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#15/2024 My dad continues with the Asian silverbirds. Kinetic kit (some fit problems with the 3-part air intakes and the avionics bay cover, rest was ok) with Iliad Design decals. Added some Eduard PE belts to the kit seat. MRP Super Silver for the main body, different MRP and AK RC paints like Steel, Dark Aluminium, Aluminium for the rear area, underwings painted with Tamiya XF-19 Sky Grey for the ADC grey, nose with Gunze H311 FS36622. Build thread here https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235140246-badmash148-lockheed-f-104a-starfighter-pakistan-airforce/ In 1961, the PAF received 12 Starfighters in total, 10 F-104A and two F-104B two-seaters, serving with No.9 Squadron "The Griffins". The Pakistani pilots nicknamed the F-104 "Badmash". They saw combat action in the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pakistani Wars. During the years, combat and accident losses were compensated by donations from Taiwan and Jordan. The PAF phased out the F-104 in 1972. "56-803" was lost on September 3rd 1964 in a fatal crash, piloted by F/L Tariq Masood, who couldn´t pull up in time during a strafing run exercise. DSC_0001 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0002 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0003 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0004 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0005 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0006 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0007 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0008 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0011 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0012 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0013 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0014 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0001 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0016 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0018 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0020 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0021 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0022 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0023 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0024 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0025 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0026 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr

Time for my dad to start the next silverbird. After two Indian ones, now also a Pakistani one. The PAF received 12 (or 14) Starfighters in the early 60ies and they saw combat in the 1965 and 1971 wars with India. The Pakistanis nicknamed the F-104 badmash. Seems the info on the Iliad design sheet is wrong and 56-803 didn´t participate in the 1971 war. Found info on two websites that 803 was lost in 1964 in a fatal strafing run training crash. DSC_0003 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0004 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0005 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr

#7/2024 So, here´s my dad´s latest completion. Typical Roden kit so it didn´t turn out "perfect". Markings with Iliad Design decals. Seems nobody knows the Chinese camo colours, if they had any specific ones. Usually in kit and decal instructions you only read dark green and light grey. Painted the model with AK RC AII Protective Green and Tamiya XF-19 Sky Grey. Used 0,4mm plastic rods for the rigging. Buid thread here https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235135968-sino-japanese-war148-beechcraft-d17-staggerwing-chinese-nationalist-airforce/ The Chinese Airforce used a bunch of Staggerings as Air Ambulance during the concflict with Japan in the 40ies. Found no pic of the original and have no idea how the interior of these planes looked, so built it according to the instructions. DSC_0001 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0002 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0003 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0004 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0005 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0006 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0007 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0004 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0004 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0010 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0001 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0012 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0013 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0014 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0015 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0017 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0019 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0020 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0021 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0022 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0023 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr

Gonna be a companion for the Chinese I-16, Roden kit with decals from Iliad Design, let´s see how it turns out.... DSC_0017 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0018 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0019 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr DSC_0020 by grimreaper110, auf Flickr

P-38J Lightning (48043) 1:48 Iliad Designs The Lockheed Lightning was designed for the US Army Air Force during the beginning of Britain's WWII in 1939, and was ready for America's entry to the war where it performed well, despite its large size and unusual configuration. Initial troubles with tail flutter were quickly fixed by the addition of dive spoilers, and the airframe matured into the J toward the end of 1943. The aircraft was much loved by its pilots, as it was fast, manoeuvrable but with a few foibles to catch the unwary. It served in Europe, the Mediterranean and the Far East with distinction, and went on to become a night-fighter, with a radar housed in a pod beneath the nose in front of the nose gear bay. The Lightning name was given to the aircraft by the British in the run up to their subsequently aborted bulk purchase of aircraft, and stuck with the US forces rather than the unglamorous "Atalanta" chosen by the Americans. Although it was used in all theatres, it was most at home in the Far East, where it was ideally suited to long range missions, and its high speed gave it an advantage, allowing it to sweep in multiple times on its target, raking the lightly armoured Japanese aircraft with its formidable armament on each pass, concentrated in the nose that packed frightening destructive power. This new decal set from Iliad in Canada depicts a variety of airframes in US service, wearing different schemes on an A5(ish) sheet of decal paper. There are five decal options included on the sheet with side and top profiles printed on the instructions along with captions and arrowed areas that give additional details to help you make your model more accurate. Because of their unusual configuration, the nose profiles are also shown as separate partial images, as they are otherwise mostly obscured by the engine nacelles. They are intended to be used with any 1:48 scale Lightning, although with the introduction of Tamiya’s new de facto standard kit in this scale, many Academy kits have probably found themselves either pushed to the back of the stash or worse, consigned to a well-known auction site. The underwing decals are shown as ghost images on the overhead profiles, which both saves space and paper, which is always a good thing. From the sheet you can decal any of the following: P-38J ‘Gentle Annie’ flown by Col. Howard Rau, 79th FS, 20th FG, June 1944 P-38J ‘7 Wheel’ flown by Lt. Ken Ladd, 80th FS, 88th FG, New Guinea, late 1944 P-38J ‘Miss Ann’ 7th FG, UK, March 1944 P-38J ‘My Dad’ flown by James Morris, 7th FS, 20th FG, Kingcliffe, UK, Spring 1944 P-388J ‘Jewboy’ flown by Lt. Philip Goldstein, 49th FS, 14th FG, Triolo, Italy, May 1944 The decals are printed on a pale blue paper in good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. There are some large areas of carrier film between some of the lettering by necessity, but due to the extremely thin nature of the film it should disappear, especially if you ensure a highly glossy surface before application. Please note that the kill markings of German aircraft are represented by Swastikas, so if your location or your conscience doesn’t permit their use, they can be left on the sheet, or in the case of ‘My Dad’, you could paint over the black. It was interesting to see the photo on the instructions showing a highly polished section of the inner cowling sides to use as a crude mirror to check the condition of the aircraft’s landing gear. The edges of the area appears darkened too, possibly as a result of overlapping polish being absorbed by the paint. Highly recommended. To purchase this sheet directly, visit the link below, scroll down to the product code you need, and follow the instructions Review sample courtesy of

T-33 More Naval T-Birds 1:48 Iliad Design (48040) As well as use by the USAF and various overseas air arms the T-33 was used by the US Navy, US Marine Corps; and the Royal Canadian Navy. Illiad seem to like to bring us different schemes for the T-33 and this is no exception. There are two USMC, one USN, and one RCN aircraft on the sheet 4 different aircraft can be built from the sheet; T-33B 141547 Marine Corps HQ, Washington DC. Overall Light Gull Grey. T-33 Silver Star VU32, RCN from HMCS Shearwater 1961. Overall NMF with large areas of Fluro Orange/Red. TV-2 Marine Air Sqn 32. Overall NMF with unusual fuselage insignia. T-33B 139014 US Navy VX-4 "The Evaluators" Pt Mugu NAS, overall Light Gull Grey with the Sqns usual Blue stripes. The decals look excellent, well printed, colour dense and with minimal carrier film. Conclusion These decals will enable the modeller to make a lesser represented user of the T-33. Highly Recommended. Review sample courtesy of

T-38C Heritage Schemes 1:48 Iliad Designs (48039) There has recently in the USAF been a whole host of special schemes, and in particular Unit Heritage Schemes. This new sheet from Iliad brings us schemes recently seen on T-38C Talons. 5 different aircraft can be built from the sheet; 50th Flying Training Sqn Columbus AFB. In recognition of the 50th Pursuit Sqn from 1941. Olive Green over Grey. 90th FTS Sheppard AFB, In recognition of the P-47s used by the 90the Pursuit Group WWII. Dark Green over grey. 469th FTS Sheppard AFB. In recognition of a Vietnam era Phantom. SEA Colours. 586th FTS Hollman AFB. In recognition 586 Bomb Group B-26. Dark Green over Grey with invasion stripes. 49th TFS Columbus AFB. In recognition of the 49th FIS P-38 Lightnings. Gloss black over Grey. S/n 1730 Guatemalan Air Force. The decals look excellent, well printed, colour dense and with minimal carrier film. Conclusion These decals will enable the modeller to do something different from the normal schemes. Highly Recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Unusual C-47s 1:72 Iliad Designs (72020) Iliad Designs is a producer of decals, colour charts and books from Canada's capital city Ottawa. This sheet sees them continue their line of C-47 decals. Schemes for four aircraft are included, all of which are interesting in their own right. The aircraft in question are: RCAF Dakota Mk.ii 659 from 115 Air Transport Unit, serving with the UN in the Sinia circa 1960. Gloss white with high conspicuous red markings. C-47B 45-0884. Operated by Caraco Air Service in support of the US Nuclear Weapons programme. C-53 Troop transport version of the C-47. Civilian pilots from Northeast Airlines who flew between Goose Bay and the UK due to a shortage of Army Pilots. C-47 used by the US Military Air Attache in Wellington, New Zealand. Aside from being an interesting collection of schemes, the decals themselves look to be of very good quality. The printing is crisp and sharp, while colours are bold and solid. They look thin and glossy on the sheet, so they should perform well. Conclusion This interesting sheet is nicely printed. If you have the (relatively) new Airfix kit or the older Italeri kit waiting for you to build it, then this sheet will enable you to produce a range of aircraft with interesting variation in markings. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Getting back into the hobby recently........but I just went to apply decals to my 1/48 Stearman and went to slide the first two decals off and they just shattered. Doing this bird off the sheet, put the 73's in mildly warm water, like I always did in the past. Let them set for a few then went to slide them off and BAM! Was it the warm water? Iliad decals just like to do that? Gonna try another decal and see what happens. Fortunately I mistakenly bought a second set so I have that part again.

Naval T-Birds (7012) 1:72 Iliad Design Iliad have sent us some of their latest releases, this one being for T-33 trainers used by the US Navy & Marine Corps. The Navy designated the T-33 the TO-2 which changed to the TV-2, now this is nt to be confused with the Navalised T-33 the T2V SeaStar The USN & USMC used the TV-2 in the training role, as hacks; and also as colourful drone controllers. Arriving in a ziplok bag, each set has a set of profiles as the cover page, with the decal sheet visible on the flipside so you can readily see what you're buying with the flick of a wrist. The printing is up to their usual standard, having good registration, colour density and sharpness, with a thin carrier film cropped close to the printed areas. The instructions are printed next to the profiles, with relevant points marked with arrows, and on the reverse are overhead views with the same arrowed captions. The sheet provides decals for 3 USN, and 2 USMC schemes, and its good to see national insignia and NAVY/MARINE codes provided for all examples as well as the intake warnings where needed. The schemes are; 1. Early USN Example in NMF with rear orange training band from NAS Glenview. 2. Drone controller from Guided Missile Group 1 mid 1951. 3. Marine Air Sqn 32 aircraft in NMF. 4. Naval Air Training Unit of NAS Glynco, overall Grey FS 16440. 5. USMC training aircraft from MCAS El Tora Oct 1961. White & Red/Orange. Scroll down to find the sheet Review sample courtesy of

Mig-19/J-6 & Mig-21F-13s (48005a & 48034) 1:48 Iliad Designs Iliad have sent us some of their latest releases, one being a welcome reprint of a popular sheet that has been around before, but sold out quickly, plus a brand new sheet in a similar vein/era. They've taken the opportunity to rearrange and improve on the reprinted sheet, so if you missed out last time, or just like the look of either sheet, now's your chance. Arriving in a ziplok bag, each set has a set of profiles as the cover page, with the decal sheet visible on the flipside so you can readily see what you're buying with the flick of a wrist. The printing is up to their usual standard, having good registration, colour density and sharpness, with a thin carrier film cropped close to the printed areas. The instructions are printed next to the profiles, with relevant points marked with arrows, and on the reverse are overhead views with the same arrowed captions. Mig-19/J-6 (48005a) This reprinted sheet contains seven decal options for the original Mig-19 and the Chinese clone of the S variant, the Shenyang J-6 in a number of operators' schemes. Most of the options are J-6s, with one Mig-19S in a bright red scheme, and there is a wide array of colours that should appeal to many. Scroll down to find the sheet Mig-21F-13s (48034 Another seven aircraft, broken down into Migs, license built Avia S-106s and Shenyang J-7s – it was a popular jet amongst Soviet aligned countries. More interesting countries and liveries as you can see from the reproduction of the profiles below, which you should just about be able to read. Scroll down to find the sheet Review sample courtesy of

Stars in the Sky 3 1:72 Iliad Designs This sheet is the third instalment in Iliad Designs' Stars in the Sky series. The first two sheets have given us aircraft flown by the likes of Jimmy Stewart, Clark Gable, Gene Rodenberry, Dan Rowan and Ted Williams. This sheet continues the themse, with four aicraft flown or crewed by Robert Clothier (Canadian stage and television actor, best known for the series 'The Beachcombers', Jerry Coleman (New York Yankees infielder), Dean Paul Martin (actor, entertainer, tennis player and son of Dean Martin) and Tim Holt (noted Western actor and co-star of The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, along with Humphrey Bogart). The featured aircraft, the order above are: Lancaster II LL722 'Lady be Good'; AU-1 Corsair, VMA-223, US Navy, Korean War; F-4C Phantom 64-0923, California Air National Guard; and B-29 44-70018 'City of Monroe', 62nd Bombardment Squadron, 39th Bomb Group. As we've come to expect from Iliad Design, the decals are good quality with sharp printing and bold, accurate colours. They look thin and glossy on the sheet, so they should perform well. Conclusion This sheet is an intersesting concept which has been nicely executed. While none of the schemes are natural bedfellows, they represent something a little differnt to the usual schemes and who knows, they might just inspire you to get cracking on that Lancaster or Superfortress kit in the stash. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Beechcraft 17 (48031) 1:48 Iliad Design of Canada The Beechcraft Staggerwing was a pre-war design from the 30s, which saw a great deal of service with various military arms after most were taken into Government hands after the outbreak of hostilities. As it was a good aircraft their use was wide, and they ended up all around the globe. A pretty aircraft that saw a multitude of different schemes, which have perhaps been under-represented, even after the Roden kit in 1:48 came out a few years back. Iliad, our Canadian friends have come out with this new sheet that gives you six options with quite a significant variation in user and scheme, from wartime camo to bright red or white. With this sheet in hand, you should be able to make your Staggerwing stand out from the crowd. The set is supplied on one large sheet with two smaller ones providing a lighter shade of blue in the large stars-and-bars for the upper wings of one of the US options. The printer of the decals is undocumented, but has an air of Decals are by Cartograf, which is an indication of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Each option is split from its neighbour by a fine dotted line, and you will need to use a few of the kit decals such as the instrument panel, but as the Staggerwing wasn't festooned with stencils, this shouldn't be much of a task. From the sheet you can build any and all of the options depicted if you have enough kits, as follows: Beechcraft D17S flown by Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands Beechcraft UC-43 from an unknown unit with tail code 895 around June 1944 Beechcraft UC-43 at Wright Field, July 1944 Beechcraft D17A in US Antarctic Service in 1940 Beechcraft D17R in Chinese Nationalist Government service as an air ambulance Beechcraft D17R in Chinese Nationalist Government service as an air ambulance, but camouflaged after losses The Staggerwing is an interesting and attractive design, and with the help of these decals and the accompanying information, you should be able to depict one that is perhaps less often seen on the tables at shows or in display cabinets. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

JG 53 Bf 109G-6 'cartoon' aircraft 1:32 Iliad Design Decals This is the first decal set in 1:32 scale from Iliad Design of Canada and is obviously based on their now sold out 1:48 set. The decals are all for Bf-109G-6/R6 Trop aircraft of 7./JG 53 which were based in Sicily in 1943. The design and printing is superb, the strong vivid colours showing up well, in register and on ultra thin carrier film. The sheet contains the cartoon decals for six aircraft, six Ace of Spades crests, but only enough Balkenkreuz for one aircraft and a curiously number of swastikas, (nine), plus six 1’s to finish of the id codes. The accompanying instructions are very clear, comprehensive with useful detail notes explaining the painting and other info. Conclusion This is the first decal set that I’ve come across from Iliad Design and I have to say they are superb. Being so thin I’m not sure how easy they are to use but they should settle down very well onto a gloss surface. So if you fancy a colourful 1:32 Bf-109 then this is the set for you. Very highly recommended Review sample courtesy of

Pre-War Hurricanes 1:72 Iliad Designs Although somewhat less glamorous than the Supermarine Spitfire, it was the Hawker Hurricane that formed the backbone of the UK's air defences during the summer of 1940. Designed in 1935, the Hurricane was a relatively advanced aircraft, featuring a fully enclosed cockpit, retractable undercarriage, 8 x .303 inch machine guns, a powerful liquid-cooled V12 engine and, most importantly, a single cantilever wing as opposed to a biplane configuration. Despite its modern appearance, the design and manufacturing techniques were thoroughly conventional, which proved useful when it came to production, maintenance and repair. Early Mk.Is had fabric wings, but as this feature limited dive speeds, they were replaced with metal skinned versions later on. Iliad Design is a producer of decals, colour charts and books, hailing from Canada's capital city Ottawa. Rather than focussing on Canadian subjects, however, their decal sheets feature all sorts of enticing and exotic subjects such as Nieuports used in the Russian Civil War, Gladiators used in North Africa and Asian MiG-19s. Their latest 1:72 scale sheet is dedicated to pre-war Hurricanes and would therefore seem to be the perfect companion to Airfix's latest kit. The seven aircraft featured on the sheet are L1934 of No. 3 Sqn,. L1568 of No. 73 Sqn., L1643 of No. 85 Sqn., L1975 of No. 17 Sqn, L1990 of No. 56 Sqn., 315 of No. 1 Sqn RCAF and L1606 in its civilian demonstrator guise (G-AFKX). All bar one of the aircraft feature fabric wings, which makes the Airfix kit the obvious choice as a starting point, but watch out for subtle variations in the windscreen, exhausts, propeller, fuselage venturi and ventral fairing. The decals themselves are neatly printed and colours appear to be very accurate. The decals are accompanied by comprehensive instructions which include colour diagrams and useful notes about each aircraft. Conclusion This interesting sheet is nicely printed, with crisp, clear details and bold colours. If you have the superb Airfix Hurricane (or the slightly older Sword/AZ Model kit) waiting for you to build it, then this sheet will enable you to produce a range of aircraft with interesting variation is camouflage and markings. A bonus point is awarded for including full set of roundels for each aircraft too. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of