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It's been a while! Real life distractions have had me otherwise focused since mid February. I did manage to finish another Wessex for the Salty Sea Dog GB (I still have to take the photos and put up the RFI for that...) but my BM time has been very limited. One of the things I wanted to do in 2023 was build a little outside of my usual fare and take on some more modern subjects. As the first project of this ilk I'm going with a Vought A-7E Corsair II. I've always liked the A-7, it's got a pugnacious look about as befits a dogfighter whose job was to get in close and beat up its opponents. This isn't my first A-7. I have a vivid memory of building one when I was 11 or 12 years old in Saudi Arabia on a visit to my dad's refinery. I don't remember the specific markings but I do remember it was a grey/white one with colourful decals. I remember showing it off proudly as it did look rather good - to my eye at least - and then, paint barely dry, taking it out to the desert and shooting it to pieces with my dad's highly illegal .22 rifle. For my second A-7, 45 years after the first, I managed to pick up one of Hasegawa's 1/48 kits; I read the HB kit is horribly misshapen and the older Fujimi/Eski(sp?) not as good as the Has kit. The first thing that struck me was how big it is. I picked up some aftermarket for this one to cover a few issues. I'm using the Eduard PE set for the cockpit as these jet cockpits are very technical compared to the single engine props I usually build so I was looking for some help with this one. I am going to use decals rather than painted markings. The markings are complex and artistic, and were applied with great skill on the real thing. They have an overall quality of finish I wouldn't be able to replicate with masks. I've chosen a colourfully marked grey/white scheme for this one, the uppermost scheme on the Zotz sheet below. I'm not confident the aged Hasegawa decals will work so I also obtained a Print Scale A-7 stencil sheet. With my materials assembled I began work, predictably on the cockpit. I followed my usual process of basic assembly, black base and then final colour. The seat took shape well enough with some PE and brass wire to add some detail. The cockpit tub took shape and colour equally well. I added a dark goop wash to pop some details and then a dry brush and grey pencil (I used grey rather than silver as it's more scale - to me at least - than bright details picked out in silver). I then did a dry fit to check alignment and fit and was pleased that it did indeed go very well together. It's been a long time since I've built a Hasegawa kit but I do seem to remember they fit well. I liked the overall level of detail of the kit parts plus the PE but know that my effort here pales compared to true jet builders. It was while comparing these pics to some on the internet of the real thing that I noticed the rear bulkhead was supposed to be black. Doh! A little careful masking was required and then the correction... When I had the bulkhead repainted I added some dry brush and pencil detail and also enhanced the detail on the panels on either side of the seat. I'm calling the cockpit done now. A test fit shows that all is still well in the fit department so joining the fuselage will not be an issue. However, in my haste I've left a couple of injector pin marks in the intake and there's a seam to clean up too. Much of this clean up would have been infinitely easier to do before I glued it together... One lives and learns. That task, and joining the fuselage is next. Cheers.

This is part III in my series on the Gulf of Sidra incident. The short encounter on 19 August 1981 in which two Tomcats shot down two Libyan Fitters. After the E-2C Hawkeye and the Su 17 Fitter I recently finished the Hasegawa kit of the A-7E Corsair II. I fitted the model with a D-704 Buddy Pack by Attack Squadron under the port wing, and two fuel tanks under the starboard wing, as seen on a picture of this particular aircraft from September 1980. The specific markings of the "403" were homemade and the squadron markings were provided by an old decal set from Microscale. Hope you like!