camouflage was required? At the time of writing,
no further information is available that would
resolve the question one way or another.
Even though the Spitfire HF VI was intended
to fly and fight at greater altitudes than the
Spitfire V, its performance was still not sufficient
to effect an interception of the Ju 86Ps that
continued to carry out overflights of Egypt in
spite of the occasional loss. In an attempt to
remedy this situation, by the beginning of June
1943 the 'Special Performance Flight' at Aboukir
had acquired at least two Spitfire Mk IXs that
might have been modified in a similar way to
those that had been used in the UK during the
autumn of 1942, as will be described in the
second part of this article. A photograph of one
of the Special Performance Flight's Spitfire IXs
shows the obvious external differences to a
standard Spitfire IX to consist of the presence of
an Aboukir Filter, cannon fitted in the inboard
position, and no stubs in the outboard position,
and possibly extended wing tips. Patches are
visible over the machine gun ports, which
suggest that all four Brownings were fitted.
The colour scheme is even more enigmatic
than usual in that no serial number is visible in
the photograph due to its apparently not being
applied, thus it is impossible to establish the
identity of this Spitfire, though the late Ted
Hooton suggested the possibility that it was
BS354.The Spitfire appears to have been finished
in what appears to have been an overall dark
blue hue little different but slightly lighter than
the Blue of the national markings. There are
three plausible possibilities for this colour, No.2
PRU Blue, Dark Mediterranean Blue or Deep Sky,
the development of which have all been covered
in previous 'Colour Conundrum' articles.
National markings consist of Red and Blue
roundels on the under surfaces of the wings and
sides of the fuselage, the upper surfaces of the
wings not being visible, and the small 1ft square
Red, White and Blue fin marking usually used on
PRU aircraft. These aircraft were operational by 2
July 1943 when they participated in the
destruction of a Ju 86 about thirty miles North
West of Alexandria having intercepted it at an
altitude of approximately 44,000ft.
Though details are sparse, from February
1944, 41 Squadron South African Air Force
received a number of Spitfire IXs that had been
specially modified for the high-altitude
interception role. These modifications appear to
have been carried out along similar lines to
those of the Spitfire Vcs at Aboukir in that they
had non-standard extended wing tips of local
manufacture and a number of items, such as
radio and armour plate, removed to reduce
weight. Of the two Spitfire IXs known to have
been modified in this way, MH 931 was armed
only with .303 machine guns, while MH993 had
only two 20mm cannon. The operational
doctrine seems to have been similar to that
practised previously where MH931, being lighter
and therefore having the greater operational
ceiling, effected the initial interception,
hopefully so damaging the target that it lost
height to the point where it could also be
engaged by the more heavily armed MH993.
Both these Spitfires featured what was for the
period, an unusual colour scheme in that they
were stripped back to bare metal, presumably to
reduce weight and drag and thus improve the
high-altitude performance still further with the
fabric covered control surfaces apparently being
finished with Aluminium dope so as to present
an entirely 'silver' appearance. No national or
markings other than the serial numbers are
visible in the available photographs. The serial
numbers appear to have been applied in Night
characters approximately six inches in height. A
second similar pair of Spitfire IX, serial numbers
MA792 and MH946 were operated by 10
Squadron SAAF from July 1944.
WORKBENCH
Waste Not, Want Not
Using Up Italeri's 1/72 Mitchells. By Brian Derbyshire
A
irfix's Mitchell kit (B-25C, D, and upcoming
B) is a work of craft with very few snags,
but how many of us have Frog and Italeri
kits in the attic, which we can't bring ourselves
to part with (it's an age thing ...)?
Italeri produced two B-25 kits around the mid
'80s, claiming to be a B/C and an H/J. Both
looked good in the box, with alternative parts
and fair detailing but when built they didn’t look
right. Why? Well, it's basically all in the fuselage.
Too shallow, too short, no wing-root incidence,
all the little windows too big and out of position.
On the H/J the waist positions are too narrow
and too tall, the rear fuselage is too thin and
shallow, and the rear cupola is too tall.
Nevertheless they can be salvaged, at least in
part. The wing is pretty good in plan apart from
the flap/aileron hinge lines, and the overwing
nacelle shape, and it has the tipped-up tips too.
The tail is a bit off, but easy to fix. The nacelles,
engines, props and undercarriage are all quite
reasonable.
The first step is to
deepen the fuselage, as
described in the text.
Assorted packing and buttressing in the interior to accommodate the
modifications.
68 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
There were dozens of Mitchell variants
between the B and the H, but I’m going to look
in detail at a late G (as modified at Fairfax Field).
The hated belly turret was replaced by a pair of
‘bay window’ style waist guns just aft of the
wing, rather similar to those on the H/J but taller,
narrower, and unstaggered. A single 0.50 cal gun
was fitted in the extreme tail, operated by a
gunner who was at last given enough headroom
to sit up, or at least kneel. His cupola was taller
than that required by the deeper-fuselaged H/J
and (for CG reasons) quite unarmoured. This
whole set-up was also available as a kit, which
may explain why many of the waist positions
were unglazed, and why the tail guns were
mounted in different ways. My example is B-25G-
5-NA, 264910, El Bandido Borracho, which
incorporated the ‘original’ 75mm gun installation
and the ‘interim’ rear armament. She was
operated by the 41st BG over the Carolines in
1944.
The first fix, for either Italeri kit, is pretty
The second, and more daunting, step is to correct the wing root. Also
visible here is the modification made in step 1.
daunting until you start. The whole fuselage is
too shallow, by 1.6mm at the nose, tapering to
zero at about 2/3 length. Don’t despair! Between
the wing socket and the top of the bomb-bay
door is a horizontal panel line. Score
immediately under this (it's raised) and continue
horizontally aft to level with the rear fuselage
window. Razor-saw along this scored guide, then
progressively wedge open the cut: zero at the
tail, 0.060’ (plus sawcut) under the windscreen.
There should just be room, under the ledge that
supports the cockpit floor, for a strip of 0.020’
card to bridge the gap. Do the port side (with
the dimples) first, weighting it down on a flat
surface until it dries. Use this as a template for
the starboard side (with the pips). Then fill
(styrene strip is better than any filler) and fair off.
The second fix is more difficult and more
subtle. The Mitchell was famed for its heroic
washout, and this kit has zero incidence at the
root. So, make a template of the wing’s
underside section, and use it to mark the
Fuselage assembled, with the kit
nose duly coerced into shape.

Major airframe components showing the extent of modifications, including
the lengthening of the tail and the corrections to the upper wings.
The plunge-moulded replacement tail
canopy; the kit part is more appropriate for an
H/J in shape, albeit too tall.
fuselage side with a new wing position that is
the same at the L/E but 2.5mm lower at the T/E.
Reinforce the underside of the wing socket
inside the fuselage with approx. 0.060’ square
styrene and let it dry: then cut out the socket to
the new line – chisels or mini-milling machine,
either works – and similarly deepen the tab slot.
Twist the wing inboard of the engines as you
glue the upper and lower surfaces, so that the
roots take the new incidence but the nacelles
have none. Of course there’s a big hole to fill, but
the results of this are also well worth the effort.
The third, and most obvious, fix for the B/C
version of the kit (which would be used for the
original, unmodified ‘G’) is easier. The fuselage
tail needs extending by 4.5mm at the top and
1.5mm at the bottom (use card and a spare drop
tank.) Then install the tailplane 4.5mm further
aft, widening the rear fuselage to suit: fill the
Adding the perforations to the gun jackets is a
painstaking procedure but worth the effort.
gaps and fair it all in. With the transparent
tailcone cut down to fit, this produces a huge
improvement in the ‘look.’
For the ‘late’ rear fuselage, on a D or G, it's best
to use the H/J kit. Its rear fuselage is wrong for
either, but quite close to the C/D in outline... and
it has those bulged waist positions. Fill in the
forward 6mm of the tailplane’s canopy cut-out
and add 4.5mm to the front of the fairing. Trim
the upper edges of the rear fuselage, on which
the tailplane sits, so that they follow the line of
the upper rear fuselage (and, incidentally, match
the B/C kit.) Offer up the tailplane, mark the
trailing-edge position, and cut off the rear gun
position at the appropriate angle. The extreme
tail will then need only a little reshaping and
widening to match a B/C tailcone (8mm wide at
the top rail). The shape under the tailplane is a
bit off, but doesn't show - much!
FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12
WORKBENCH
The tail gun with the addition of
the Hughes ammunition track.
The port ‘bay window’, suitably modified in
shape and unglazed on this particular aircraft.
The waist positions are wrong for an H/J, but
are the right width for our purposes. Cut both
out, carefully square, and reinstall the lower half
of the starboard ‘bay window’ lower down, so
that the upper edge of the sill lies just below the
underside of the wing T/E (as corrected). The
upper half is positioned to give a window height
of 8.5mm. Fill all the gaps. The port position is
treated similarly, but moved forward to match
that to starboard.
The cabin canopy is a little bit short at the aft
end. I cheated by moving it aft to match the
propeller position (of course, now there's a spare
in every Airfix kit). About here is the time to look
at photos and fix the simplified interior and
misplaced tail bumper.
The kit's big-gun nose needs to be pointier in
plan view. It needs to be deeper too, now the
fuselage has been fixed. I sawed and filled
69
WORKBENCH
several
radiating
slots, top and
bottom, to spread it.
(Adding 0.120’ to the rear
of Airfix’s 75mm. nose and
fairing it in would have been
better, but the widths don't match).
The solid nose will take quite a lot of lead, but
take no chances and pack all you can in front of
the instrument panel too.
Use a template, or pair of scribing compasses,
to cut a circular hole in the roof for the top
turret, centred 87mm aft of the cabin cut-out. Fill
the forward turret hole, and add the astrodome
and bulged side windows to the navigator’s
compartment, plus the small rear windows,
correcting as you go. The rear interior will need a
floor, and a plinth to support the lower pin of the
enhanced (old) Airfix top turret, which is really
needed (the Italeri turret's gun slots are much
too close together). It's worth taking inspiration
from the new Airfix (or Hasegawa H/J) turret,
especially if you don't glaze the side windows. I'd
intended to do just that, until further research
showed Bandido's were open. So then I had to
detail the radio room through the midships
windows - do it sooner, at cockpit time.
I failed to find an acceptably easy fix for the
under-emphasised complex nacelle shape on
top of the wing, but I did sort out the
aileron/flap hinge line. Italeri has given it a kink
at the nacelle. Fill and re-scribe to give the
following chords. Note: these are Frise ailerons
and slotted flaps; hence they’re different, top to
bottom:
Aileron – upper/lower: tip, 4.5mm/4.9mm;
inboard 7.2mm/7.5mm.
Flap – upper/lower: outboard 7.0mm/9.0mm;
root 9.5mm/13.0mm.
The tail unit may be
improved by taking just
under 1mm off the fin
leading edges, increasing
the radius on
70 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
the lower fin L/E, reducing the rudder chord
slightly, by about 0.5mm at the bottom but zero
at the top, and moving the fins aft until the
hinge lines coincide with those on the
tailplane.
The rear gun position was, overall, the same
height as that of the later H/J, but as the C/D/G
rear fuselage was some 7’ shallower than that of
the H, the cupola was similarly taller. That
supplied by Italeri is basically an H/J shape
stretched vertically, and it won't really do. Better
to plunge-mould a new one and sit it on/around
a card foundation. The single 0.50’ gun was
sometimes mounted on top of the rail between
the elevator trailing edges, but more usually was
centred in the tailcone face. It was supplied via
Hughes ammunition tracking (solder wire run
between two suitable coins) and sometimes
decently covered in a saggy canvas boot
(moulded filler, much easier but alas not on this
example).
I used a spare Airfix item for the rear gun, and,
of course, you can now buy Quickboost packs of
guns and barrels, which will stand up to any
scrutiny. Back in the day, though, when I first
started this project, you perforated your own
barrel jackets or did without. I made a template
from a scrap of grooved Perspex, with 0.020’
holes at 0.030’ pitch, with the edge at one end
half a pitch nearer the first hole than the other.
So you clamp your gun in the device at end A,
up to the hilt, and drill the top. Turn it over and
drill the bottom. Then move it to the other end
and drill the sides. It really is easier than trying to
file evenly-spaced notches, and it makes those
crude kit guns just a little bit more acceptable.
Now drill right through the gun bodies and
insert lengths of solder ammo track. Once the
glue has dried, the track can be bent to shape
and test-fitted via the turret
aperture; it hangs over the
edge of the waist ammo
boxes installed
earlier.
Remove,
paint, and
finally install
once the bog-
standard building and
painting are complete. The
turret guns are similarly treated,
and the end result certainly looks different when
compared with a straight B/C/D/G.
Other Versions
By combining all or some of the above mods
with a glass nose and/or Townsville side packs,
D-35s like Mitch the Witch are possible, as are
various PBJ-1Ds. You’ll always have to change all
the small fuselage windows, but if you can live
without increasing the fuselage depth, you can
use the kit’s glass nose as supplied (but note the
need for a better interior). Better to do Fix 1, plus
either (1) incorporating (and correcting) a
complete spare Matchbox glass nose or (2)
sawing apart the kit’s nose to allow packing in
the ‘solid’ area. This also needs a spare nosecap:
Hasegawa and the new Airfix kit each supply
two variants. In any case, the lower nosecap was
heavily modified on Vth AF strafers, and the
glazing was usually over-painted, so don't be put
off if you're without one.
This is admittedly a lot of work. (The Frog fix is
an equivalent, but quite different, lot of work.)
So why bother? That's up to you ... but I grew up
and began modelling when there was no
cottage industry at all, and nobody threw
anything away, ever. So you could call it habit, or
tight-fistedness, but I prefer to think that not
letting some damn'
dud kit get the
better of me is
more fun than
squirting cement
into the box and
shaking it.
 GINTER BOOKS:Navy/Air Force
Telephone: (805) 584-9732
1754 Warfield Circle, Simi Valley, CA 93063
www.ginterbooks.com
NFAF222 Lockheed XF-90 $39.95
NF107 Sikorsky CH-37 $44.95
NF108 McDonnell F4H-1 $49.95
NF109 USN Douglas A-4C/L Skyhawk $39.95
NF110 USMC Douglas A-4C/L Skyhawk $18.95
NF303 Electronic Aggressors Pt.1 $54.95
NF304 Electronic Aggressors Pt.2 $54.95
WA R PA I N T S E R I E S N O. 128
C O M I N G S O O N : W A R PA I N T S E R I E S N O . 1 2 8
BRISTOL SCOUT
A
ny modeller building a collection based
on British World War I types will find the
Bristol Scout an integral piece in the
pattern. Originally designed as a racing aircraft,
it was used by the RNAS and the RFC as a ‘scout’,
or fast reconnaissance machine, and was one of
the first single-seaters to be used as a fighter
aircraft. Designed in the second half of 1913 the
first flight was made at Larkhill on 23 February
the following year after which it was exhibited at
the March 1914 Aero Show at Olympia in
London.
It was evaluated by the British military in May
1914 at Farnborough and its period of service
saw great leaps forward in the design and
tactical usage of fighter aircraft, and many of the
earliest attempts to perfect forward-firing guns
were tested in action using Bristol Scouts.
An RNAS Scout was the first landplane to be
flown from a ship, when Flt. Lt. H. F. Towler flew
No. 1255 from the flying deck of the seaplane
carrier HMS Vindex on 3 November 1915. The
aircraft saw service in both Europe and the
Middle East but by mid-1916 was largely
relegated to training units.
Modelling the Scout
As is so often the case, this important aviation
milestone has been somewhat
underrepresented in kit form. 1/144 modellers
were blessed in 1972 with a free plastic kit given
away with Kelloggs ‘Coco Krispies’ breakfast
cereals claiming to be a Bristol Scout, but this is
of the Bristol M.1 monoplane. Other than this
there has been nothing, with even the otherwise
72 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
By Matthew Willis
comprehensive range of resin kits by Sram
omitting the type.
In 1/72 Aeroclub released a kit in 1993, along
with a separately available set of white metal
parts for the Scout, but these are
understandably hard to find now. Czech
manufacturer Omega released resin kits of both
C and D versions, but latterly the only available
options are the MAC Distribution kits, dating
from 2010 – 2011, with four boxings released.
These build up into nice replicas, and given the
lack of alternatives are likely to be the first
option for many. We are not aware of any
accessories sets at present, but there was an
option for a Scout on Xtradecal’s sheet X72305.
In 1/48 Gavia’s kits seem to have been the
only option, with three boxings dating from
2001, and this tooling was reboxed by Eduard
somewhere along the line. PART released an
etched detail set for this kit but little else
seems to have been made available.
As for the larger scales, it can only be a
matter of time before Roden, perhaps,
get round to the Scout in 1/32.
This latest book in the Warpaint
series covers the aircraft
comprehensively, with an impressive
historical text, and a selection of
photographs that will be essential
for any modeller considering a
project. Author Matthew Willis is
well-known for his authoritative
books on classic British aircraft, and
we are particularly pleased to add
this follow up to his earlier volume
on the Sopwith Pup to the series.

Kit No: 2807
Scale: 1/48
Type: Injection Moulded Plastic
Manufacturer: Italeri
www.italeri.com
T
his brand new boxing of the Italeri sprues
has been issued to mark the 80th
anniversary of the Battle of Britain and
gives us several new decal options and colour
schemes for the short but iconic conflict. The kit
contains four sprues of standard grey plastic,
one transparent sprue, and a small photoetched
fret containing key components of the
construction. Four decal options are provided.
It is with this photoetch fret that we begin the
build, bending what will be the instrument
panel coaming into shape. There are several
photoetched parts that must be used in the
build, with no plastic alternative, therefore a
little familiarity in working in this medium is
required. Having bent the coaming, it sits nicely
behind the main instrument panel, which itself
must next be layered up. A base decal depicting
the dials is put on first followed by a
photoetched front panel, which should be
JU-87B Stuka
‘Battle of Britain’
painted prior to fixing. The rest of the cockpit
tub construction follows and proceeds pretty
much as you’d expect. My only reservation was
the shape of the pilot’s seat, which just didn’t
look right to me and I think I’d invest in an
aftermarket one should I build this kit again.
Very quickly I had the cockpit tub assembled
into the two fuselage halves, which were then
brought together. This fit was very good with
just a light sand required on the fuselage spine.
Next up the wings were assembled, and these
are a simple one-piece bottom half with two
separate top halves. Remember here to pre-drill
the holes for any underwing ordnance you’re
fitting. The wing assembly took a little
manoeuvring to fit snugly to the fuselage but
eventually clicked into place and was secured
with a run of liquid poly down the roots and only
a very small swipe of filler was required on the
starboard side.
I built the basic engine as per the instructions
– it carries the chin radiator, exhaust mounts and
spinner mount so there’s really no way you can
skip this part, but I omitted most of the detail
that wouldn’t be seen. Once assembled, the
engine block is fitted inside the two halves of the
front cowling (parts B30/31) and here’s where I
ran into a major snag. The fit here is very poor
and I needed to make a few modifications to get
it looking tidy. First, fitting the exhaust stubs to
the engine block and then getting them to line
up with the openings is nigh on impossible. I left
them off and slotted them in under the
openings afterwards. Luckily this was very easily
done, and I recommend this approach as it will
save you a lot of frustration. Second, I just
couldn’t get the cowls to close up to anywhere
near a satisfactory join. Finally, I had to remove
part B39 (the rear spinner plate) entirely to make
the engine fit. Not a problem for this closed-up
build but something that needs looking at
carefully should you build it open.
FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12
REVIEWS
By Ade Bailey
Once the main cowling issues were sorted
and the nose attached, the top and underneath
panels went on (just!) again with some
adjustment and careful trimming needed. The
tail section was added next and was
straightforward. Here, photoetch is used for the
elevator end plates and there are no plastic
alternatives, but its use does really enhance the
look of the finished kit and is worth the time. I
did add the elevator struts during this stage as
they greatly helped with setting the right-angle
while the glue set. The main undercarriage was
also assembled and fitted to the wings at this
stage. The final main assembly was to add the
dive brakes and bomb racks prior to painting. I
had also only fitted the front cockpit
transparency at this point, preferring to paint the
rest separate and attach them later.
On the subject of cockpit transparencies, I
have to say this is my other area of concern with
the kit. They are moulded in an odd plastic – it’s
neither crystal clear nor do they give you any
confidence during handling. They almost felt like
vacform parts at times and are extremely fragile.
I used an Eduard mask and was in constant fear
of them cracking and splitting every time I
handled them. Be warned!
With the bulk of the construction complete, I
set about priming the model with my preferred
method. I always use Mr Surfacer 1500 Black
primer through an airbrush as I feel this gives the
most control and best finish of any method I’ve
tried over the years. Once dry and given a very
light de-nibbing with the finest sanding stick I
could find, the black surface is the ideal canvas
to bring out deeper, richer tones to the main
colours. I began the long and involved masking
process for the early war splinter camo by
marking out the areas to be sprayed the lighter
RLM71. I used a technique where I effectively
‘marbled’ the paint on to give a subtle
modulation with the black primer. Once dry, I
73
REVIEWS

then repeated the subtle marbling with a shade of RLM71 – lightened with in my armoury but one that I’ve found
a grey rather than white, which tends to bleach out the main colour. This outperforms all other matt
second, lighter marbling was applied in the centre and front edge of varnishes I’ve tried previously.
panels to enhance modulation further. The masking was removed and The three rear pieces of the
then the whole model was painstakingly re-masked for the darker RLM70 cockpit transparencies were
areas. The dark nature of this colour meant the initial pass over the sprayed, varnished, and looked
primer was less defined, so the modulation effect was achieved in superb once the masks
the main with the second lighter post-shade. were removed. I
The undersides were very straightforward in that it was a tacked them on
repeat of the two-stage marbling as above using Hataka using Glue &
Orange Line RLM65 (C029) and Traffic White (C101). The Glaze. Drop
whole model was then sealed with Alclad Aqua Gloss tanks and the
ready for decaling. centre-line bomb
I had selected the marking option for a were added as were
machine that flew from Theville in 1940 the prop and spinner. I
mainly because this option carried two added an HF radio
300-litre drop tanks on the wings, which antenna from EZ line,
I felt gave the build a little more which looked really
interest than a bucket load of bombs. effective once attached to
All the decals were beautifully printed the moulded-on mounts on
and went on effortlessly, settling nicely with the tail and cockpit antenna
Micro Set/Sol. I sourced the tail swastikas from post.
my spares box as they are not provided and then, once Although I have outlined the
cured, sealed the decals again with Aqua Gloss. issues with the nose assembly and
I began weathering with a pin wash into the prominent rivets the transparencies, overall this is a
and panel lines using odourless thinner and a mix of good quality good little kit, which goes together
Burnt Umber and Prussian Blue oils. Leaving the wash to dry for twenty quickly and paints up like a dream. The
minutes or so, I then removed the excess with paper towels and cotton decal options are great, and that engine will
buds leaving all the nice detail to pop out. The final task was to bring certainly pass muster should you choose to
everything together with a coat of Galeria matt varnish, which is a new tool open it up.

Gloster Javelin FAW 9/9R By Andy McCabe

The build begins by assembling the nose
wheel gear bay, which then fits onto the one-
piece cockpit tub. There are raised details on the
cockpit tub side panels and decals for the main
and rear cockpit panels. The cockpit was sprayed
with Tamiya Rubber Black (XF-85) and after dry-
brushing with light grey the cockpit looks quite
nice although something of a black hole. The
ejection seats were assembled next, they lack
seat harnesses though, so the spares box was
raided and some were found from an Eduard set.
These were fitted to the tub, the two cockpit side
Kit No: A12007 walls fitted to it, and the two forward cockpit
Scale: 1/48 fuselage halves were glued to this assembly.
Type: Injection Moulded Plastic Next up were the two engine intakes and
engine fronts. These were sprayed silver on the
Manufacturer: Airfix
insides and assembled and then the intakes
www.airfix.com
were glued to the cockpit fuselage assembly and
the forward wing spar glued onto the intakes. It
assembled and fitted to the rear wing spar. This
then fits into the lower fuselage, the upper
fuselage half slots very nicely onto this assembly,
and the elegant lines of the Javelin fuselage can
be seen.
Moving on, the two intake rings were fitted
and work moves onto the wings, or more
precisely the main undercarriage bays. The
wings are built up completely, one at a time,
followed by the rudder and tail fin to which the
rudder is fitted. The two tail planes are then
fitted to a rather clever top for the tail fin, which
enables them to move. Wings and tail assembly
were now glued to the fuselage, and the fitting
of the joints is accurate and no filler was needed.
At this point the undercarriage should be fitted
but due to the clever tooling of this kit it can
easily be fitted later on.
Upper and lower air brakes on the wings can

T
his Airfix reissue of the Gloster Javelin FAW
9/9R consists of eight sprues of grey and
one clear sprue of injection moulded
plastic, one decal sheet with three marking
options, one assembly, painting and marking
booklet, and one sheet for positioning the
stencil data.
was already evident that Airfix have put a lot of
thought into the assembly sequence and
location of the parts.
The above assembly was now fitted to the
lower centre fuselage half but not before the
holes were opened up for the conformal fuel
tanks. The exhausts were now painted and
be fitted either raised or lowered, they look quite
impressive so I chose the raised position. The
four underwing pylons were now added to the
wings and the two conformal fuel tanks fitted to
the fuselage belly. Various intakes and antennae
were now fitted to the fuselage, nose weight was
added, and the nose cone glued into position.

74 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K

Next up the cockpit windscreen
and canopies were masked, the
windscreen and centre glazing
were glued into place and the
canopies dry-fitted ready for
painting. Finally, the refuelling
probe was assembled and fitted,
and I was now ready to begin the
painting stage.
A coat of grey primer was
sprayed on followed by a coat of
Tamiya Silver (X-11) to the
undersides of the model. This was
then masked and LifeColor Dark
Sea Grey (UA532) and Royal Air
Force Dark Green (UA546) were
sprayed for the camouflage
pattern. The nose and intake rings
were masked off and sprayed
Tamiya Matt Black (XF-1) and a
couple of coats of Johnsons Klear
were applied in preparation for the
decals, which settled really well into
the lovely surface detailing.
Another coat of Klear sealed them
in place and then Ultimate
Products Dark Dirt wash was
applied to bring out the panel lines.
A coat of Createx Colors Gloss
Varnish (4050) was sprayed on to
seal the paintwork and decals.
Three markings options are
supplied:
• FAW.9R, No. 64 Squadron,
Tengah, Singapore, 1960s
• FAW.9 flown by Sqn. Leader
George H.Beaton, CO No.228
REVIEWS
OCU, Leuchars and Binbrook,
1966
• FAW.9/9R No.33 Sqn, Middleton
St George, County Durham,
England, 1962
Assembly now recommenced by
painting and fitting the
undercarriage - these parts are
every bit as detailed as the main kit,
and very nice indeed. There are four
Firestreak missiles and four fuel
tanks supplied in the kit and a
combination of these can be fitted
to the four pylons. The very nice
crew access ladder was now
painted and fitted along with the
two rather long wing tip probes.
Finally, the FOD covers to the
engine intakes were painted,
decaled and fitted, and the model
was complete.
This is a very detailed model. The
surface detailing is exquisite and
complete, the parts fit together
precisely and accurately, and the
assembly sequence is well thought
out. The shape of the aircraft is
unmistakeable and Airfix have
recreated it in 1/48 superbly. I have
always liked the look of the Javelin
and some years ago purchased and
built the Dynavector kit. The Airfix
tooling is every bit as detailed and
with the exception of the ejection
seats does not need that much
extra work.
FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12 75
U P D AT E S A C C E S S O R I E S
ASK DISTRIBUTION
www.artscale.eu
As well as stocking a wide range of model kits of
all types and subjects subjects, ASK are
becoming the place to go and restock on those
useful items that make a model come together.
Lead Wire
Without a doubt one of the most useful items to
have in your modelling supplies is lead wire as it
can have a variety of uses when adding
additional detail to your build. ASK have a wide
range of lead wire in various diameters and
shapes. These include flat sections as well as
half-round, which can be used to replicate all
manner of ducting and tubing.
Brass Chain
Brass chain comes in useful in a variety of genres
CAT4
www.specialhobby.eu
A new accessories manufacturer has arisen in
the Ukraine, going by the name of CAT4. The
name refers to the 4th Catapult on US Navy
76 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
of modelling. ASK have a range of sizes of chain
that are suitable for most modelling needs such
as tie-down chains, replicating guardrails and
tow chains:
Razor Saws
Razor saws are a vital modelling tool, perfect for
cutting model parts from sprue or pour stubs as
well as cutting those fragile clear parts. ASK has
a pair of razor saw handles that should prove
useful as one is a standard shape, while the
other has an offset blade, which will allow you to
get closer to the surface. As you would expect
they also carry a variety of saw blades with
varying tooth sizes depending on your needs. A
particularly useful blade is the radius item, which
has curves with teeth on either side allowing you
to open up panels on your model if you wish to
display internal detail.
carriers and this relates perfectly to their core
subject matters of US Navy and Marines aircraft
of the post-war era in 1/48. Already they have
twenty different items in their range, including
resin sets, decals and etched sets, and are
looking to expand this to provide at least forty
Razer Saw holder universal including Ultra
Smooth saw blade and Allen Key (
ref. 200-T0020)
Razer Saw holder asymmetric including Ultra
Smooth saw blade and Allen Key
(ref. 200-T0021)
Razer Saw ultra-smooth and extra smooth 1
piece (ref. 200-T0001)
Razer Saw ultra-smooth 1 piece
(ref. 200-T0005)
Razer Saw extra smooth 1 piece
(ref. 200-T0009)
Razer Saw Radius ultra-smooth and extra
smooth 1 piece (ref. 200-T0013)
ASK also offers a club membership which
provides 10 per cent off the whole product
range, along with news updates and
competitions, so well worth investigating.
items in the near future. Items include Early A-4
Skyhawk conversions, LAU-33 rocket launchers,
and a host of sets for the Vought Cutlass.
Contact them via the CAT4 Facebook page for
more details
 U P D AT E S A C C E S S O R I E S

EDUARD (ref. FE1140)

www.eduard.com
A huge selection of accessories from Eduard this month, from photoetch to
help upgrade the already excellent Zvezda C-130H Hercules, to pre-cut
mask sets to speed up the build of your Trumpeter F-100F and everything
in between. The range of resin ‘Brassin’ sets expands with parts for the
Eduard Spitfire Mk IIa as well as their Bf 110, in fact there is a well-designed
Eduard part for pretty much every taste this time round.
1/72
Spitfire Mk Vc ZOOM photoetch set 1/72 for the Airfix kit (ref. SS728)
Spitfire Mk Vc photoetch set 1/72 for the Airfix kit (ref. 73728)
Spitfire Mk Vc wheels BRASSIN 1/72 for the Airfix kit (ref. 672249)
Spitfire Mk Vc exhaust stacks BRASSIN 1/72 for the Airfix kit (ref. 672250)
Spitfire Mk Vc mask 1/72 for the Airfix kit (ref. CX589)
C-130H ZOOM photoetch set 1/72 for the Zvezda kit (ref. SS729)
C-130H exterior photoetch set 1/72 for the Zvezda kit (ref. 72713)
C-130H interior photoetch set 1/72 for the Zvezda kit (ref. 73729)
C-130H cargo seatbelts photoetch set 1/72 for the Zvezda kit (ref. 73730)
C-130H cargo interior photoetch set 1/72 for the Zvezda kit (ref. 73731)
C-130H cargo floor photoetch set 1/72 for the Zvezda kit (ref. 73732)
C-130H mask 1/72 for the Zvezda kit (ref. CX590)
EF-111A mask 1/72 for the Revell kit (ref. CX591)
1/48
Tornado ASSTA 3.1 mask 1/48 for the Revell kit (ref. EX741)
Tornado ASSTA 3.1 TFace mask 1/48 for the Revell kit (ref. EX742)
Tornado ASSTA 3.1 exterior photoetch set 1/48 for the Revell kit
(ref. 481040)
Tornado ASSTA 3.1 interior photoetch set 1/48 for the Revell kit
(ref. 491137)
Tornado ASSTA 3.1 undercarriage photoetch set 1/48 for the Revell kit
(ref. 491138)
Tornado ASSTA 3.1 ZOOM photoetch set 1/48 for the Revell kit (ref. FE1137)
Tornado ASSTA 3.1 ZOOM photoetch set seatbelts STEEL 1/48 for the
Revell kit (ref. FE1138)
TF-104G photoetch set 1/48 for the Kinetic kit (ref. 491139)
TF-104G 1/48 ZOOM photoetch set for the Kinetic kit (ref. FE1139)
TF-104G seatbelts STEEL ZOOM photoetch set 1/48 for the Kinetic kit
TF-104G mask 1/48 for the Kinetic kit (ref. EX738)
TF-104G mask TFace mask 1/48 for the Kinetic kit (ref. EX739)
P-51D-5 Weekend ZOOM photoetch set 1/48 Eduard kit (ref. FE1141)
P-51D Weekend mask 1/48 for the Eduard kit (ref. EX740)
Bf 109G-6/AS Weekend ZOOM photoetch set 1/48 for the Eduard kit
(ref. FE1142)
SBD-2 BIG ED 1/48 for the Academy kit (ref. BIG49272)
Su-27S BIG ED 1/48 for the Kitty Hawk kit (ref. BIG49273)
Su-27UB BIG ED 1/48 for the Kitty Hawk kit (ref. BIG49274)
Beaufighter Mk IF LööK 1/48 for the Revell kit (ref. 644079)
Beaufighter Mk IF BIG ED 1/48 for the Revell kit (ref. BIG49275)
Spitfire Mk I engine BRASSIN 1/48 for the Eduard kit (ref. 648582)
Spitfire Mk II LööK 1/48 for the Eduard kit (ref. 644080)
Spitfire Mk IIa gun bays BRASSIN 1/48 for the Eduard kit (ref. 648610)
Bf 110G wheels BRASSIN 1/48 for the Eduard kit (ref. 648603)
Bf 110G-4 exhaust stacks BRASSIN 1/48 for the Eduard kit (ref. 648606)
Bf 110C/D/E exhaust stacks BRASSIN 1/48 for the Eduard kit (ref. 648607)
Bf 110G-4 LööK 1/48 for the Eduard kit (ref. 644081)
Lysander Twin Browning machine gun BRASSIN 1/48 for the Eduard kit
(ref. 648584)
P-38H LööKplus 1/48 for the Tamiya kit (ref. 644083)
F-14A w/ late wheels LööKplus 1/48 for the Tamiya kit (ref. 644084)
1/32
F-100F ZOOM photoetch set 1/32 for the Trumpeter kit (ref. 33272)
F-100F seatbelts STEEL ZOOM photoetch set 1/32 for the Trumpeter kit
(ref. 33273)
F-100F exterior photoetch set 1/32 for the Trumpeter kit (ref. 32458)
F-100F slats photoetch set 1/32 for the Trumpeter kit (ref. 32459)
F-100F air brake photoetch set 1/32 for the Trumpeter kit (ref. 32460)
F-100F undercarriage photoetch set 1/32 for the Trumpeter kit (ref. 32461)
F-100F interior photoetch set 1/32 for the Trumpeter kit (ref. 32980)
F-100F mask 1/32 for the Trumpeter kit (ref. JX267)
F-100F TFace mask 1/32 for the Trumpeter kit (ref. JX268)
PT-17 / N2S-3 BIG ED 1/32 for the ICM kit (ref. BIG33124)
AGM-88 HARM BRASSIN 1/32 (ref. 632164)

PEEWIT Camouflage masks

www.peewit.wixsite.com
Canopy Masks
Canopy masks are one of those
things that can save a fair amount of
trouble when you are getting ready
to airbrush a model, and Peewit have
added a further seven such items to
their formidable range.
CAC CA-12/13/19 Boomerang -
Special Hobby (ref. 72244)
Yak-1B - Arma Hobby (ref. 72245)
Su-39 Frogfoot – Zvezda (ref. 72246)
FM-2 Wildcat / Wildcat Mk VI - Arma
Hobby (ref. 72249)
SIAI SF-260 - Kovozávody Prostějov
(ref. 72250)
TBM-3/AS.4 Avenger Sword
(ref. 72248)
TBM-3R Avenger Sword (ref. 72247)
Wheel Bay masks
Something new to these pages, but
a great idea, are these wheel bay
cover masks. Made from paper, they
simply slot into the wheel bays when
airbrushing to prevent overspray.
CAC CA-12/13/19 Boomerang
Special Hobby (ref. 75001)
Yak-1B Arma Hobby (ref. 75002)
TBM-3R / 3S Avenger Sword
(ref. 75003)
Wildcat Arma Hobby (ref. 75004)
Peewit have definitely had their
thinking caps on, as they have
another new range, this time in the
shape of paper camouflage masks
which form the outlines of the
camouflage scheme you are
painting, simply tacking in place and
meaning that you can press ahead
with painting your model:
Caudron CR.714 - RS models
(ref. 77001)
This package contains pre-cut paper
camouflage masks for one
camouflage pattern from the kit
schemes.
Lavochkin La-5 Clear Prop
(ref. 77002)
This set contains pre-cut paper
camouflage masks for one
camouflage scheme from the kit,
however this applies to three of the
options.
Diorama Bases
Finally, three different printed paper
display bases are offered, all in 1/72:
Blooming meadow –103 mm x 103
mm (ref. 70004)
Summer meadow –137 mm x 103
mm (ref. 70005)
Concrete - Grass –103 mm x 103 mm
(ref. 70006)

FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12 77

U P D AT E S A C C E S S O R I E S

KITSWORLD
www.kitsworld.co.uk
The 3D decals range from KitsWorld are one of
the most impressive modelling developments
for a long time, adding a much higher level of
detail to items such as harnesses and instrument
panels. Of particular interest will be the Tornado
harness sets, which can be used for any aircraft
that uses the Marin Baker MB10 series of seats,
which includes most late 1970s onwards RAF
and FAA jet aircraft along with a great number of
other types.
Another ejection seat that has a wide range of
users is the ACES II seat and this is also covered
by the range. Phantom fans are well catered for
as both USAF/USN and RAF machines receive
harness sets in both 1/48 and 1/32 too. The 1/24
USAAF harness set is also a welcome addition as
it can be fitted to any number of World War II US
types as well as those operated immediately
post-war. Finally, and in advance of its imminent
release, is the Vulcan cockpit set in 1/72
intended for the Airfix kit. The detail on the parts
in this set should make for a mind-blowing
addition to your model.
1/24
USAAF Fighter 3D Seat Belts (ref. KW3D124001)
1/32
McDonnell Douglas F4 Phantom British 3D Seat
Belts Set (ref. KW3D132017)
McDonnell Douglas F4 Phantom USAF/USN 3D
Seat Belts (ref. KW3D132018)
'ACES' II Ejection Seat 3D Seat Belts (ref.
KW3D132019)
RAF Panavia Tornado MB 10 Ejection 3D Seat
Belts (ref. KW3D132020)
1/48
RAF Panavia Tornado MB 10 Ejection 3D Seat
Belts (ref. KW3D148004)
McDonnell Douglas F4 Phantom USAF USN 3D
Seat Belts (ref. KW3D148006)
McDonnell Douglas F4 Phantom BRITISH 3D Seat
Belts (ref. KW3D148005)
'ACES II Ejection 3D Seat Belts (ref. KW3D148007)
1/72
Avro Vulcan B.2 Instrument Panels & Harnesses
(ref. KW3D72001)

SCALE AIRCRAFT CONVERSIONS
www.scaleaircraftconversions.com
Continuing to supply the modelling world with far more robust
undercarriage, especially for those with a heavy hand or who transport
their models around, SAC bring us four more sets of white metal
undercarriage appendages:
1/32
PZL P.IIc Landing Gear (IBG) (ref. 32156)
Fokker Dr.I Landing Struts (Meng) (ref. 32157)
1/72
Lockheed F-104G/J, CF-104 Landing Gear (Hasegawa) (ref. 72180)
Piaggio Avanti/Hammerhead Landing Gear (Amodel or A&A) (ref. 72181)
HH-34J TFace MASKS 1/48 Trumpeter (ref. EX737)
S-2E interior etched detail set 1/48 Kinetic (ref. 491135)
S-2E exterior etched detail set 1/48 Kinetic (ref. 481039)
S-2E ZOOMS 1/48 Kinetic (ref. FE1135)
S-2E seatbelts STEEL ZOOMS 1/48 Kinetic (ref. FE1136)
Bf 110C LööK BRASSIN 1/48 Eduard (ref. 644076)
Bf 110D LööK BRASSIN 1/48 Eduard (ref. 644077)0
Bf 110C/D radio equipment BRASSIN 1/48 Eduard (ref.648602)
Bf 110E BigED 1/48 Dragon (ref. BIG49271)
Bf 110 Stencils DECALS 1/48 Eduard (ref. D48066)
F-6D cockpit BRASSIN 1/48 Eduard (ref.648600)
F-14A w/ early wheels LööKplus 1/48 Tamiya (ref. 644078)
GBU-54 Thermally Protected BRASSIN 1/48 (ref. 648598)
AN/ALE-41 Chaff dispenser BRASSIN 1/48 (ref.648601)
Mirage 2000D etched detail set 1/32 Kitty Hawk (ref. 32976)
Mirage 2000N etched detail set 1/32 Kitty Hawk (ref. 32977)
Mirage 2000D ZOOMS 1/32 Kitty Hawk (ref. 33267)
Mirage 2000N ZOOMS 1/32 Kitty Hawk (ref. 33268)
Mirage 2000D/N seatbelts STEEL ZOOMS 1/32 Kitty Hawk (ref. 33269)
Mirage 2000D/N MASKS 1/32 Kitty Hawk (ref. JX263)
Mirage 2000D/N MASKS TFace 1/32 Kitty Hawk (ref. JX264)
Fokker Dr.I etched detail set 1/32 Meng (ref. 32978)
Fokker Dr.I MASKS 1/32 Meng (ref. JX265)
CR.42 etched detail set 1/32 ICM (ref. 32979)
CR.42 ZOOMS 1/32 ICM (ref. 33270)
CR.42 seatbelts STEEL ZOOMS 1/32 ICM (ref. 33271)
CR.42 MASKS 1/32 ICM (ref. JX266)
Bf 109E LööK BRASSIN 1/32 Eduard (ref. 634021)
P-40E LööKplus 1/32 Trumpeter (ref. 634022)
P-40E BigED part I 1/32 Trumpeter (ref. BIG33122)
P-40E BigED part II 1/32 Trumpeter (ref. BIG33123)
Mk 20 Rockeye BRASSIN 1/32 (ref. 632162)
AGM-45 Shrike BRASSIN 1/32 (ref. 632163)

78 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
U P D AT E S A C C E S S O R I E S

BRENGUN
www.brengun.cz
A great selection of accessories
from Brengun this month, catering
for scales from 1/144 through to
1/48 with their usual dedication to
value and quality.
1/144
SBD-3 Dauntless Exterior
photoetch set (BRENGUN kit)
(ref. BRL144166)
UK Flight Deck Tractor Clarkat type
B (ref. BRS144054)
UK Flight Deck Tractor Tugmaster
(ref. BRS144055)
1/72
Si-204A photoetch set (KOPRO,
Smer kit) (ref. BRL72232)
Gotha G.IV photoetch set (Roden
kit) (ref. BRL72233)
Mil Mi-8 photoetch set (KOPRO, SBD Dauntless Wheels resin set
Smer kit) (ref. BRL72234) (ref. BRL72239)
AN-ALE 47 Countermeasures 1/48
Dispenser resin set (ref. BRL72235) Mk54 depth charge resin set (2pcs)
F-16 CD Wheel Block 40 and later (ref. BRL48147)
resin set (ref. BRL72236) M26 flare (2pcs) resin set
F-14ABD Ventral Fins resin set (ref. BRL48148)
(ref. BRL72237) Škoda 100kg bomb resin set
F-14D Tomcat Wheels set resin set (ref. BRL48149)
(ref. BRL72238)

CMK
www.specialhobby.eu
DAP Beaufighter Mk 21 Conversion Set 1/48 (ref. 4406)
This set provides everything required to turn your Revell Beaufighter Mk X
into the Mk 21 version, which was licence-built in Australia for the RAAF.
The set contains resin conversion parts, a vacuum-formed observer’s
canopy hood and a sheet of decals for two RAAF airframes, both of which
have distinguishing artwork on either the nose or tail area.
German WWII Aircraft Maintenance Toolbox 1/48 (ref. 4415)
This resin-cast toolbox set fits nicely in with any diorama of a German
aircraft or military vehicle. It is also a great addition to the quartet of
Luftwaffe ground crew and mechanics already on offer from CMK to add
realism and scale to your model.
F-14A Tomcat Cockpit 1/72 (ref. 7452)
A finely detailed resin cockpit tailored to fit the new 1/72 Academy F-14A.
The cockpit tub, ejection seats and additional details are supplied with a
fret of photoetch parts to add extra finesse.
F-14A Tomcat Port Side Cannon Installation 1/72 (ref. 7453)
This resin-cast set allows you to open the rotary cannon compartment on
the new Academy F-14A 1/72 kit. The edges of the cannon box and ammo
belts are formed from the etched brass parts included in the set.
F-14A Tomcat F-14A Tomcat Port Engine 1/72 (ref. 7454)
This resin conversion set allows you to open the port side engine servicing
panel on the new Academy F-14A Tomcat
Special Mask:
Messerschmitt Bf 109E-3 mask (ref. M72009)
Pre-cut painting masks for the new 1/72 Special Hobby Messerschmitt
Bf 109E-3.
Focke Wulf Fw 189B mask (ref. M720XX)
Pre-cut painting masks for the Special Hobby 1/72 Focke Wulf Fw 189B
Future releases from CMK include the following sets:
Tempest Mk V Fuselage Fuel and Oil Tanks 1/32 (ref. 5132)
DAP Beaufighter Mk 21 Conversion Set 1/72 (ref. 7446)
Hurricane Wing Armament (8 guns) 1/72 (ref. 7451)
Bf 109G German Pilot, seated (for Eduard kits) 1/48 (ref. F48368)
Bf 109E Ace Adolf Galland and mechanic 1/72 (ref. F72369)
F-104C Wheels 1/48 (ref. Q48383)
Beaufighter - Hedgehog Flame Damper Exhausts / British Type 1/48
(ref. Q48386)

80 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
DECALS

WOLFPACK DESIGN
www.wolfpack-d.com
F-14A Tomcat Part.2 VF-1 ‘Wolfpack’ 1970 Era
(ref. WD72010)
Three new sets of decals from Wolfpack this
month, starting off with a second set in the
series designed to reflect the very early years of
Tomcat service using the new 1/72 Academy kit.
This sheet contains markings for six aircraft
along with enough stencils for three. You will
need the Wolfpack 1/72 F-14A Tomcat Early
Beaver Tail Conversion set (ref. WP72094) to
make your build truly authentic.
Hawker Sea Fury, Part.1 Korean War Furies
(ref. WD48020)
Hawker Sea Fury Part.2 Middle East Furies
(ref. WD48020)
The next two decal sets are designed to be used
with the Airfix 1/48 Sea Fury, the first providing
five extra marking choices for either the Royal
Navy or Royal Australian Navy, while the second
adds a further five options for Royal Egyptian Air
Force, Royal Iraqi Air Force, and Pakistan Air
Force aircraft during the 1950 to 1960 Era.

EDUARD interesting subject for modellers and Eduard register. The carrier film is minimal, which in
have added an additional pair of decal sheets for addition to the thinness of the decals should add
www.eduard.com their Adlerangriff limited edition kit. The printing to the painted on appearance. The sheets
The Bf-109 series of aircraft will always be an is to the usual high standard and in perfect contain six and five new options respectively,

82 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K

and while they are recommended for use on
the Eduard kit there is no reason why you
couldn’t add these to any other E-3, E-4 or E-
4/B you may have in your stash if you
desired.
ADLERANGRIFF: Experten 1/48
(ref.D48062)
ADLERANGRIFF: Alte Hasen 1/48
(ref. D48063)
The next two sheets are ideal to add to any
overtrees you may buy or alternatively to
use on another manufacturer’s kit if they
don’t supply the full quota of stencils or their
decals fall below the mark.
Spitfire Mk I 1/48 stencils (ref. D48064)
MiG-19 stencils Czech 1/48 (ref. D48065).
These are intended for use with the Eduard
BUNNY FIGHTER CLUB
With a selection of unique entry kits – including a special boxing of
the Hasegawa 1/32 P-40 – the BFC is the best way to enjoy Eduard at
discount prices so be sure to sign up today at: www.eduard.com/bfc
FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12
DECALS
rebranding of the Trumpeter kit, so could
easily be used on that or indeed any other
1/48 MiG-19 kit you might have stashed
away.
These will be joined by five new decal sheets
and while the decals that Eduard have
released up until now have been intended
for their own releases, they are starting to
offer choices and options for other
manufacturers kits, printed to their own
demanding standards:
Die Roten Flieger 1/32 Meng (ref. D32006)
Spitfire Mk II stencils 1/48 Eduard (ref.
D48067)
P-39 stencils 1/48 Eduard (ref. D48068)
P-47D stencils 1/48 Eduard (ref. D48069)
Z-37 stencils, code letters & labels 1/72
Eduard (ref. D72029)
ICM
www.icm.com.ua
In addition to the decals provided in
their kits, ICM offer an additional range
of sets designed to provide further
options for modellers. The latest covers
the CR.42 Falco in Foreign Service (ref.
D3206), which supplies decals to cover
the type’s use in Hungarian, Bulgarian,
Belgian and Swedish service, and is
aimed at their own 1/32 kit.
83
IPMS UK

IPMS UK Column
By John Tapsell

O
ver the Christmas break I found myself making lists. My Special Interest Groups are a vital part of IPMS (UK) and here are just three
modelling interests cover a fairly broad spectrum in terms out of more than 70 different groups. More details of all our SIGs can be
of era and nationality and that's very much reflected in found on our website –
my output. However, I seem to go through phases where I www.ipmsuk.org/ipms-network/special-interest-groups/
become obsessed with a particular time period or Service. At that
point I start making lists of available kits, available aftermarket for
those kits, and some more detailed research into it. My current
enthusiasm is with the Korean War.
One of the fascinating elements to this conflict from a
modelling perspective is that it marks a transition between the
military equipment used during WWII and what we would
generally see as 'modern'. At one end of the spectrum we have
the likes of the F-86 Sabre and MiG 15, state-of-the -art jet
fighters of the period, while at the other end are the late-WWII
piston-engined fighters and bombers like the P-51 Mustang and
the F4U Corsair. For a conflict involving major world powers it
seems anachronistic to say the least.
So, back to my list. I started off by listing all the models that I
already have in the stash that would be relevant to the Korean
War. That of course took me off at a tangent because it became
obvious that one or two of the essential subjects weren't in my
possession and perhaps I needed to buy them? I don't know
about anyone else, but my hobby is all about being inspired by
As the name suggests, the SIG specialises in 1/32 scale aircraft so their display at
something sufficiently strongly to want to model it. Sometimes
Scale ModelWorld is always impressive.
that model is already in my possession but sometimes it isn't.
There are certain kits in my stash that have been there for the
best part of 25 years. They inspired me when I bought them and
they still do – but not enough just yet to be willing to clear the
time and space to do them justice. Although it's not an aircraft,
Tamiya's 1/25 Centurion tank is one of those. I know I'll need to
clear my head, clear my to-do list and really focus on it. It's the
sort of model that absolutely must have your attention to do it
justice, and at such a large scale, the potential for adding extra
detail means that once you start, there's no going back. It also fits
into my current Korean War theme so maybe now is the time...
To a great extent this idea of planning and organising, making
lists and scheduling my hobby time more effectively is just an
exercise in time-wasting. I know from years of experience that I'll
complete the first model in the list, probably complete a second
one and get about halfway through a third one before some new
enthusiasm grabs my attention. I'm constantly surrounded by the
raw material that feeds my interest in the hobby. My shelves are
groaning with books of all types. I had a Pacific War phase a
couple of years ago so I have a good selection of titles on Hellcats
and Corsairs for example, but I also picked up a three-volume
history of the entire Pacific Campaign and several other titles as From immense 1/24 Airfix examples right down to entertaining egg planes, there
well – nothing to do with modelling per se, but absolutely vital to is very little that this team don't know about the Harrier.
feed my appetite for the subject. I even came across a PDF copy
of an official US Government report on Japanese airfield building
designs and base construction (ideal for all those scenic bases I
was going to put my models on) – but I never got around to
building any of the 'Pacific' kits I planned and those scenic bases
remain just pipe dreams. However, at least I learnt a lot more
about a major part of WWII that had previously only been of
passing interest so it wasn't at all a wasted effort.
Perhaps I should accept that my modelling is based on
whatever catches my eye at the time and not worry about
anything else? Just because I build a single Korean War model
doesn't mean I need to try to do a model of half the other aircraft
that served in the conflict too. Instead, I should enjoy and
appreciate what I'm working on now, in this moment and not
attempt to build whole collections in one go. If the subject
retains my interest longer term I can come back to it in the future.
Nah – that's far too logical and sensible.

John Tapsell
IPMS (UK) Publicity Officer This group always put on a great display and their passion for the subject is one of
the reasons they are such a successful organisation
www.ipmsuk.org

84 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
BOOKREVIEWS

A look at some of the latest publications

received for review Edited by Ernie Lee

Title: Battle of Britain Defenders fighters on a par in performance to their pilots. The first
Author: Andrzejm Olejniczak land-based counterparts. As with Part 1, section describes
Publisher: Mushroom Model Publications the scope of this publication includes all the three Polish
ISBN: 978-8-36654-9-142 Navy jet fighter designs that reached at wings and then
Format: A4, 42pp, hardback least the flying prototype stage, so the follows the usual
F11F-1F Super Tiger, F5D Skylancer, and pattern of

T his latest book in

the ‘Spotlight’
series illustrates
XF8U-3 Crusader III, each of which was
developed from an existing aircraft design,
are all covered.
information,
photographs,
and superb
thirty different Together the two volumes cover every jet colour profiles
machines and, fighter that has been designed, built, and of each
where there are at least reached the flying prototype stage squadron.
slight variations since the FH-1 Phantom first took to the air These profiles carry
to the markings, in 1945. The remarkable history of these extensive captions, which tend to be a
depicts port and aircraft, the problems faced, the solutions potted history of the pilot, when
starboard sides. developed, and the successes achieved applicable. The last few pages list the ‘kills’
Unlike the provide fascinating reading for the aviation achieved by these units and it made me
Luftwaffe, the enthusiast. realise just how much we owe to the Polish
RAF was somewhat airmen who escaped across Europe to fight
www.detailandscale.com
conservative when it came to camouflage. on with the RAF. If you are a Spitfire buff
However, when it came to codes, it seems you will love this.
that the powers-that-be could not make up Title: Close Call - RAF Close Air www.mmpbooks.com
their minds. Differences in width and Support in the Mediterranean Ernie Lee
height of codes, as well as seemingly volume I
random variations in the size of roundels, Author: Vic Flintham
are highlighted. You could not hope to find Title: Flight Craft 21: Douglas DC-3,
Publisher: Crecy Publishing Ltd The Airliner that
a better example of an artist’s work and I ISBN: 978-1-90210-9-640
know a number of modellers, whose Revolutionised Air Transport
Format: A4, 208pp, hardback Author: Robert Jackson
obsession is the Battle of Britain, who will
want this book for their library. Close Air Support & Glenn Ashley
has not been Publisher: Air World
www.mmpbooks.com
covered as ISBN: 978-1-52675-9-986
Ernie Lee
thoroughly as Format: 296mm x 210mm, 88pp,
Fighter and softback
Title: Jet Fighters of the US Navy Bomber
and Marine Corps The Douglas DC-3, or
Command. This
Part 2. Mach 1 and Beyond Dakota as it is better
is not a picture
Author: Bert Kinzey, illustrated known, is one of those
book, but a
by Rock Roszak evergreen aircraft that
well-crafted
Publisher: Detail & Scale history of never seems to pass
Format: A4, 113pp, Softback associated into history. This book
Digital: 206pp units, although this offers a modeller’s
does not mean it is just text and guide to the DC-3

T In the first
book in this
series author
tables as it also contains a mass of
photographs and artwork. The Command
starting with a look
at the history and
depended to a certain extent on ‘collecting’ the development
Bert Kinzey
very un-militarily types, such as the Tiger of the aircraft.
described the
Moth, but there were others of that ilk -the Wartime use follows next
first and
L-4 Grasshopper for one - and it is nice to giving an idea of how the services saw fit to
second
see the Vickers Valentia soldiering on. This employ the Dakota, before covering its
generation
is a fascinating book, as you never know post-war use, contemporaries and variants,
jet fighters
what you will discover next, and it is well along with an interesting pilot’s view
that came
worth a place on your bookshelf. section. A series of inspiring colour profiles
on the
scene at www.crecy.co.uk brings us to the centre of the book. Next
the end of Ernie Lee we get a good look at the numerous
World War II. These made their models of the DC-3 available from 1/144
first flights between 1945 and 1954, and Title: Supermarine Spitfire V volume through to 1/48, making this book a great
the book covers fifteen aircraft arranged 1 - Polish Wings 29 guide to an informed purchase and what to
according to the chronological order of the Author: Wojtek Matusiak do next. A very worthwhile volume and, as
date of their first flight. This concluding Publisher: Mushroom Model Publications it contains two hundred illustrations and
volume resumes where Part 1 left off and photographs, one I can see being referred
ISBN: 978-8-36654-9-128
the thirteen aircraft covered begin with the to for both information and inspiration for
Format: A4, 96pp, softback
F-8 Crusader, the first Navy and Marine jet years to come.
fighter able to exceed supersonic speeds
routinely, which brought US Navy jet T his is a fairly hefty addition to this series
and covers aircraft flown by Polish
www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
Ernie Lee

86 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
TA I L P I E C E
Y
es, of course you are, and so am I and quite
possibly so are two fellow SIG members who
would be sitting either side of you in the
unlikely event of a branch meeting. Surely there’s a
hint in the title of the magazine in which you’re
reading this, either in the snug comfort of your
workroom, or leafing through it in the back of your
local newsagent. Very early in my membership of
IPMS the question was attributed to Harry
Woodman, a senior member whose forte was World
War One modelling, which then as now involved
much rigging, and his models were always
impressive. The standard question I’ve always
assumed that was put to most, if not all, new
members was ‘are you a Modeller or an Assembler
of Plastic Kits?’.
Obviously I considered myself then to be a
Modeller. I had after all built some wooden kits
towards the end of World War II as well as a few
‘recognition’ models, and I had made my first plastic
kit not long after VJ Day, a Frog Penguin Spitfire XII. I
went on to make several more in this series, many of
which were memorable for their retractable
undercarriage. Around the beginning of the fifties a
firm called Veron added a range of balsa ‘solids’ to
their output of flying model kits, and I spent several
subsequent evenings sweeping the balsa dust from
wherever I could pitch my modelling gear. I did try
my hand at flying model kits, but if I did get them
airborne they showed a regrettable affinity for trees
and railings, especially around school playing fields.
When I was brave/rash enough to try them on the
airfield at Staverton they never adopted the
accepted methods of returning to earth, preferring
a vertical impact. My success was no better when I
bought a small engine, an ED Bee whose prop I
never learned to start properly, and by the time I left
school I was only making ‘solids’, a fair proportion of
which were which were distinctly ‘What If?’, though
the tag was not adopted until forty-plus years on. At
least they were scratch built.
The interest in models was of course preceded by
a fascination with the real thing. This developed
thanks to being given the first volume of Aircraft of
the Fighting Powers with descriptions of the military
aircraft of the conflict accompanied by plans in, of
course, 1/72. Growing year by year to seven
volumes this established one of the spinal threads
of my life, covering both the modelling and the
obsession with the reality that was also fed by the
wartime family involvement with the pale blue. It
reinforced a determination to fly, preferably and
probably inevitably a fighter. I was able to do just
this thanks to a prolonged period of recruitment
that was set in train by the Korean conflict and it
came to a stop as a combination of the effects of
the 1957 Defence White Paper and my inability to
fly the Meteor on limited panel with an examiner in
the other seat. I considered one or two non-aviation
alternatives, but decided that while something legal
would be interesting I needed to be involved
somehow with aviation, and air traffic control filled
that need and left me the opportunity to pursue
aeroplanes in both model and real form.
Before then plastic kits had rediscovered me in
Alberta in 1955, and one of the earliest must surely
have been a Harvard, even if the box called it a T-6.
This was while I was enjoying myself convincing my
instructors that I could fly the real thing without any
of the mishaps that I’d suffered with my flying
models. I don’t remember packing any of the
completed plastics when we moved from Penhold
to Portage la Prarie, though I do have a couple of
photos of a small collection of Revell, Monogram
and Aurora kits clustered on the top of a chest,
which may well have included a T.33 with dark
green points to its tip tanks. All these were
abandoned when we returned to England, but the
88 W W W. S C A L E A I R C R A F T M O D E L L I N G . CO. U K
By Mike McEvoy
preference for plastic kits travelled with me. From
memory it was in the summer of 1956 that I built
the first few of the new range of Frog plastic kits in
my quarters at Chivenor, including the first of what
turned out to be a continuing, if sporadic,
succession of Hunters. You must remember this -
the pilot’s head was moulded with the fuselage
halves, and the squadron markings were the black
and white checks that were with us until the
Phantoms were retired (and with the fighting cock
that should be with us now, but that’s a horse of my
other hobby).
At the end of the fifties the plastic kits that I
assembled covered a variety of subjects, mostly
with a military leaning of sorts, and my full-size
aviation activities started to include the annual
pilgrimage to Farnborough airfield and visits with
the Blackbushe Aviation group. The ‘spotting’
addiction was as strong as ever and persists – I still
cannot resist looking up when something flies
overhead, even if it’s a helicopter - and I’ve been
really lucky to be able to feed the need this year
with the Shuttleworth ‘Drive In’ displays with their
much-appreciated core of flying machines older
and better maintained than me. With a slight
deviation to armour modelling in the seventies in
an unsuccessful attempt to get to grips with
airbrushing, my kits both on the workbench and on
the stash shelves have long been solely aviation-
oriented, and have gradually narrowed in scope.
This was partly in an attempt to reduce either the
number of models on which I was working at any
one time and the necessary decision-making, and
on the creeping emphasis on ‘What If?’ subjects
providing of course they carried RAF colours and
the appropriate and correct unit (preferably
squadron) markings. What these measures failed to
reduce at all was the number of entirely necessary
books needed to support both aspects of my
aviation fixation. I’ve really enjoyed over the last few
years publicising books with a marked emphasis on
my hobby horses. Parallel to this has been attending
model shows with my fellow addicts of the ‘What If?’
Special Interest Group. I decided many years ago
that my assembled plastic kits were not of a high
enough standard to be entered in competitions, but
I really enjoy watching unsuspecting passers-by as
they catch a surprise peripheral glimpse of a subject
that wasn’t quite what they’d thought (explanations
are usually available and often unasked for), and for
many years I’ve really enjoyed correcting the
governmental procurement decisions from, say,
1957 onwards and reinstating forgotten squadrons.
Prejudiced? Me?
Magazines have been an integral part of feeding
my interest with Flight and /or Aeroplane being
constants in one form or other – especially Chris
Wren and Roger Bacon – from 1943 or so onwards.
They have tended to be ephemeral, but one of my
major treasures is a series of bound volumes of the
Aeroplane from 1940 to 1958, which belonged to an
uncle who went to war with 57 Squadron in
September 1939. I suspect that my assembly of
plastic and now resin kits is declining, but I plan to
spend a lot of time picking books off the shelf in an
occasionally random manner, whether they offer
me memories or surprises. Perhaps that’ll make me
a mental modeller, at least.
My thanks to Gary for finding space for this
unexpected nostalgia, which I’ve enjoyed but which
has reminded me of the pain of deadlines, however
self-imposed; and good fortune to the next cab off
the editorial rank (Typhoons in Normandy and
Corsairs in Korea; remember them?).
 CO M I N G N E X T M O N T H

Coming Next Month A N D F I N A L LY…

I Fighting Felon
n the March issue of Scale Aircraft Modelling the editorial team
present the usual eclectic mix of historical and reference
material, news, reviews, and, of course, the best in modelling
features, both out-of-the-box and beyond. Here are a few of next
By Rafał Lebioda
month’s highlights:

1
Quick Build
An early La-5
Clear Prop’s kit in 1/72
By Aleksandr Schastniy

2
Scaled Up
BAe’s Hawk revisited
By Des Brennan

3
Harrier GR.3
Kinetic’s new kit in 1/48
by Rick Grenwood

4
The Whistling Turtle
Fouga Magister CM.170
Special Hobby in 1/72
by Ugur Kenel

5
Aircraft in Profile Sukhoi Su-57
Martin B-10 Kit No: 4824
With artwork by Sam Pearson Scale: 1/48
Type: Injection Moulded
plastic
Manufacturer: Zvezda
6 www.zvezda.org.ru
Racer Gone To the Dogs
T
he PAK FA Sukhoi T-50
Breda Ba-88 Lince (Su-57), wrapped in the
MPM in 1/72 secrets of its technical
parameters, proved to be one of
By Huw Morgan the revelations of modern military
aviation. It is a kind of Russian
response to the American ATF
system and the flagship of this
Plus our usual updates on kits, decals, and, program, the F-22 Raptor. The first
accessories, book reviews, columns, and more tests with prototypes took place in
2010 with the first batch of sixty
Please note – this contents list is speculative and the vagaries of deadlines and print
production aircraft planned for this
schedules can sometimes result in the magazine’s contents changing later in production
year.
The new Zvezda kit follows on
from the earlier 1/72 release and
offers eight sprues, including two
hull sections and transparencies,
with some 248 parts in all. In 1/48
it’s a large model (the hull is 41 cm
long). The surface detail on the
fuselage and wings is very delicate
and the kit includes a seated crew
figure and boarding ladder.
Decals come on a large sheet
offering three options: the
prototype T-50-9 from 2016,
T-50-11 from 2017, and the current
Su-57. There is plenty of stencilling
included for the airframe and
printing is to a high standard.
Another excellent model of a
modern fifth generation aircraft
that continues the line of quality
toolings from Zvezda in recent
years, while still representing
excellent value for money.

FEBRUARY 2021 • VOLUME 42 • ISSUE 12 89

NEW DECALS EDD48067 1:48 Supermarine Spifire Mk.II stencils (Eduard) £5.50
Air-Graphic Models EDD48068 1:48 Bell P-39 Aircobra stencils Eduard) £5.50
AIR72-012 1:72 HMS Eagle 1945-1972 Decal 'Part 1' Fairey Firefly FR.5; Grumman EDD48069 1:48 Republic P-47D Thunderbolt stencils
Avenger AS.1: Westland Wyvern S.4; Sea Hawk FGA.4; Hawker Sea (Academy, Eduard, Hasegawa & Tamiya) £5.50
Hawk FB.5; Blackburn Buccaneer S.1; Gannet AEW.3; Buccaneer S.2, £20.50 EDD72029 1:72 Let Z-37A stencils, code letters & labels (Eduard) £7.40

Berna Decals FCM

BER32071 1:32 Douglas A-26B Invader Indochina (2 schemes) + Algeria £14.99 FCM32026 1:32 Dassault Mirage 2000C/-5. 2000D/N - Brazil and France £12.99
BER48004M 1:48 Re-printed! Dewoitine D.520 (2) Alternative versions from Groupe FCM48056 1:48 Douglas A-26B/A-26C Invaders. Brazil and Chile Air Force £12.99
Doret 1944 £7.80 FCM48057 1:48 Lockheed C-130 Hercules - Brazilian Air Force £12.99
BER48035M 1:48 Re-printed! North-American F-6C/D Mustangs in French Service (4)
North-American F-6C R7-D 1945; R7-E 1945; North-American F-6D Flying Leathernecks
Mustang R7-L. All GR 2/33 Savoie; 472338/R GR 1/33 Belfort 1945 £9.40 FL48021 1:48 Bell UH-1Y Venom 'Marine Skid Kid Yankees' £14.99
BER48038M 1:48 Re-printed! Martin B-26C Invader France (4) BC-785 E.R.P 2/19 FL72001 1:72 Lockheed KC-130J Hercules 'Battle Herks' £14.99
Armagnac Tourane 1954; 599/N E.R.P.1/32 Armagnac Oran-la-Senia 1963;
435411/LH GB 1/91 Bourgogne Tourane 1954; Z-002 Centre d'Essais en Vol Kits-World
Bretigny 1953. All overall black. £11.80 KW3D132017 1:32 Full Colour 3D WWII Seat Belt decals. McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom
BER48148M 1:48 Fouga CM.170 Magister Armée de l'air : N°339 / CU GI313 1966, N°17 II BRITISH. 'MB' Martin Baker Ejection Seat Set, Seatbelt/Straps/Handles. £8.45
/ 30-QE SLVSV 30 1972, N°44 / 10-KI SLVSV 30 1973, N°31 / 30-QG SLVSV KW3D132018 1:32 Full Colour 3D WWII Seat Belt decals. Mcdonnell Douglas F4 Phantom
30 1972, N°26 / 33-XE SLVSV 33 1975, N°240 / 7-JF EC 3/7 'Languedoc' 1975, II U.S.A.F - U.S.N. 'MB' Martin Baker Ejection Seat Set, Seatbelt/Straps/
N°468 / 7-NP EC 4/7 'Limousin' 1981, N°219 / 330-DK CEAM - Escadron Handles. Suitable for Vought F-8, Phantom, Lockheed F-104G / TF104G,
'Albret' 1990 & N°422 / 307-KY EFIPN 307 'Gévaudan' 1990 (9 schemes) £13.20 PROWLER, F-5, F-4, F-14. £8.45
KW3D132019 1:32 Full Colour 3D WWII Seat Belt decals 'ACES' EJECTION seatbelts
Caracal Models /STRAPS/HANDLES. Suitable for YF-22, F-15, F-16, A-10, F-117, F-22,B1. £8.45
CD48048 1:48 Re-released! Northrop YF-23 Prototypes: £13.99 KW3D132020 1:32 Full Colour 3D WWII Seat Belt decals. RAF Panavia Tornado 'MB'
CD48141 1:48 Lockheed-Martin F-35B Joint Strike Fighter Marking options for all Martin Baker Ejection Seat Set, Seatbelt/Straps/Handles. Suitable for AIDC,
F-35B Lightning II operators - all USMC units flying the type, RAF and ALPHA JET,AMX, Casa C-101, CESSNA A-36, CHEETAH, CHENGDU F-5,
Italy. Designed for the Kitty Hawk kit. £13.99 CHENGDU F-7, EMB-314, F-5, F-6, FOUGA 90, GRIPEN, HAWK, HONGDU A-5,
CD48168 1:48 Grumman F-14 Tomcat - The Early Years F-14A Protypes etc. £13.99 IAI Lavi, IAR-93, IAR-99, J-22, K-8 KFIR, MB-339, MIRAGE, PAMPA, PZL L-22,
CD72046 1:72 de_Havilland_Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter; DHC-6 Twin Otter "VP-FAZ", S-211, SABRE, SEA HARRIER, SHENYANG F-5, SHENYANG F-6, SOKO,
British Antarctic Society, DHC-6 Twin Otter "C-FCSU", Canada Coast Guard, SUPER TUCANO (ALX), TORNADO £8.45
UV-18B Twin Otter 77-0464, USAF Academy Skydiving Team, UV-18B Twin KW3D1321004 1:32 Focke-Wulf Fw-190A/F 3D Full colour Instrument Panel
Otter 77-0465, USAF Academy Skydiving Team - WWII heritage scheme £13.99 (Hasegawa kits) £6.95
CD72106 1:72 Grumman F-14 Tomcat - The Early Years. Prototypes etc. £13.99 KW3D1321005 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf-109G-6 3D Full colour Instrument Panel (Revell) £6.95
KW3D1321006 1:32 North-American P-51D Mustang 3D Full colour Instrument Panel
DP Casper (Hasegawa and Revell) £6.95
DPC72027 1:72 Defense of Moscow final part Winter 1941/42. Includes Polikarpov I-16, KW3D1321007 1:32 Hawker Hurricane Mk.II 3D Full colour Instrument Panel
I-153, Pe-3 and Po-2, Yakovlev Yak-1, Ilyushin Il-2, MiG-3, Tupolev TB-3, (Fly and Pacific Coast kits) £6.95
Douglas DC-3, Curtiss P-40 , Tomahawk Mk.III, Bf-109F-4, Bf-109E-7, KW3D1321008 1:32 Hawker Tempest 3D Full colour Instrument Panel.
Ju-87B-2 and Ju-88A-4; Hs-126B-1; Do-17Z-2 £18.70 (Revell and Special Hobby kits) £6.95
DPC72029 1:72 Ogaden War 1977-1978. Including... Somali: Mikoyan MiG-19,
MiG-21MF, MiG-17 Ethiopian: Northrop F-5A/E, MiG-21MF, Canberra B Syhart Decal
Mk.52; North-American F-86F Sabre £18.70 SY48115 1:48 Dassault Rafale C 4-GL "Rafale Solo Display 2017" £13.99
DPC72030 1:72 Mil Helicopters In Africa. Includes Nigeria, Guinea-Bissau, Algeria, SY48121 1:48 Dassault Mirage 5BD BD12 "Mirage farewell" Belgian Air Force 1993 £9.99
Angola, Ghana, South Africa, Cameroon, Mali, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, SY72115 1:72 Rafale C 4-GL "Rafale Solo Display 2017" £10.99
Sudan, Senegal, Kenya, Senegal, Djibouti £18.70 SY72121 1:72 Dassault Mirage 5BD BD12 "Mirage farewell" Belgian Air Force 1993 £7.99
DPC72031 1:72 Mil Helicopters In Asia. Includes Indonesia, Mongolia, Vietnam,
North Korea, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, China, Pakistan, Laos, Nepal, Techmod
Cambodia, Bangladesh £18.70 TM72025 1:72 Back in stock!! General-Motors FM-2 Wildcat (5) Black 4 VC-13 USS
DPC72033 1:72 Vought F4U-4 Corsairs in WWII April to August 1945 £16.98 Tripoli 1944 Dark Gull Grey/White; White D6 'Judy' or D9 'The Reluctant
DPC72035 1:72 Aero L-39 in the War Includes markings for aircraft from.... Iraqi, Maid' both VC-14 USS Hoggatt Bay 1944 3 tone camouflage; White 20
Uganda, Islam Army in Syria 2016, Georgia, Chechnya, Azerbaijan, Syrian VC-83 USS Petrof Bay; White 18 VC-99 USS Hoggatt Bay, both overall Gloss
Air Force, Nigeria Air Force, Libyan Air Force 2018, and 2014. £18.70 Sea Blue 025 £4.50

Eduard Two Bobs

EDD32006 1:32 Die roten Flieger (Meng Model) £8.60 TB48270 1:48 Boeing F/A-18E VFA-25 Fist of the Fleet. £15.99

NEW KITS CP72010 1:72 Mitsubishi A5M4 Claude Advanced kit £22.50 Emhar
All injection moulded unless stated otherwise CP72013 1:72 Mitsubishi Ki-51 'Sonia' "in foreign EM2002 1:72 Back in stock! Lavochkin LaGG-3 £4.99
A&A Models service" Starter kit £22.50 EM2003 1:72 Back in stock! Yakovlev Yak-3 £4.99
AAM4805 1:48 Gee Bee R2 (1933 version) £25.80 CP72015 1:72 Lavochkin La-5 late version
AAM4807 1:48 Gee Bee R1 (1933 version) £25.80 Advanced kit £17.99 F-rsin RESIN KITS
AAM4810 1:48 Messerschmitt Me-209V-4 £28.80 FR44125 1:144 Lockheed L-14 - British Airways Ltd
Dekno RESIN KITS (laser decals) £34.99
A-Model AR720501 1:72 Back in stock! Laid-Turner LTR-14 FR44126 1:144 Lockheed L-14 - KLM (laser decals) £34.99
AMU72369 1:72 Eclipse-400 £27.20 Meteor 'Pesco Special' £27.50 FR44127 1:144 Lockheed L-14 - LOT (laser decals) £34.99
AMUNA72001 1:72 Soviet atomic bomb RDS-1 £20.20 AR720800 1:72 Back in stock! Laird LC-DW-300 FR44128 1:144 Lockheed L-14 - TCA (laser decals) £34.99
AMUNA72003 1:72 Soviet atomic bomb RDS-3 £20.20 'Solution'. £27.50 FR44129 1:144 Lockheed L-18 - Aéro-Africaine
AMUNA72013 1:72 ASM-A-1 Tarzon (VB-13) £20.20 AR721000 1:72 Back in stock! Marcoux-Bromberg (laser decals) £34.99
Special (1939) £27.50 FR44130 1:144 Lockheed L-18 - BOAC (laser + silk-
Airfix AR721300 1:72 British Klemm BK.1 Eagle of the screened decals) £34.99
AX09190 1:48 Bristol Blenheim Mk.I £38.99 MacRobertson Air Race in 1934. £37.80 FR44132 1:144 Lockheed L-18 - TWA
GA721000 1:72 de Havilland DH.85 Leopard Moth (silk-screened decals) £34.99
AMP 'Dilly' flown by Lt. Humberto da Cruz of
AMP144005 1:144 Douglas DC-10 Air Tanker £53.99 the Portuguese Air Force from Portugal Hasegawa
AMP48015 1:48 McDonnell MD-120 Flying Crane £32.40 to Timor and back to Lisbon in 1934. £39.99 HAX7209 1:72 Back in stock! Aircraft Weapons
AMP72007 1:72 Horten Ho-IX V1 £25.20 GA721001 1:72 de Havilland DH.85 Leopard Moth V. U.S. Missiles and launcher set £10.99
AMP72008 1:72 Sikorsky H-5G Dragonfly £25.20 owned by Nancy Bird. £39.99 HA00987 1:72 Nakajima G8N-1 Renzan 'Rita' with
AMP72012 1:72 Sikorsky R-5/S-51 Ambulance £25.20 GA721002 1:72 de Havilland DH.85 Leopard Moth Goh Guided Bomb and Shinden kai
AMP72015 1:72 Piaggio Pegna PC.7 Schneider KLU/RAF version £39.99 'Mainland Defense' £59.99
Trophy Series £23.40 HA02293 1:72 Grumman F-14A Tomcat Top Gun)
Dora Wings NAS Fallon 2001 £54.99
Big Planes Kits DW32005 1:32 Dewoitine D.510J £49.99 HA02338 1:72 Kawanishi H6K5 TYPE 97 FLYING
BPK7201 1:72 Boeing 737-100 Singapore Airlines £84.60 DW48016 1:48 Percival Proctor Mk.III in civil service £19.99 BOAT (MAVIS) MODEL 23 "TAKUMA Flying
BPK7218 1:72 Boeing 737-800 Qantas £121.99 DW48017 1:48 Marcel-Bloch MB.151С.1 - Four Group" £49.99
options in decals £24.99 HA02339 1:72 Sikorsky UH-60J(SP) RESCUE HAWK
Bronco Models DW48025 1:48 Bellanca CH-400 Skyrocket £24.99 "Chitose Air Rescue 60th ANNIVERSARY" £49.99
FB4012 1:48 North American F-51D Mustang DW48035 1:48 Percival Proctor Mk.I £21.99 HA02350 1:72 Boeing B-47E Stratojet
Korean War £29.99 "1000th STRATOJET £59.99
GB7010 1:72 PLA Air Force J-20 "Mighty Dragon" Eduard HA02351 1:72 Grumman 1/72 EA-18G Growler
stealth fighter £19.99 EDK2133 1:72 Fokker D.VII 12 Decals Options £38.30 "VAQ-135 Black Ravens 50th Anniversary" £46.99
EDK4469 1:144 Republic P-47D £8.60 HA02352 1:72 Mitsubishi Ki-67 Type 4 Heavy Bomber
Clear Prop Models EDK8208 1:48 Messerschmitt Bf-110G-4 Profipack £36.30 Hiryu (Peggy) "Green Cross" £46.99
CP144003 1:144 Mitsubishi Ki-51 Sonia (2 in box) "in EDK84169 1:48 Messerschmitt Bf-109G-6/AS HA02353 1:72 lockheed-Martin F-35A Lightning II
foreign service" £17.99 Weekend edition £16.30 J.A.S.D.F. 302Sq £39.99
 A & A Models AMP AMP AMP AMP
AAM4805 1:48 Gee Bee R2 (1933) AMP144005 1:144 Douglas DC-10 Air Tanker AMP48015 1:48 McDonnell MD-120 AMP72012 1:72 Sikorsky R-5/S-51 Ambulance MP72015 1:72 Piaggio Pegna PC.7
£25.80 £53.99 Flying Crane £32.40 £25.20 Schneider Trophy £23.40

HA02354 1:72 McDonnell F-15DJ Eagle Kinetic Model Kits BCR72443 1:72 de Havilland DH-103 Hornet
"Aggressor Desert Scheme" £46.99 K48060 1:48 BAe Harrier GR.1/3 £49.99 Mainwheels with smooth tyre. £5.50
HA02355 1:72 McDonnell F-4EJ Kai Phantom II K48072 1:48 McDonnell-Douglas AV-8A Harrier Aircraft wheels (resin)
"301Sq Phantom Forever 2020" £46.99 USMC £49.99 BCR72444 1:72 de Havilland DH-103 Hornet
HA07491 1:48 Messerschmitt Bf-109F-4 Trop `Star K48087 1:48 Dassault-Dornier Alpha Jet A/E Mainwheels with Block Tread Tyres. £5.50
of Africa with Hans-Joachim Marseille Germany £35.99
figure £49.99 K72004 1:72 The General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper £14.99 Black Dog Figures (resin)
HA07492 1:48 Focke-Wulf Fw190A-4 "GRAF" with BDF35217 1:32 British Sniper WWI No.2 £14.99
FIGURE £49.99 Mach 2
HA08257 1:32 Mitsubishi A6M5C Zero Fighter GP110USN 1:72 Douglas EC-24 'US Navy' £83.00 Eduard 3D printed decal
(Zeke) Type 52 Hei "252nd Flying Group" ED3DL48001 1:48 Mil Mi-24V SPACE-3D Decals with
With Air-To-Air Bombs £69.99 Planet Models RESIN KITS etched parts (Eduard) £18.99
HA10838 1:200 Kawasaki C-1 "ADTW First Aircraft" £39.99 PLA19572 1:72 Back in stock! Pilatus PC-7 Full resin ED3DL48003 1:48 North-American P-51D-10 Mustang
HABP004 1:72 North-American F-86D Sabre JASDF £22.99 kit of a trainer aircraft. £29.60 SPACE-3D Decals with etched parts
HAD02 1:72 Back in stock! Sepecat Jaguar GR.1A £15.99 (Eduard) £6.60
HAD25 1:72 North-American P-51D Mustang £15.99 Revell ED3DL48004 1:48 North-American P-51D-15+ Mustang
HAE14 1:72 Back in stock! Grumman F-14A RV4972 1:72 Back in stock!! Junkers Ju-88A-1 SPACE-3D Decals with etched parts
Tomcat with Atlantic Fleet Squadron 'Battle of Britain' £19.99 (Eduard) £6.60
decals £24.99 ED3DL72001 1:72 Let Z-37A SPACE-3D Decals with
HAJT040 1:48 Republic P-47D-25 Thunderbolt Sova-M etched parts (Eduard) £5.50
'Angie' £34.99 SVM-72024 1:72 Grumman SA-16A Albatross 14
HAMU01 1:16 Back in stock! Sopwith Camel F.1 plastic frames+PE sheet+decals for Eduard Aircraft detailing sets (etched)
"Museum Quality plastic kit " £199.99 1 livery (Global Wildlife PP-ZAT) £49.30 ED32430 1:32 Curtiss P-40F Warhawk landing flaps
HAPT051 1:48 McDonnell F-15J / F-15DJ Eagle (Trumpeter) £25.80
JASDF £74.99 Zvezda ED32431 1:32 Curtiss P-40F Warhawk gun bays
ZVE4824 1:48 Sukhoi Su-57 Frazor (Felon) £39.99 (Trumpeter) £25.80
Hobby 2000 ED32445 1:32 Focke-Wulf Fw-190A-8/R2 engine
H2K72001 1:72 Re-released! Hawker Hurricane NEW ACCESSORIES (Revell) £16.40
Mk.IA (ex Hasegawa) unique version ED32456 1:32 Curtiss P-40E Kittyhawk gun bays
with metal wings £12.99 AIM - Ground Equipment Diorama accessories (resin) 1/32 (Trumpeter) £21.99
H2K72030 1:72 Hawker Hurricane Mk.Ia Late version £15.20 GE48110 1:48 Back in stock! Hawker Hunter F.6 & ED32457 1:32 Curtiss P-40E Kittyhawk landing flaps
H2K72032 1:72 Morane-Saulnier MS.406C1 Middle BAe Harrier GR.3 Crew Ladder (Academy, 1/32 (Trumpeter) £21.99
East (ex-Hasegawa ) £15.99 Airfix and Italeri) £6.75 ED32458 1:32 North-American F-100F Super Sabre
H2K72035 1:72 Grumman TBM-3/3E Avenger early GE72110 1:72 Back in stock! Hawker Hunter F.6 & exterior 1/32 (Trumpeter) £19.99
version (ex-Hasegawa) £17.80 BAe Harrier GR.3 Crew Ladder ED32459 1:32 North-American F-100F Super Sabre
H2K72037 1:72 Douglas A-4C Skyhawk (ex-Fujimi) £13.20 (Airfix and Revell kits £4.50 slats 1/32 (Trumpeter) £24.80
ED32460 1:32 North-American F-100F Super Sabre
HobbyBoss Barracuda Studios Aircraft engines and propellers (resin) air brake 1/32 (Trumpeter) £24.80
HB81769 1:48 Bell-Boeing MV-22 Osprey £99.99 BCR32441 1:32 Grumman F8F-1 Bearcat Propeller ED32461 1:32 North-American F-100F Super Sabre
Correction Set. £13.99 undercarriage 1/32 (Trumpeter) £27.80
IBG Models BCR32442 1:32 Douglas A-1D/A-1H/A-1J Skyraider ED33272 1:32 North-American F-100F Super Sabre
IBG72525 1:72 PZL P.24G in Turkish Service £10.40 Propeller Correction Set. £13.99 1/32 (Trumpeter) £16.30
IBG72529 1:72 COMBAT TRAINERS 2 in 1: PZL P.11a BCR32393 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf-109GK Tall ED33273 1:32 North-American F-100F Super Sabre seat-
and PZL.23A Karas £19.50 Tailwheel Set £8.50 belts STEEL 1/32 (Trumpeter) £13.30
Military vehicle kits (injection) BCR32436 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf-109E/F Mainwheels ED481028 1:48 Douglas B-26C Invader bomb bay
IBG72082 1:72 Bedford QL Aircraft Refueller £10.60 with Ribbed Tires. £8.99 1/48 (ICM) £21.99
BCR48392 1:48 Messerschmitt Bf-109GK Tall ED481033 1:48 Messerschmitt Bf-110E NACHT
ICM Tailwheel Set. £7.25 JAGER exterior 1/48 (Dragon) £11.20
ICM32020 1:32 Fiat CR.42 Falco, WWII Italian Fighter £43.99 BCR48437 1:48 Messerschmitt Bf-109E/F Mainwheels ED481040 1:48 Panavia Tornado ASSTA 3.1 exterior
ICM32035 1:32 de Havilland DH.82A Tiger Moth. . £35.80 with Ribbed Tires. £7.99 1/48 (Revell) £17.40
BCR48439 1:48 Yakovlev Yak-28P "Firebar"/Yak-28PP ED491121 1:48 Messerschmitt Bf-110E NACHT
Italeri Brewer Wheels Set. JAGER interior 1/48 (Dragon) £14.99
IT2774 1:48 Piasecki H-21C Flying Banana Gunship £44.99 (Bobcat Models and HobbyBoss) £11.99 ED491137 1:48 Panavia Tornado ASSTA 3.1 interior
IT2809 1:48 Lockheed TR-1A/B £31.99 Aircraft wheels (resin) 1/48 (Revell) £17.40

Dora Wings Eduard Kinetic Sova-M Valom

DW48016 1:48 Percival Proctor Mk.III EDK2133 1:72 Fokker D.VII K48060 1:48 BAe Harrier GR.1/3 SVM-72024 1:72 Grumman SA-16A Albatross VAL72144 1:72 Twin Pioneer VH-AIS Australia
£19.99 £38.30 £49.99 £49.30 £45.99
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