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  1. I’ve just started reading War of Lanka having just finished he who fights with monsters volume 7 and I came up with this, a group build of things that never existed. It could be a fictional or sci-fi theme, a plane that never got off the drawing board a pure what if, with accompanying story line or a creature or object from literature or fantasy. Based on the War of Lanka I’m thinking of the Pushpak Viman a prehistoric helicopter, or a dropship from one of Marklo Kloos military sci fi books. So how about it a GB of pure fantasy. 1. @Marklo 2. @ColonelKrypton 3. @Corsairfoxfouruncle 4. @psdavidson 5. @MARADER 6. @Bertie McBoatface 7. @Robert Stuart 8. @Thom216 9. @JOCKNEY 10. @jackroadkill 11. @81-er 12. @Bertie McBoatface 13. @Kallisti 14. @Adam Poultney 15. @Rob G
  2. I mentioned this model in another post and I didn't want to thread-jack an interesting build so I thought I'd post it here. It's from a group build I did a couple years ago using the old 80's Italeri kit which I lengthened and modified. The original kit had two very small weapons bays, I wanted to give a it a more realistic internal payload which is why I lengthened it. My second goal was to make it look more "stealthy", as these kits were made before stealth aircraft where known to the public.
  3. In an effort to use the last remaining Tamiya initial issue of the F16 kit i decided to use the TwoBobs decal set i got earlier this year for $5 - they had a sale on!! Painted with Vallejo Air ( using a hairy stick) and some tamiya acrylics This is the base kit
  4. These are a mix of Kinetic, Hasegawa and a Tamiya 1/48 kits. I'll post a few more if thats ok?
  5. Here is my latest kit: a fictional Convair F-92A Dart in JASDF markings. This is an Anigrand 1:144 resin kit that came with the Firefox I built previously. It was supposed to be the XF-92 masquerading as a MiG-23 in the 19578 film "Jet Pilot". The kit didn't come with markings neither for this nor for the XF-92 prototype. Although I later found where I could get the latter I was already set on converting it into an operational fighter in Japanese markings as I saw it as something that wouldn't look out of place in those old Japanese sci-fi films. Apart from fixing moulding flaws, one of which caused me to square off the wingtips, and correcting the overly wide cockpit sides sills due to the narrow canopy, I made a series of modifications and additions. The canopy was modified to a more appropriate fighter bubble-type. I replaced the nose probe for a thinner one without the extra experimental parts as well as the missing tail fin probe. I also added the missing radio antenna but moved it back so it wouldn't be in the way of the canopy when it slid back. The nose undercarriage was shortened to a correct height and the doors were thinned as much as I could. The arrangement of the main doors was altered as one would end up lower than the wheel. I also decided not to split the rear nose door. As this "variant" was fictional, I could get away with it! The missile pylons and missiles came from the spares box. The kit was fully painted and varnished with brush. The fuselage decals came from a Platz F-104J kit and the wing hinomaru came from generic Mark I decal sheets. The end result was exactly what I wanted to achieve and I am very pleased with it. Thanks for looking and, as always, all comments are welcome. Miguel
  6. Here is my third "what-if" fun build with an Fw 190D kit, in this case an F-toys 1:144 kit, back in 2013. It represents a hypothetical Fw 190D-9/R11 nightfighter Red 3 of NJG11, Luftwaffe, in Germany, late 1945, where a pod with a more modern dish array radar was added to one wing similar to those carried by Hellcats and Corsairs. Since the previous radar-equipped Fw 190 had the R11 Rüstsatz, I named it thus. I later found that there was an R11 all-weather modification for the Fw 190D-9 but not like this! This was a pre-painted, semi-assembled kit so I removed the paint and made some small improvements, like widening the supercharger intake hole. The conversion modifications were basically adding the radar pod to the port wing and engine and gun anti-dazzle shields on the fuselage sides forward of the cockpit. The kit was fully painted and varnished with brush. Thank you for looking and all comments are welcome as always Miguel
  7. I just finished this for a GB on another site. Largely 3-D printed, with the front 2/3 of the upper fuselage coming from the Hasegawa F-117 kit. Vacuformed canopy and landing gear are from a 1:72 F-14.
  8. G'day All, Well this my first ever 'whif' build and another model built from the stash. It's the 1/48 Hasegawa kit SP101. All brush painted using Humbrol and Tamiya enamel paints. MICA's are from the spares box. Blacked out the canopy because its going to be hanging from the ceiling and I couldn't be bothered doing the cockpit. It was meant to be a 75th anniversary scheme for 2 Sqn Belgian Airforce....but when decaling time came around..... hey, after having this kit living in the stash since 1993, the decals were unusable....who da thunk? So my 1st I.A. was to throw out said blue painted F-16 as I was never going to strip it back and do it in another scheme. Anyway the better half convinced me not to throw it out, so I rummaged around the decal stash and decided to do it as the little known or seen Dassault F-16A Sea Viper. 👍 Cheers, Devo
  9. Not sure if this is the right place on the forum for this but seemed more appropriate here than in Science Fiction/Real Space. Though, I grant you, it does look pretty funky. The Vickers C Bomber was a paper project for a 75 ton long range heavy bomber to replace the Avro Lancaster. It was designed to carry large bomb loads to bomb the Ruhr. Several variations of this design were drawn up, with the third variant (hence the ‘C’) being the most bizarre and radical. Ultimately, however, the tradeoff between range, defensive armament and aerodynamic stability proved too much on paper and the Air Ministry backed off. Had Air Ministry approval and funding ever become available, the C Bomber would still likely not have entered service before 1945 and even then would have required specialised expanded runways and airfields from which to operate. Some pretty cracking box art... This is the Fantastic Plastic Vickers C Bomber, beautifully cast by Anigrand. I've not seen one of these built up before so thought some might be interested to see it here. There's a WIP thread on KG144 here: http://www.kampfgruppe144.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=5295 and Out of the Box Review here http://www.kampfgruppe144.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=5264&p=32008&hilit=vickers+fantastic#p32008 I've not built a 'what if' before but I've noticed on some builds that people do elaborate backstories. I've often thought this is endearingly nerdy but probably much too much trouble and effort. But while suffering from an acutely delayed flight before Christmas and with book and magazines exhausted... Well... forgive me. Perhaps we could all do with a bit of escapism to an alternate reality at a time like this. Well that was fun. If you made it this far, I salute you. Though I do recommend writing stupidly elaborate backstories as a way to ease the tedium of a dreary, antiseptic departure lounge. Not a very challenging build and basically out of the box. I replaced the rather poor kit decals with some of my own (pilfering a Kitsworld Lancaster sheet for 'Thumper' and various spares sheets). I also pilfered a lot of stencils and markings from that same sheet. I also replaced the guns. I figured, I'm only going to build one of these things and the Anigrand ones are frankly rubbish. So I ordered some Ju-87 cannons and Japanese 20mms from Master. Beautiful though they are, I now live in fear of them pinging off into Narnia, n'er to be seen again. I've obviously taken inspiration from this: Good fun and a complete break from what I'm used to doing. Thanks for looking! Angus p.s. I can confirm that all six wheels do in fact touch the ground when placed on a level surface. The board I'm using is bowed!
  10. Hi, Here's another of my recent completions: the SH BV155B in-service whiff boxing. I have to admit, I like the design, despite the ludicrous wing radiators. Apparently Dr Vogt also thought the design was no good and redesigned it with fuse mounted radiators instead as the BV155C. I have to say the standard of SH kits - on the basis of this one - is now really rather good, with good fit and a trouble-free build resulting. The kit is oob and is finished in the box top scheme. White areas were primed with Halford's white primer, smoothed with micro mesh and over coated with several thin coats of Revell aqua white acrylic as described in another thread re invasion stripe decals, which got into a discussion on how to paint white areas. The main colours were brush painted with Airfix acrylics, and the mottled was done using artist 's pastels applied dry with a cut down brush. This was my first try of this technique, which was discussed on yet another thread in BM. The scheme was quite a dense mottled and was done in sections over a few evenings. I will now be using what I've learnt on Lufty nightfighter mottle. The scheme itself makes no sense from the perspective of a high altitude fighter (as rather sheepishly acknowledged in the backstory: "pilots disliked the scheme . . .") but I suspect it was included coz it looks cool and has a sharkmouth! Hope you like it. Regards Martin
  11. This is my entry into the What-if section of this Group Build, you could say I was somewhat inspired by @Kallisti ‘s various builds of American aircraft in FAA colours. Apologies if this is treading on your toes! I also happened to make a little Monogram 1/72 version of this aircraft when I was younger and not brave enough to adorn it with the yellow and black stripes. (That might give a hint of what I am going for). In the mid 1940s Westland started development of a carrier strike aircraft, with an engine layout similar to that of the Bell P-39. This resulted in interest from the Air Ministry and official specification N.11/44. The prototype W.34 was powered by a Rolls Royce Eagle H-24 engine, which was later cancelled. The aircraft was then planned to be powered by either a Rolls-Royce Clyde or Armstrong Siddeley Python. The Clyde was later cancelled but the airframe was planned to be fitted with a Napier Nomad, which was also then cancelled. Hopes rested on the Python to power the aircraft. (This where we differ from reality) After protracted development of the costly Python turboprop, the Wyvern was coming in over budget. The first prototype of which flew in 1949 and needed many modifications. The then Labour government had major economic issues to contend with and was looking in to all ways and means of cost cutting. This resulted in a defence white paper of 1950, in which Minister of Defence Emanuel Shinwell advocated the cancellation of Westland W.34 in favour of a cheaper, more versatile aircraft. The logic being that a Strike fighter was unnecessary with superior jet aircraft coming into play, Sea Hawk etc. It was decided, to the chagrin of the FAA, that the more conventional multi seat Douglas Skyraider AD-5 aircraft would be purchased to fill the gap of the cancelled Wyvern. This would be able to fulfil the role of a Strike aircraft, as well as that of COD. It’s wide fuselage meant that the aircraft had potential for further role changes in the future. Therefore, an order was placed and all squadrons that the Wyvern was intended for were equipped with the Skyraider AD-5. In keeping with the naming of other strike aircraft being named after mythical beasts, the Skyraider was dubbed the 'Cockatrice' in FAA service. The only differences being that this aircraft had the capacity to carry a torpedo and unguided rockets. This aircraft served well into the 1960s and served with a degree of success during Operation Musketeer in Suez. Along these lines the Whif model I shall be exhibiting will be a FAA ‘Cockatrice’ of 827 Naval Air Squadron based aboard the HMS Eagle during the Suez crisis. This shall be modelled using the Revell/Matchbox 1/48 Skyraider and using decals for the 1/48 Wyvern from Berna Decals. This shall of course be in that classic EDSG over Sky, with Yellow and Black Invasion stripes. I shall start on this as soon as I finish my P-40 STGB commitment… I am very much looking forward to it Cheers, Ash
  12. Next build. I am going to take the Hobby Boss 1/35 TAS-44M prototype and then turn it in to a production version (based on cold war Soviet tank thinking) which is being used in the Hugarian uprising... so things I am going to do 1) level the wheels *the rear wheels are lower than the front and the mud-guard (what ever it is called over the wheels) slope which I dont like 2) move the drive wheels to the rear 3) change the rear deck engine louvres (they are big chasms in the prototype, going to look at mesh and smaller grids) 4) rebuild the turret (prototype = Panther-esque) to make it curved and "cast" 5) replace the barrel with the t-55 barrel 6) maybe alter the slopes of the glacis and the rear deck (it covers the mud-guard (what ever it is called over the wheels)) - if i do this I will add "boxes" a la T-55 6) mesh armour (either Schuerzen like "proper" or ad-hoc welded spaced from the hull) so in short, cold war, soviet design inspired TAS-44M from 1956 Hungarian uprising going to look to re-start my scratch building/modding skills so things above are subject to change.... photos will be forth-coming
  13. Kugelpanzer 41(r) (40006) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models This is a hypothetical design from an alternative reality where ball-tanks were practical, and although there are some quite realistic looking pictures out there on the web, this is a decidedly "what-if" design for a small infantry tank that might have been quite handy for approaching bunkers or installations with significant light weapons presence. It does appear to have some weaknesses though, such as the little outrigger wheels that if shot out, would result in a seriously dizzy crew at best, so it's probably for the best that it remains in the realms of the fantastic. The ball hull is static, with a large wide track running around the circumference, propelled by the motor inside. There would be some serious torque transfer to the hull on acceleration or deceleration, but as this doesn't seem to adversely affect those big-wheel motorcycles, it wouldn't be a huge impediment, especially as the majority of the hull won't be moving. There is a crew of five, with the top-most crew member in each side running the weapons stations, and the front-facing crew driving and operating the forward machine gun. The final rear-facing crew operates another machine-gun that faces to the rear. Oddly, the main guns face sideways in ball-mounts, which would make shooting straight ahead difficult without cooperation from the driver, which could be tricky in such a confined, noisy environment. In reality, it would probably have been a massive failure, who know? but it's interesting nonetheless. The Kit This is the first real What-If subject from MiniArt, who usually keep their subjects in reality, or at least prototype form. A lot of effort has been put into making it appear real however, including a complete interior, which gives the model a bit more to it than an empty shell would have done, and also opens up the possibility for dioramas or vignettes. The kit arrives in standard sized MiniArt box, inside are 23 sprues in mid grey styrene of various sizes, a single sprue of clear parts, and a decal sheet. The instruction booklet is bound in a colourful glossy cover, with greyscale drawings inside, and the decal options printed on the inside covers front and back. Detail is really nice for a relatively small kit. This is the second of these "ball" tanks from Miniart the Russian version was reviewed here. Construction begins with the engine, which is quite a complex assembly, and has a large friction roller at the rear to apply power to the track. The crew seats are built up next, and then attached to the main frame, which consists of two large hoops with cross-members to retain its shape. Track rollers are fitted to the inside of the frames, and the engine, seats and ancillary equipment are all suspended from this. Ammo racks for the main guns are built up at the same time as the machine guns are made up, and all these sub-assemblies are installed into the hull halves, which have cut-outs for the ball-mounts, a radiator grille (backed with a fairly standard looking radiator), and conformal fuel tank. In the centre of each side is a crew hatch that is operated by a wheel, with arched hinges and interlock parts included. With the breeches and machine guns fitted from the inside, and the hatches put in their required positions, the halves are glued to the frames, and the hollow tipped gun barrels are added, plus a headlight with clear lens for night operations. The track is supplied in four parts with a chevron tread and matching joins to minimise clean-up. The four parts glue around the open section of the hull, with a scrap diagram showing the correct location on the lip, and of course the two "trainer-wheels" that stop it from tipping over. That's all there is to it! Markings As it's all fiction, it's probably more a case of choosing the scheme that appeals to you, and as there are a choice of six, it should be pretty easy. You can of course mix and match decals and scheme, as no-one (sane) is going to be complaining that it isn't accurate! From the box you can build one of the following: German Afrikakorps 1942-46 Assault unit Kreigsmarine Marine Corps 1942-46 Coastal defence mobile fire point, Normandy 1944-45 Captured Tank by 6th Australian Cavalry Div North Africa 1942 Captured tank in US Army Service, Europe 1944-46 Mobile firing point, armoured train 168, defence of Berlin 1945-46 Decals are by Decograf, with good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Taken from MiniArt's website Conclusion An trip into alternative history that's got a certain appeal to some, and no appeal to others. The internal structure has been well thought-out, and the variation in decal options makes for a fun project that shouldn't take too long to complete. Very highly recommended if you want something a bit different. Review sample courtesy of
  14. I have this coming soon - wanted to build it as a what if and scratch building exercise. using references from other Hungarian/Axis tanks of the era but if anyone has any other references. additions i am thinking: 1) schuerzen (Hungarian tanks used it as did German so why not) - may be full height (Pz IV-esque or just the half height like the Panther) 2) armour over rather weak rear deck - have seen some PE for the panther with a similar idea (may be even on the turret roof as well 3) rear mounted boxes (Panther) 4) potentially spare fuel tanks (Russian) but think that is a tad dangerous having them so exposed.... 5) rear turret bussle (Kit has tools their so easy to relocate) in terms of colour... green - olive? russian? as toying with "what if the Hungarian Uprising of 1956 user them" but think that would be 10+ years after they were designed so a bit far fetched..... so "1946 WWII continues with Russia vs Hungary" type scenarioanyone done something similar? any other thoughts?
  15. Having seen a lot of great Whif's on here and having read a lot of The Empire Twilight site and thread I thought I'd have a go myself. Hopefully they will be realistic and the back stories will make sense, but any advice gratefully taken! I've an idea of how I'd like the timeline to pan out, but it might be a little bitty to start. First up is an idea stolen from Cookie, but with a slightly different slant on it. Hope he won't mind too much! Falcons in the RAF - Part 1 In 1980 the RAF's Buccaneers were grounded when fatigue to the main spar caused one to crash killing both of the crew. Since the Tornado was due to start coming into service, the initial decision was taken not to replace any machine found to be damaged in this way. When similar problems were identified in the FAA Buccaneers as well, the entire fleet was combined and the best remaining airframes were returned to the control of the Navy to operate from the two Malta-class carriers HMS Gibraltar and HMS Malta. The RAF were understandably unhappy at losing several squadrons and petitioned for more Tornados to fill the looming gap in its strike force. Initial proposals were rebuffed, but when it became clear that the Tornado ADVs development was going to be protracted, a change of tack was made to an aircraft with a primary strike capability and secondary air defence. When it was highlighted that these could also replace the remaining Lightning's in service as well, an Air Staff requirement was finally published. To assist British industry, it was stipulated that the aircraft chosen would be in current production to speed up procurement as well as incorporating avionics, equipment and engines produced in the UK. Several companies applied to take part in the competition including the Mirage F-1, a land based version of the F/A-18 and the eventual winner the F-16. As an untried proposal, the F/A-18 was soon dropped and leaving the F-16 and the Mirage as the front-runners to win. Ultimately the better performance of the American craft as well as General Dynamics being more willing to enter partnership with BAe over production won the day. Surprisingly for a Government program, this was all completed by the end of 1981 and the first 6 F-16A and 2 F-16B Block 15 airframes were delivered for flight testing and equipment fitting before the end of the year was out. When it became clear that the aircraft chosen would have a single engine, Rolls-Royce began to explore options for a suitable powerplant. Several ideas were considered, including the original PW F-100-PW-200 under license until it was realised that the company had the answer in its stable already. In the 1960's Bristol-Siddeley had been selected to build an afterburning version of it's Olympus engine for the TSR.2 known as the Mk.320 which had produced a mighty 150 kN with full burn during ground testing. This had since developed into the 593 as found in Concorde, but the original plans were still available at Filton, making reverse engineering a not inconceivable prospect. Combined with advances made in engine efficiency over the past 15 years a viable engine was soon produced for ground testing, easily matching the 135kN of the first sets of runs going up to the 150kN while at the same time having a lower specific engine consumption allowing a greater range. When fitted to the test airframes, it gave a better performance and max take off weight than the original aircraft at the inevitable loss of range. Despite initial concerns that the engine would be too powerful for the airframe, rigorous ground and flight testing ensured most fears were put to bed. This led to the US armed forces designating the aircraft the F-16U and although there was some interest in the sub-type, the loss in range deterred several potential buyers. However, the USAF did place an order for several examples to use as aggressor aircraft for DACT training. To their credit, Rolls-Royce recognised this being a problem and resolved to continue work on improvements that would allow them to submit it for future contests. Since it would be acting in both Strike and Anti-Air roles, a quality multi-mode radar was required to allow the aircraft to fulfil it full potential. As stipulated for the initial aircraft, the set used would have to be a proven off-the-shelf unit produced in the UK. At the time GEC had been supplying the Blue Fox the FAA for their new Sea Harriers and offered to supply sets for the new aircraft while developing a more powerful set, named Green Fox, which would have a greater range but with the same underlying design therefore reducing the risk of development being protracted. This was deemed an acceptable arrangement to the RAF and the first of the new Radar's were fitted in 1985 after experience gained during the Falklands was also incorporated into its development allowing better resistance to hostile Electromagnetic environments. The Falklands conflict also defined the final role the first aircraft, now known as the Falcon FGR.1, in RAF service. Despite the swift conclusion to the conflict, several aircraft were lost to Radar guided mobile SAM's supplied from Russia via Cuba. Although no lives were lost, it highlighted a lack of SEAD planning within the UK forces and at the time, Buccaneers of the FAA and Harriers of the RAF were swiftly loaded with AS.37 Martels to counter the threat. The AGM-45's carried during the Black Buck raids were found not to be as effective as first hoped and the inclusion of at least one aircraft equipped in this way during raids also allowed a quick response when sets were turned on. Original NATO plans had USAF Wild Weasel squadrons performing this role in case of Soviet invasion, the Falkland experience taught the RAF that this reliance could not be counted on in all eventualities. With their high top speed, Falcons were seen as ideal for these "Splash and dash" missions, clearing a path through defences for the Tornados to follow and hit their targets. Since the parent craft was already cleared for the American anti-air missiles then in use with the RAF, the first production aircraft were assigned to 237 OCU and then 5 and 11 Squadrons replacing the BAC Lightnings fielded by both units. Once cleared for the remaining stores employed by the RAF, the aircraft was also supplied to 12, 15 and 216 squadrons all operating in Europe, rotating through the UK and RAF Germany bases, and 16 Squadron that was posted to RAF Labuan as part of the defence agreement signed when Brunei became independent in 1964. Phew! That was a bit longer than I intended, but I hope it lays the ground work for the first of several aircraft in the role and at the very least sounds a bit plausible! Hopefully get some images up soon.
  16. A pig of a kit and not totally happy with it, but she's done and over. Unless I come across a better kit to replace it in the fullness of time. But anyway... In 1989, the decision was taken to consolidate the remaining F-5A's and E's and replace them all with a single type to lower costs. Although the Hawk FGR.3 was considered, a supersonic replacement was deemed necessary to replicate the MiG-21 still in service across the world. With the end of the Cold War, several weapons manufacturers began to feel the pinch, one of these being Focke-Wulf of Hanover. In an effort to assist sales of the new F-20, a design bought from Northrop with the African and Asian markets in mind. Forteen complete airframes were purchased, along with a further seven for the forces based in Brunei, as well as a service contract to ensure a good supply of parts. As an almost like for like replacement the transition was smooth and the aircraft performed its duty well until being replaced with the Falcon TF.4.
  17. I had a setback with some Corsairs, and needed something in order to get 'back in the saddle', so I almost mindlessly started this whif: a 1/72 AZ Joypack Spitfire IX joined with the misshapen Special Hobby Mk 21 wing. The wings are not exactly a good fit, note the plasticard stuffed into the seams. The wingtips were clipped to just outboard of the ailerons. The Spitfire 26 began concurrently with the Mk 21, retaining the plentiful Packard Merlin of the Mk XVI, which it was designed to replace - the Mk 26 being to the Mk 21 what the Mk XVI was to the Mk XIV - a low altitude fighter-bomber. The heavier wing somewhat hampered performance compared to the XVI, but allowed for greater range and larger ordnance loads for the fighter-bomber role. Planned to be built in the thousands, only a little over one hundred were completed with 350 'bubble top' Mk 27's following behind (planners reserved Mk's 26-29 for Merlin powered late Spitfires). The Mk 27 is most famous for its use by the RAAF in the Korean War, alongside USAF P-51's, where its four-cannon armament and under-wing racket rails proved vital in the close support role. I'm planning on finishing this Mk 26 as a post-War racer in a silver scheme.
  18. Evening, while building my 1/72 B29, I started looking over my shelf of doom as a distraction. Doing that I found the Revell boxing of the Hasegawa He 111 H-6 and ICM He 70 F-2, both in 1/72. One half painted, one ready for painting, I started thinking how to paint them, actually I thought a of a What If to let them stand out of the crowd somehow. I thought of asking here, if anyone knows interesting, colorful, distinctive or somehow different paintjobs or camoflages. I for example thought of a Japanese He 70 or a post-war Isreali He 111 but maybe you know something better. Thank you In advance Levin
  19. Hi all, No pics organized yet, but I've done enough to at least admit to it. I'll update this later with the backstory (that's not organized yet, either!) Imagine, if you will, that when Grumman was asked to investigate a swept-wing carrier fighter when their F9F-2 was given the green light, rather than going too far with requirements and airframe in the XF10F program, they had instead successfully argued to keep it simple and just build a small testbed that also had potential as a fleet-defence interceptor/ day fighter? I got the kit because when it was announced I saw the resemblance (in some ways) to the XF10F. I don't care about the Tunnan enough to spend a bunch of money on a decent kit of it, and I figured for my purposes the under-nourished factor wouldn't really matter. As it turns out, I'm finding it quite freeing- it has given AMS a knock, and I'm taking advantage of this temporary opportunity to be slapdash, not let things cause stumbling blocks, and JUST HAVE SOME FUN (also known as "actually build the damn thing")! I don't recommend such drastic measures for all- use at own risk. bob
  20. As some of you may be aware, my two entries for the recent Whif group build were a pair of Hornets, or Yellowjackets, who were operated by the RAF in Brunei providing protection for the small rich kingdom along the same lines as that found in Belize. My fertile (odd?) imagination then rocketed to create several flights as the role and history expanded. This, along with two other on-going ideas, are part of my post '45 world that is reasonably integrated. More on them later. So, to set the scene... Brunei had been a British Protectorate since 1888 after internal strife over succession followed by threat of expansion by the kingdom of Sarawak encroaching onto established territory. This allowed Britain to control the countries foreign affairs amongst other things, yet resulted in the country maintaining its separate identity when the federated states of Malaysia were formed in 1963, an event that resulted in the Malay-Indonesian confrontation between '63 and '66. So far, so real life. In my world, the conflict frightened the populace enough to insist on a permanent British armed presence to ensure independence was maintained. Due to the politicians wishing to withdraw British forces west of Suez, the resultant agreement was rather unique in that Brunei would pay for the aircraft maintenance and ordnance, whilst the RAF would provide the staff. The agreement was reached with the view that the small force would be handed back to the Brunei people after 30 years. The British politicians and various weapons manufacturers then lobbied hard to ensure that as much custom came to the UK, at the risk of upsetting the other big players in the area, namely the US and China. However, due to the difficulties of shipping weapons from Europe to South East Asia, calmer heads prevailed and the majority of weaponry was purchased from the more readily source on the US, which was beginning to get into its stride in Vietnam. In 1964 the first two flights formed, one Air defence and one Ground attack. Due to the Spartan nature of the airfield they required robust, easily maintained, simple aircraft. What they got was two versions of the the Gnat, both of which will be covered in this thread at a later date. To assist with the deployment of troops on the ground, a third flight was created equipped with two transport aircraft and two Helicopters to provide a small SAR service in the area. Following the Indo-Malay conflict, it was recognised that a further flight of each type would be required, both being formed in 1968. Since there was a large abundance of American hardware across the South China Sea, the decision was taken to purchase a number of aircraft from the US to assist with maintaining good relations. The US for there part were glad to have the support of the Commonwealth watching their back as things had become progressively worse on the Asian mainland. The Vietnam war brought another set of problems to the area with a large rise in piracy, particularly groups linked to communist forces who attacked Bruneian Oil tankers to sell the product on the black market. This led to the creation of a sixth flight, solely aimed at maritime attack and two years after, another flight equipped with two ex-BOAC Super VC-10's which were converted into tankers on the back of the RAF order, aimed at extending patrol times. In between the two, a final flight was created in response to the lack of reconnaissance overflights in the area and the concern of Indonesian infiltration, one that was proven true in the 1980's. Throughout this time, the build up of forces in the area had not gone unnoticed by the Communist nations. China, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia all lodged complaints with the UN about a foreign force based on Brunei soil, which were all thrown out due to the nature of Brunei's relationship with the U.K. Despite this, there were still calls in London for the force to be handed over early and allow a relinquishment of duties in the area, something fiercely opposed by those in Brunei. The USSR, on the other hand saw this as a golden opertunity to expand its sphere of influence as well as remove another potential ally for China. Having suffered several border clashes over the years as well as enduring a split in the communist parties, Moscow say this as a way to give China a bigger worry in its own backyard. During 1975, the diplomatic corps made great overtures to the Sultan, promising many things in exchange for oil deliveries to the point that later that year, the first MiG-21's arrived from the HAL plant in India. Unfortunately for the negotiators, either by oversight or mis-translation, nothing was agreed on who would actually by flying or maintaining the equipment sent. It was realised too late what the implications were and ultimately led to a massive review and restructuring of the Soviet diplomatic corps. Despite this, the aircraft were duly delivered, perhaps rather grudgingly, and parts supplied for several years. The event also hammered home to UK and. Commonwealth politicians what could be lost had sharper minds been sent to conclude the deal and soon opposition forces to the force fell silent. In the mid 80's, the flights were heavily involved in both War of the Java Sea and the aftermath that followed as the country of Indonesia fell apart into several feuding domains, each ruled by a warlord. During the post conflict review, it was felt that several of the aircraft used during the conflict were now no longer suitable for their roles. This lead to several of the flights receiving new equipment in short order as the new territory was subsumed into Brunei and the role of the flights altered to accomadate this. They were also required to take part in the peacekeeping no-fly zone as the former Indonesian territory of Kalimantan transferred to Malaysian control. Today, the eight flights are well maintained with some of the most up to date equipment available. This is particularly important due to the continuing fall out from the disintegration of Indonesia to the south, coupled with the expansionist policies of China to the north. They are also heavily involved in the multi-national anti-piracy initiative in the area and may often be found supporting troops and ships involved in reducing attacks. Flying mainly European and American craft, the force currently has no plans to expand, but is seen as an excellent source of experience for serving RAF crews, most of whom will serve at least one secondment to the area. Tomorrow...details about the first flight I hope to complete :-)
  21. Another Whif build "During the Korean war, it became clear that both the Meteor and the Vampire were somewhat lacking when faced with the new Mig-15. After several examples were captured and taken back to RAE Farnborough, comparison flight testing also showed that the Meteor was more suited to the ground attack role while the Vampire the interception role. These tests allowed suitable tactics to be developed and the lessons learnt applied to future designs. Unfortunately this was too late for Meteor units in the theatre which were, by now, severely short on numbers. To compensate, F-84E's were loaned by the US to ensure that there was no loss in the punishing ground attacks taking place at the time, with the first squadron, No 56, receiving their mounts in mid-1951 which were known in the RAF as the Thunderjet FB.1. By the end of 1953 all were replaced by the Thunderjet FB.2 which was the equivalent of the F-84G, but fitted with RR Avon engines, British avionics and four 30mm Aden cannons in place of the original Browning machine guns. Present at the Queens coronation flypast, these aircraft did not stay in service much past the end of the 1954 as they were replaced with Gloster's new dedicated ground attack Meteor, the Reaper, and so were sold on to other Commonwealth countries looking to modernise their air forces with the new technology. In addition to Korea, these FB.2's were used by India during several conflicts of the 1950's as well as South Africa in the Border War. The last of these Anglicised Thunderjets were retired by Kenya in 1968" Enjoy!
  22. I got thinking the other day. What if America had become a communist country instead of Russia? Assuming WW1 ended the same way, and it happened in the interwar period, what Russian designs would've replaced the American ones in RAF, French and other Air forces or would we have possibly taken other countries to make up our numbers? Whilst I realise that the designs produced by both countries would have been highly unlikely to follow those in the real world, could there be any straight swaps that seem feasible? Might there have been I-16's vs the Italians in the Desert? I-180's reaching full potential in place of the Mustang? What do people think?
  23. One build on its way after my BoB Bf 109 will be finished. V-P EDIT 240915: I´ll describe in this opening post what I´m about to start building this weekend as the BoB Messerschmitt is finished. I´ll update the build as usual below in new posts. BACKGROUND: In late 1943 the loss rate of Bristol Blenheims and Dornier Do 17:s used in high altitude photo reconnaissance exceeded level of tolerance. Finnish Air Force submitted European aeronautic defence and space contractors, those that were available in those political circumstances, a tender for a fast recon plane in rapid delivery. The German Junkers Gmbh offered an off-the-shelf Junkers Ju 188 F taken from their air force, The Luftwaffe production order. The Junkers and The Luftwaffe had got into a nasty fight as The Luftwaffe had become suspicious that The Junkers had falsified their emission reports. The Junkers had claimed that "if The Luftwaffe won´t buy our planes, someone else will". Large scale export contracts to The Soviet Union had already been signed, despite The Luftwaffe opposition as they protested the export of weapons to a totalitarian country that was in war, and to make things worse, in war with Germany! Luckily they had found Swedish arms dealers to act as front men to make the deal internationally acceptable. The Luftwaffe had then put their order on hold, and the already finished planes were waiting for their instrumentation to be transformed to cyrillic alphabets before delivery to East. To this point the lucky Finns became with their tender and within weeks of acceptance the first plane was delivered to Finland. By that time winter had come and the first thing to do was to paint the Junkers in Finnish warpaint. That consisted of light blue undersides with black and green topsides. For the wintertime camouflage the green was replaced with white. Planes also had the eastern front yellow recognition band around fuselage and wingtip undersides. BACK TO REAL LIFE, eh, back to modelling miniature warplanes, that is... When I was a real kid I was very tempted by the Matchbox Junkers Ju 188 boxart. It had the sense of speed and showed the elegant purposefulness of the plane. I will build the kit out of the box, legs up as it would be in flight. Sadly I don´t have the original Matchbox stand left so will use an old Frog one. My kit may also lack its crew but in that case I have an almost-dumped-to-the-bin Airfix Ju 88 that can spare its tiny figures. As the plane was purchased for high speed and altitude overland, it won´t need external bomb racks or fuel tanks. Thanks to Matchbox oversimplifying things I shall do my first experiments with Microscale Klear, if I try to open the ventral gunners windows that are solid plastic in the kit. Likewise the camera openings too. I haven´t taken pics of the kit yet but here´s a copy of InSCALE 72 decal sheet instructions that shows what kind of Finnish warpaint I shall apply to Ju 188 (JK:s 268 and 260). The greens will be white for winter camouflage. I thought I´d alter the plane code to JJ-something as there has never been such code in use here, though it might have retained the JK-code too. Regards, V-P
  24. These two builds are from the recently finished Whif GB, figured I'd give them a little bit of a screening here.
  25. So with the mojo a little lacking to make a start on the Mako (it will happen!) I thought I'd do a quick and easy-ish start. Back story to follow once I get on my laptop, but to start...
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