jyguy Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 20 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jyguy Posted February 2, 2017 Author Share Posted February 2, 2017 I've recently shoved together a couple of retro jets at the request of a mate.Just thought I'd share them before they disappear. The Comet is the Airfix kit with Decals and tip tanks from 26 decals.The 707 is the Minicraft kit again with decals by 26.Personally, I'd have preferred to play around with some shading on the silvers and add a hint of weathering but the recipient likes his models unadulterated.Still gives me an excuse to build something else... Not brilliant pictures, wrong end of an overcast wet day here. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aircraftkit Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 Oooh, I like these a lot. Not often you see MEA jets being modelled, so its especially nice to see two of them side-by-side. Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bzn20 Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 Eyes lit up when I saw the thread title. Love them. Don't suppose you've got a Viscount ,Caravelle and Convair CV990 lurking somewhere ? Well done, thanks for showing them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitchem Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 Loving the MEA scheme and you've done it proud......TWICE ! Thanks for posting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael301757 Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 Lovely pair of classics there and a livery we dont see very often, nice job, Would be interested to know if there are any issues with the 26 wingtips for the comet as i have one lined up for the bench soon. Cheers Michael. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stringbag Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 Great classic scheme there, and in stereo too. Chris. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noelh Posted February 2, 2017 Share Posted February 2, 2017 Great thing about models is that they can evoke memories. Two come to mind. I worked for a jet engine overhaul company. We imported some engines, JT3Ds, 707 engines which came from Beirut. On the way a container full of engines fell overboard from the ship in a storm. The rest arrived dusty, several with shrapnel holes showing the effect of shelling Beirut airport. Brought it home to me. Another memory, for a few years the biggest airshow in Ireland was held at a racecourse, Fairyhouse near Dublin. One year the highlight was three USAFE F15s. For their finale, it was a fast pass followed by a typical F15 vertical climb to altitude. We watched in awe as they climbed directly towards the contrail of a passing airliner. Years later I read that the airliner was in fact an MEA 707. The Captain, no doubt influenced by years flying through a war zone, seeing jet fighters rapidly approaching, in a panic reported he was under attack. MEA went through a torrid time over the years. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 Nice, I like that MEA colour scheme & you've done it proud with those two, a lovely bit of airliner nostalgia. Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael K Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 Absolutely 2 beauties. I love these classic airliners.Very well done Michael Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ROBOT Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 Finally some lovely built airliners in the RFI section again, I can tell you I was suffering from airliner withdrawal ! Your two jets are making me a little drowsy now, man they are strong 😀 Lovely build, l've never Seen a MEA livery built before.... Very cool, thanks for sharing . Olli Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jyguy Posted February 3, 2017 Author Share Posted February 3, 2017 Thank you all for your kind comments.I think Noel hit on the reason I build models, There is nothing quite like a 3D replica to bring back time and place, now if only they could squirt out a whiff of burnt kerosene or make the squeak of a Daks brakes..It is also the reason I avoid modelling airframes that ended their service in fatal accidents. Hi bzn I have a Roden 720B to build for my friend next,that's going to be in the latter Red tail livery with close spaced MEA titles.Now if 26 would do MEA VC10, Viscount and Caravelle decals I'll oblige.Does anybody produce a 144 Convair 990?I remember seeing a Spantax One use the full take-off run available at Exeter many moons ago leaving a trail of acrid black smoke. To answer your question Michael,the 26 tanks fit extremely well,it was my first experience of using resin and they really are in modern parlance plug and play with very little fettling required.If using decals for the tip tanks they may require trimming in length. Guy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aircraftkit Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 1 hour ago, jyguy said: Does anybody produce a 144 Convair 990?I remember seeing a Spantax One use the full take-off run available at Exeter many moons ago leaving a trail of acrid black smoke. Yes, F-RSIN makes a very nice 1/144 Convair 990 (short run injection moulded plastic); Contrails also do one (resin), as do Welsh Models (mixed media). 26Decals issued a version of F-RSIN's kit with Spantax (1970s) livery, the same decal has actually just been reprinted and is on sale again as a separate decal sheet. I don't know if its still available to view online, but there was a great video on YouTube some years ago of a Spantax 990 "Smoking Joe" taking off from Exeter Airport - certainly lived up to its name. Seeing your brace of MEA jets reminded me of various trips I made into Heathrow in the mid 1970s; there always seemed to be an MEA 747 parked up. I don't know if it was just by chance that I always seemed to see it, or whether it was there longer-term awaiting maintenance - perhaps it was placed there simply to avoid being damaged by a conflict at home ? Anyway, hopefully you'll get round to building more MEA airliners - and share the pictures with us. Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graeme H Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 Very nice pair there, always good to see a theme going on Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbofan Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 (edited) Nice to see some MEA models again, love your Comet! Always been a favourite livery of mine, I only have the one MEA jet in my collection. Check this one out Olli! http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234983768-1144-roden-mea-boeing-720b/ Nick Webb has done decals for the MEA VC10. http://www.classic-airlines.com/365.html I don't think any one has done the Viscount, Caravelle or CV990 decals though. Keep them coming! Cheers, Ian Edited February 3, 2017 by Turbofan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jyguy Posted February 3, 2017 Author Share Posted February 3, 2017 Thank you again folks, Don and Ian.No excuses then I'll have to look into getting the 990 kit and some VC10 decals.Ian, that 720 is stunning.Building an MEA Viscount 700 would either mean a Welsh vac form or cutting down S&M kit both of wich are a bit beyond me I too remember the 747 at Heathrow.I believe they were in storage away from the "Troubles" whilst the airline moved its main operating base to Paris. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bzn20 Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 I remember the MEA Air Liban 720Bs,707s and CV990s at Heathrow. Some were just MEA others had MEA Air Liban titles. The Comets and VC10s were earlier visitors. On the CV990s pretty rare bird at Heathrow in terms of Airlines. Swissair ,the most common. SAS once or twice that I know of, bought for use with Thai A/W. They ended up in Modified SAS scheme with Thai Airways titles. Air France and Iberia leased one each in 1967 to beef up their summer season or possibly crew shortage due to 727 training which arrived in 68. AF's came from Modern Air Transport (American A/L jet originally) N5605 and Iberia's from Spantax, EC-BJC. Spantax started into Heathrow 68 ish but IRC the ended up at Gatwick The only 880's That came in to Heathrow were two Swissair jets that were leased from Convair while waiting for delivery of the 990 HB-ICL & ICM. Don't remember another 880 coming in. This was Heathrow when we got to see a myriad of different Airliners instead of Boeing and Airbus designs , 100s of differing lengths of 737s,A320s This is all from memory , hope it's still good! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celt Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 A well tidy pair of civils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aircraftkit Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 6 hours ago, bzn20 said: The only 880's That came in to Heathrow were two Swissair jets that were leased from Convair while waiting for delivery of the 990 HB-ICL & ICM. Don't remember another 880 coming in. This is all from memory , hope it's still good! Good memories there, bzn20 ! Without wishing to hi-jack this thread, JAL certainly operated the Cv880 into Heathrow in the early 1960s, although from memory it wasn't on a regular basis. At the time JAL usually had DC8s on their Heathrow service, the 880s were - I think - operated into Germany but they definitely made an occasional appearance at LHR. Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bzn20 Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 (edited) I knew they got as far Rome, I've seen a Rome Airport postcard with one on the Apron but I didn't see or even hear of one in Heathrow. Certainly not after summer 1966 , I'd really be amazed if they did. If you have a year I can check Visitor lists for first of type for airline, first visit of type, airline oddities etc. I really missed out ! I did get an 880 postcard from the JAL desk at Heathrow though which I thought was odd at the time. And over the Moon! Edited February 3, 2017 by bzn20 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aircraftkit Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 1 hour ago, bzn20 said: I knew they got as far Rome, I've seen a Rome Airport postcard with one on the Apron but I didn't see or even hear of one in Heathrow. Certainly not after summer 1966 , I'd really be amazed if they did. If you have a year I can check Visitor lists for first of type for airline, first visit of type, airline oddities etc. I really missed out ! I did get an 880 postcard from the JAL desk at Heathrow though which I thought was odd at the time. And over the Moon! I don't have any photos of my own showing JAL Cv880s at Heathrow but if you use Google to search, you'll find a few. The first such photo I came across shows a JAL Cv880 with an Austin A40 car parked next to it (with "Japan Air Lines" painted on the back of the vehicle). In the background of the same photo you can see BEA Vanguards and Comets around the old Central Area. I don't always trust the dates assigned to historic photos, but this particular one (on www.Planes.Cz) is annotated "09/61". Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bzn20 Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 I couldn't find that one but I found another JA8025, 2nd September 1963 ! Brilliant and fed up at the same time. I was 8 years old but only lived about 3 miles as the crow flies from the Airport and just about everything came over our house. Can you give a link for that one you found please? After I wrote that last night I thought someones going to mention some obscure oil companies 880 hack. didn't expect a JAL 880. I only saw that Rome postcard a few weeks ago and that surprised me. I'll see if I can send you it via PM. This picture is good though, like to see that other one. I'll check my lists around that date to see if another came in. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:JA8025_Convair_CV.880_Japan_Air_Lines_LHR_02SEP63.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aircraftkit Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 To my shame I've never done a "link" in my life (there's a first for everything) so hopefully this will work... http://www.planes.cz/en/photo/1141886/convair-880m-22-22-ja8023-japan-airlines-jal-jl-london-heathrow-lhr-egll Somewhere - I don't know where, and it'd take ages to find it - I think I have a very old b/w picture of a JAL Cv880 parked at Heathrow, photographed out of the cabin window of a taking off jet (can't even recall what type, or even airline, the taking off type was !). My parents had friends who lived in Staines Road, Twickenham, and when we stayed with them I'd spend hours (as a kid) looking out of the bedroom window watching a succession of airliners lining up to land at Heathrow. Happy days. Don 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bzn20 Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 Great photo. That's 2 that came in the 8023 and 8025. That's taken over by the Staines Road, (A30) South side on the Pan-Am hangar pan. They used to look after JAL kites if they needed hangar work. I used to ride my bike in to the Hangar ask the Crew Chief, in a ball cap smoking a foot long Stogie if I could go on and look around, he let me but with a warning, touch anything and you won't be coming back! That's the United Hangar now BTW. I sent the Rome airport pic to you PM Happy days is right! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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