WolvoWill

The effort involved to modify the Airfix 1/48 Tornado F3 is just not worth the hassle IMHO - yes you can rescribe, add detail and so forth, but you're still left with some problems that will be very difficult to rectify, such as the canopy being completely wrong (the wind shield part is too long, and obviously so ). The Italeri kit is rare but still pops up on Ebay now and then, and whilst the £30 or so they often tend to go for may be steep, think how much time you'd save in using that as a starting point compared to the Airfix offering!

I like the model a lot, a real blend of OV-10 and modern Turboprop COIN aircraft design (Super Tucano etc). However a few comments on the design - the bubble canopy looks great but a more bulged design would allow greater outwards visibility. A tandem two man crew would be useful for COIN/FAC roles, with an extra set of eyes or ears/mouth to control communications being useful. What flaps or other high lift devices does it have? Short/austere field capability would be useful I feel. Adding some lumps and bumps to represent useful equipment like a FLIR turrent/LLTV camera (perhaps under the centre of the fuselage to give a great field of view), and defensive equipment such as IR 'disco ball', chaff and flare dispensers, MAWS gear, laser jammers etc would really help bring the model to life though I realise equipment fit such as this may be outside the scope of your project. Some guns would be useful too I venture, either podded or wing mounted Where were you studying by the way, wasn't Imperial by any chance (Aero Eng)? A friend of mine has had to do a very similar project as part of her final year their, indeed I think her craft was intended for the COIN role.

Bloomin' Fish-heads Like you guys say, that Typhoon is awesome - saw it again at Cosford the other week and it really does look impressive, set of so many car alarms where I was! Doesn't appear to be the most out and out agile thing I've ever seen, the MiG-29OVT and F/A-18E/F seem to have it beaten at absolute low speed agility, but neither of those seem to have quite the same raw power or noise! The rolling zoom climb to finish the display is just insane. The Tornado fleet is a right mix of colours at the moment, what with the GR4s grey or black radomes, two different colour schemes, some with squadron markings, some with partial squadron markings, wome without, then theres the 3 digit tailcodes or the old squadron specific codes....so many combinations, it makes deciding what aircraft to model a chore but gives you an excuse to do more than one (as if I needed another excuse..) Gary, whats the old 3 grey scheme on the F3? I thought it was two tone (Barley grey/LACG)?

Looks nice, love the Phantom and 74sqn have some great markings too Which colour wash did you use for the panel lines, dark brown?

Don't think so, think theres just the 'no step' markings in a few choice spots. In later years the walkways on the barley grey have been scarcely visible - on the photos of the new MSG scheme for both GR4 and F3, they are even less apparent. I have a GR4 and F3 on my bench at the moment, and lots of reference photos of both, so will provide some visual aids in a bit when I get onto the other computer....

Haven't posted thus far but I must say, thats absolutely fantastic, amongst the cleanest and neatest looking bare metal finishes I've seen, and on a great jet too!

Was a good day out - said a brief hello to IanT and Falconer at the Heritage Aviation stand. The soon to be released 1/24 Lightning is a real beast size wise, but it looked a real cracker from the bits I saw The static park and flying display was alas slightly bare compared even to previous Cosford shows, but its a sign of the times I guess! Typhoon solo was a cracker, set of so many car alarms where I was though, certainly a noisy beast. Role demo was good, would have liked to see the F3s flying a bit lower to begin with and maybe dropping flares and lighting the burners a bit. Only one GR4 as well, thought there was supposed to be 2? Suppose one could have gone tech....

Anyone do a 1/48 King Air? Those Elbit Hermes 450 drones are funny looking things, certainly a very basic shape!

1 - No idea, haven't seen it flapping around like that before! Potentially where a ground power cable attaches or something, and the doors popped open? Serious FOD problem were it to come off I'd imagine.... 2 - The LRMTS system as discussed earlier. 3 - The FLIR systems fairing. 4 - Horizon to horizon IRLS (Infra red linescan). The RAFs 'A' variant Tornados all had this, it was the reconnaisance system that differentiated them from the basic GR1/4 (wih no A). The brown squares either side of the nose towards the intakes are the two sideways looking windows for the system. Operational use of the IRLS system has been discontinued in favour of the RAPTOR pod and DJRP (Digital Joint Recce Pod) as IRLS is only able to capture decent imagery from low level, and is relatively useless from the typical operating altitudes used these days, but is still fitted to the airframes that originally had it. 5 - BOZ-107 chaff/flare pod. On actual ops, the Tornado GR4/GR4A will carry one under its right wing, and a Skyshadow ECM pod under the left, but since the Skyshadow ECM pod is getting on a bit age wise its servicability isn't great, so they aren't often used during training. The Tornado must carry a balanced(ish) load on its outboard pylons though, so you can't just leave the left hand pylon empty, so another BOZ pod is loaded up (either a real, working one, or a concrete filled ballast 'drill' one used when the armourers are first practising). 6 - Antennas for the ILS (Instrument Landing System), which the German Tornado's aren't fitted with. Hope this helps! Love the Goldstars scheme by the way, not so much of a fan of the 13 squadron one but I can't deny its eye catching!

Quite like it myself, doubt I'll build it though - theres enough black, grey and white on my shelf as as (and I have a 2sqn line jet in the works as well, which will make even more...) Here's a few more pics I borrowed from UKAR... Since we're discussing specially marked Tornados, has anyone seen the new 111 squadron special F3? Not a fan of that scheme at all...

Nice 'what-if' but those markings are for 13 squadron, not 14

Its a good kit, seats and cockpit needs replacing if you're planning on having it open as its so sparse, but otherwise its fine. As mentioned, the leading edge/wing root area needs work otherwise you can end up making a mess (I have a Granby GR1 that needed one side filling and rescribing due to my own haste/incompetence when assembling them). Paragon front fin correction is a nice addition for £3 - plenty of other of Neils bits worth adding too, afterburner cones being the main ones. To be accurate you need to scavenge quite a few bits from the airfix kits - the outer wing pylons in the Italeri kit are too deep, so need replacing with the better airfix items, whilst the under fuselage pylons are best taken from the airfix kit too. The Italeri ones have better surface detail, but don't have the correct fairing around the points where the ordnance attaches (think Spikes called them crutching pads in the past).

The aircrew were the figures from the Airfix Tornado F3 - to be honest I think they're slightly underscale, as they seen rather small compared to either 1/48 hasegawa pilots from their kits that I've got (F-14, F-15, F-16) and the other jets I have in the stash (Monogram's legacy Hornet and A-10). But they look just about acceptable - if anyone raises it as an issue I'd just say it happens to be a rather short bottom crew of navigator and pilot who happen to be flying that day!

Looks nice! I really like the Israeli desert camo scheme, one of the most eye catching ones around, along with the Saudi Tornado GR scheme... Where did you get the display stand from? I have 6 or so models that are crying out for something like that.

This kit has been a real pain in the backside to me - it was originally to be built as ZE734, a medium sea grey machine from 25 squadron, but the flat coat somehow reacted with the paint and crazed it completely. If it wasn't built from such a rare and relatively expensive to purchase kit, it'd have just been chucked in the bin at this point, but I decided to strip it and start again. Modelstrip was used to get rid of the paint (brush painted humbrol enamels and can sprayed matt coat) but boy did it take some hard scrubbing with a toothbrush! When it was finally stripped, I decided to repaint it as another aircraft, because the way it looked before was really rather dull - ZE734 bore no squadron markings at all. The jet I chose this time, ZG757, is a bit of an oddity, (somewhat fittingly given the model) being fully repainted three times in a year and a half! First it received the new all over MSG scheme, then was repainted in an all over gloss black scheme for 43sqns 90th anniversary. Certain RAF bods were displeased with this unauthorised scheme, and it didn't fly many times wearing it - at the Leuchars airshow in 2006 it was kept out of public view because the airships didn't agree with it being painted in this way . Eventually the majority of the aircraft was repainted in the familiar original Tornado F3 scheme, apart from the spine which kept its gloss black finish. This jets also been on TV - Gordon Ramsey's 'The F Word' paid a visit to RAF Leuchars to help the guys manning Northern QRA spruce of their food, and the chef was taken for a flight on this jet which caused him to lose his own well cooked lunch I decided to build ZG757 in its current form in order to bring a bit of variety to my shelf - theres just soooo many grey jets. At least a gloss black spine would contrast against the grey airframe. I didn't fancy doing all over black when I started, as i hadn't had much success with that finish before. The spine on this model isn't perfect, being brush painted humbol satin black with 6-8 coats of future. Next time I'll use a spray and then future it! Kit is from Italeri, with AMRAAMs from the spares bin, and chaff dispensers and ASRAAMS/BOL rails from the airfix kit. Decals are a combination of Model Alliance, Xtradecal and airfix.

Looks great Where did you get the Paveway IIs from - they don't look like the airfix ones, presumably the flightpath ones? How well do they go together?

Looks nice - shame its a Navy bird though I have been speed building a GR9 myself, foolishly thinking a Hasegawa kit would be a remedy to my frustration of late (Italeri's Tornado and peeling paint does that to you...). In four days its essentially as complete as yours! Mine is ZG857, of four squadron, in the newest all over grey scheme. Not sure on loadout yet other than it'll have a Sniper pod (got one from Shull24.com before he stopped production). It'll have outboard fuel tanks like yours, with a pair of 2000lb Paveway IIIs and nothing else, or four 500lb Paveway IVs, tanks and winders...choices :

They developed a new 25mm for the GR5/7 etc, different from the one the USMC uses. It was to have a similar configuration to the 30mm Aden used in the GR3 (i.e. 1 cannon per pod with 150 rounds of ammo each). Development was problematic and the aircraft were delivered without the gun installled into the pods, with the plan being to retrofit the gun into the brand new empty pods when it was ready. Eventually the project was canned as it was getting expensive and was still unreliable, so the GR5/7 ended up gunless! The empty pods are still fitted as they improve lift in the hover - not as much as the strakes that can be carried in lieu of the gun, but until the late 1990s we were so cash strapped we didn't buy many so empty gun pods were the usual fit! Nowadays we have the strakes so they tend to be a bit more common. Shawn Hull from Shull24.com makes an absolutely superb 1/48 Sniper pod but is currently taking a break from production until the Autumn . I heartily recommend his stuff though, probably the best cast aftermarket resin I've ever seen, and he's a good bloke to deal with too - fast service and helpful communications.

There was a thread on the SNEB over at PPRUNE some time back asking about ye olde SNEB - apparently its been phased out in favour of the CRV-7, since they're more effective (they're faster so hit harder) and getting a bit old in the tooth, and thus harder to care for and more liable not to go off properly! Last live firing was sometime in 1999 with 20 squadron's Harriers, is what somebody said.

That sure is some ghetto looking plywood FOD cover....splinters anyone? :whistling:

Nice scheme! Has anyone here attempted the 1/48 'Belcher Bits' Lynx by the way? Yet another appealing subject that I ponder now and then, but the Lynx is another one where the kit options (like the Puma and Alpha Jet) seem rather limited, rare, or expensive, or all three!

Nice! Love those markings as well, haven't seen them before - 19 sqn right?

I've only seen them with the strake as well. Important thing to remember about the Harrier GR5/7/9 gun pods - they're empty! The GR5/7 was intended to have a new 25mm cannon, but development was problematic and in the end cancelled due to a lack of funds to continue. The aircraft was introduced into service with the pods, the intention being to fit the gun into them when it was ready. That never happened due to cancellation, so the Harrier was left gunless. The pods were/are often carried though for aerodynamic benefit though - they served to improve lift in the hover/transition phase of flight. The fuselage strakes are slightly better aerodynamically (they were designed specifically to improve hover performance, and give more lift in the hover than the gun pods), but the RAF was cash strapped and few strakes were purchased, so carriage of the empty gun pods became the norm from the GR5 days up until the late 1990s. Only in relatively recent years have Harriers tended to fly with the strakes instead of the gun pods! This change seemingly co-incided with the decision to send the GR7s aboard RN aircraft carriers as part of 'Joint Force Harrier' - I'm not sure why actually. Maybe the marginally improved lift in the hover of a strake equipped jet versus those with the less aerodynamic (and heavier, despite being empty) gun pods gives the jet a better bring back potential in that the jet can be carrying more fuel and/or weapons and still be able to land vertically, as is necessary on the carrier? I'd guess that the strake is always carried along with TIALD for reasons of weight saving, with benefits to hover performance from being lighter as well as the greater volume of air trapped beneath the strake.

TIALD is quite a bit longer and a bit thinner, so accurately modding one from the LANTIRN (v similar to the Litening) from the Hasegawa 'd' weapons set would be trickly - if you're after one then AMRAAM Line and Flightpath make good resin aftermarket ones. You'll have to scratchbuild the pylon to mount it onto the Harrier though, since no aftermarket producer has yet made one.

All the RAF aircraft flying operations will probably be using the AIM-120C4 or 5 variant, but there are plenty of stocks remaining of AIM-120B. The C model is quite a bit better in combat scenarios, so they'd obviously want to use that on real ops, but what then for all the Bs? Well some will probably be used as practice firings (for practice purposes theres no real difference in how you'd employ the missiles, so for training the B's will do the trick) but the others are being upgraded by raytheon as the AIM-120B+, basically gives the B model some of the enhancements made to the C models seeker head and computer but retains the original full span fins and rocket motor of the AIM-120B.