mitchem

Crikey - thanks for the heads-up Pete ! I reckon I could have ended up sitting on the sidelines in the second half

Eastern Express kit finished off in the markings of Aerocaribbean - a Cuban Airline that was formed in 1982, and eventually ended its days in 2015 by being merged into Cubana. I did buy a set of 8a decs for the model, but they seemed a bit too short for the kit, and when I compared them to photos of the real aircraft, there didn't seem to be enough definition between the fuselage colours. Only one thing to do - make my own : The kit wasn't the easiest to build and I had a lot of trouble with the propellers and the outboard engines - not nice. Standard walkaround shots : Time to fire up the Ivchenkos and head back to Havanna - Adios mike

Cracking build Dave of another airline giant that is no longer with us. Glad to say that in spite of the original copyright issues, Brussels Airlines eventually got their man !

Excellent stuff Wally. Liking the comparison shot with the An-12 too mike

Excellent build and metallic finish there Eric. Nice to see some rare markings too. mike

Excellent stuff Pete. Looks very menacing in that colour scheme, and I wouldn't fancy one of those sneaking up on me Loving the comparison shots with the Nimrod too.

I have a set of those decals in the stash, so many thanks for the inspirational build.

Wow! Ever thought about taking up gem-cutting as a hobby? I can't believe that we're looking at the same kit in comparison to the "build / carving grinding" phase. Oh Dear.....Have you just disqualified yourself from the club competition? mike

Excellent.

Very nearly had us believing that this was being made from scratch, but a quick search on Scalemates revealed that this is actually a commercially available kit! ...and if you want proof, here's a picture of the spru(c)es : On a serious note, I'm watching this build come together in awe. mike

Many thanks for all of the generous comments - much appreciated. I think I've just about recovered from the build now. Time to have a look at some other abandoned builds hiding in the loft . (P.S. Glad that nobody noticed that I hadn't glued the wings on ) Best Regards mike

Classic scheme and excellent build Einar. (Loving the photo of the open gate onto the ramp and the open air observation deck) mike

Fantastic stuff Bjorn. Proof that it can be built after all.

You should have taken more time Ray On a serious note, great job in a relatively short space of time mike

Cracking job Wally Been on my "to-do" list for more years than I care to remember. mike