guillaume320

I don't want to be pedantic, but a French Jaguar isn't really an 'export' version, is it? LOL😜

I hope to see the large anti collision beacon for WP903... The modified exhaust would be nice to see, however I don't think any of the new Airfix provided options had that modification. Also, nitpicking, and I would be really surprised if Airfix caught this detail: the Portuguese built Chipmunk had a P-51 handgrip instead of the 'straight' stick usually seen...

Any pictures of the updated parts Airfix promised?

I’m curious to see what those improvements to the tooling will be. Off the bat I could think of the ailerons (as someone mentioned earlier), but also the main tank pylons which where not high enough. That might prove crucial because the larger tanks have that additional brace, and if the main pylon isn’t correctly dimensioned this could really look ‘off’. Also a set of gun blast deflectors and a set of blanks to cover the guns for the GA.11 would be welcome… In any case: bring it on 😀

Temperatures are rising on the forum... I think the decision to not have the strengthening plates molded from the start might be a sensible one (at least from a financial point of view). They could have gone the 'Eduard route' and tooled several more different upper fuselage parts, with and without the various different strengthening plates and yes, this would have been extremely welcome. But short of that, my preferred alternative would be some kind of self adhesive vinyl. Photo etch is too stiff to conform to the curves nicely, and the superglue required makes it all harder to do without messing up. Would I get the kit as it is now? I say yes. With some own research, there is plenty in the box to make a credible airframe. But I surely hope Kinetic will keep 'upgrading' their boxings in the future, and for that I'm hopeful considering their track record. My 'Wishlist' would be the vinyl plates, tinted canopies and yes, those lacklustre ADF antennas on nose and intakes need redone (hopefully in a future dedicated ADF boxing)... G

We should also keep in mind that Kinetic has a track record of making incremental improvements to their kits over time. Their legacy Hornet kits are a prime example, with retooled tails and separate rudders, not present at first... An approach that should be commended in my opinion So who knows what we will see over time with those new F-16 kits 😃

There is a discrepancy with regards to the Belgian colour scheme provided: The stencils provided for the Belgian option are the 'new' grey ones. Look at the ejection seat triangles: grey (like current US F-16s) as opposed to earlier salmon pink triangles. If using those newer stencils, the camo is 2-tone, as opposed to the earlier 3-tone. The paint guide is wrong. That being said, a earlier Belgian version can be done by using the Dutch stencils that are provided... Also the box art is off in that regard: on the newer 2-tone camo, the dark grey should come further forward, and the ejection triangle should be on the dark area. The box art shows a dark grey triangle on lighter grey background. That's wrong. For that particular paint scheme, the triangle should be salmon colour. So in summary everything is in the box to to either early or late camo, just beware of the instructions (and box art) G

FB.4 had powered flight controls, leading to larger ailerons (sticking past the trailing edge of the wings). This in turn needed larger rudders... At a first glance I think all is in the box to make either an FB.1 or an FB.4, but don't take my word for it. Better to wait for an expert to have a good look over the sprues... Best regards, Guillaume

Hi, For decals there is the recent FCM set. There also used to be a Kits At War decal sheet, long out of production though! Guillaume

I’m also expecting a set of HARM missiles... Years ago when Tornado test shots were first revealed in Cosford, those were on display. G

You may very well be right, but the Heller single and two seaters have a different geometry. Somehow the N nose looks good, so does the C, but the B looks wrong to me.... 🤔

They are basic but very nice indeed. A resin burner and ejection seat is basically all I would bother with. But an observation on the B kit, which as far as I know was only released by Airfix and not Heller themselves. The radome on that one is a bit off. They correctly engraved the radome line further back than it is on the N, but the N/D radome is less bulbous in real life. So the B kit radome looks too skinny, especially when put next to the C kit. My solution: I have a Renaissance resin radome to convert a C into a -5. The leftover C radome will be grafted onto the Airfix B kit 😎 Apologies for going off topic....

YESSSSS 😎👌🏻

I'm pretty sure yes. Have a look at this video .... All of them with the larger tanks, even the T.8C's! Also this shot for example G

If you are making a ‘late’ GA.11, note that many (if not all?) received capability to carry the larger fuel tanks. Therefore they received the cutout flaps. Those are not included in the Airfix kit. Of course with the flaps retracted this a simple scribing job... Regards, Guillaume Ps: It is interesting to note the GA.11, when carrying the large tanks, did NOT have the extra strut which was seen on FGA.9 and F.6A Hunters....