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I'm currently participating in a Dutch group build called MedEvac, we we build various subjects together that all have to do with medical evacuation. One of my first contributions to this Buddy Build is the Welsh Models 1:144 Dassault Falcon 50 in the colors of Medic'air. I love tri-jets, and I thought that after finishing the L-1011 Tristar, I had built them all. Nothing could be further from the truth, as the Falcon 900 also flew in civilian colors (for example, with Saudia). The Falcon 900 is based on the Falcon 50, but since it doesn't carry that many passengers, it fell outside of my scope. However, the Falcon 50 is used for medical flights, so this Buddy Build was a perfect excuse to build one. Coincidentally, I also built a Dassault Falcon for the French Buddy Build (the Falcon 20, which the Falcon 50 is based on). Anyway, picture of the original: https://www.planespotters.net/photo/208324/f-hfmb-medicair-international-dassault-falcon-50 The Dassault Falcon 50 was designed for both transcontinental and transatlantic flights. As mentioned, its design is based on the earlier Dassault Mystère 20 and Falcon 200. Initially, an attempt was made to add a third engine to the Falcon 20, but this led to stability issues. To resolve this, the fuselage was extended. The prototype of the new aircraft made its maiden flight in November 1976, followed by the first pre-production model on June 13, 1978. The first production models were delivered in July 1979. In 1995, the improved version, the Falcon 50EX, was announced. The EX stands for "Extended Range." This variant was equipped with more efficient Honeywell TFE731-40 engines and a modern cockpit with the Collins Proline 4 system. The 50EX made its first flight on April 10, 1996, and the first aircraft was delivered in January 1997. Medic’Air International is a renowned French company specializing in medical air transport services and providing global repatriation. Founded in 1991 and based in Paris, the company has established itself as a leading player in medical emergency and transport services, with a focus on safety, speed, and high-quality care. Medic'Air provides medical repatriation, air ambulance flights, medical escorts, international medical support, and disaster evacuation services. The resin kit is from Welsh. While fine, it does lack some details (which are easily fixed with styrene) and the WBF is way off (which I couldn't fix). Still, I'm happy Welsh releases these kinds of kits at all in this scale, so I'm not complaining. Decals were custom made for me by my buddy TheFlyingDutchman. The cockpit and window decals were made by me. I also used some of the decals provided with the kit. Anyway the pictures: (display bases made by me) Measuring only 13 cm in lenght, it sure is a small one! Next up will be either the aformentioned 1:144 Falcon 900 or the 1:144 Learjet 35. Probably the Learjet. Thanks for reading and see you next time!

Maybe I should give peace a chance with this Roden 1/144 Convair CV-340. I bought this kit second hand and it's already been started. Windows have been glued, nose weight added and wings glued together - but still well under 25% I'm sure. Windows have been sanded flush with the fuselage, I think the idea is to use the decals for the windows. Kit decals. But I will be using Kar-Air decals by Arctic Decals instead.

Hello everyone! Here is my latest kit. It's a Polikarpov I-185 (M-71) by Sputnik 3D Labs in 1:144 scale. It represents the fourth and last I-185, built to 'Etalon' or 'Production Standard' and used in tests at Novosibirsk, USSR, throughout summer 1942. The story behind this aircraft, related to Nikolai Polikarpov's fall from grace is quite interesting. Despite having his design bureau taken from him (by a certain Mr. Mikoyan and Mr. Gurevich) following the crash of the I-180 and with the limited resources given, he still managed to surprise with this superlative fighter but the odds were against him politically. After one of these prototypes crashed killing the pilot in 1943, he was finally removed from aircraft designing to some bureaucratic desk job, a clear sign of Stalin still having some appreciation for him considering the worse fate of others who fell from his graces. This 3D-printed kit has been a real delight and I'm very pleased with how it came out. Some parts needed a little trimming to fit properly but nothing major and the sole addition from my part was the pitot probe. The canopy is vacformed. Despite the low part count, I took longer to complete it due to the use of enamel paints and their inherent longer drying times added to real life time limitations meaning some days I could only give one coat! The kit was fully painted and varnished by brush and I used White Ensign Models Colourcoats paints for the main scheme colours. This time I did some pre-shading which came out nicely on the green surfaces. I refrained from more weathering since it represents the prototype in its early days. For more on this build, check out my WIP in a group build on Kampfgruppe144: https://www.kampfgruppe144.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=86&t=10449 Thank you for looking and, as usual, all comments are welcome. Miguel P.S. While placing the images, I just realized I didn't dust the kit before taking the photos! Oh well...

Hello everyone! Here is my latest kit. It's a Westland Lysander Mk.IIIA by Fox One Design in 1:144. It represents 361, of Esquadrilha de Ligação e Reconhecimento, Aeronáutica Militar, based at Tancos, Portugal, in late 1943. Portugal received eight Lysanders in September 1943 and these sere finally withdrawn from service in 1953. Fox One previously released resin kits of all three marks of the Lysander, these being the only kits of the type in this scale, and have recently 'retooled' them as 3D-printed kits. I have a couple of the previous releases in my stash and the breakdown of parts has been simplified. These were very nicely printed with hardly any surface clean-up other than reducing the exaggerated wing rib and fuselage fabric effect. Assembly only required a little trimming of tabs to get parts to fit properly into their slots. The only trouble I had, apart from the tricky wing assembly, was the cockpit upper section which had to be cut in two to fit better. Sadly, the wings warped upwards after release from the blocks and I failed to notice this before I had them glued in place. The kit comes with full ordnance but I only added the stub wings as that was all I could make out from the two photos I found. The kit was fully painted and varnished by brush. Sadly although Fox One is to be commended in retooling their early kits, the decals represented a big step backwards. They came in two sheets, one with the white elements and backing decals, well printed, and the other with the colour elements, very pixilated. I had bought this kit precisely for the Portuguese option to add to a sub-collection of aircraft from my country. I ended up replacing all of the insignia, including the missing underside roundels, from a Mark I sheet. I only used the white numbers from the kit's sheet, the stencils being unusable. For more on this build, check out my WIP in a group build on Kampfgruppe144: https://www.kampfgruppe144.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=86&t=10326 Thank you for looking and all comments are welcome, as always. Miguel

It was in 1995, when I was on a refuelling stop with a CH-53 in Oostende/Belgium and this big helicopter was parked there. I was fascinated and took some pictures. This year there was a Group Build of "Flying Cranes" in a German modelling forum, so I took the opportunity to build a model of exactly this aircraft. The kit by Eastern Express is a very nice kit, only the glass parts are very thick with unusable engravings. So I had to paint the windows. The decals are selfmade. Hope you like it! cheers, Norbert

One short question and a request for your answer, Gentlemen. I have read a dozen or so opinions about Airfix (A300B4) and F-RSIN (A300-600 in the form of short-run fuselage and tail added to Revell's Beluga) kits. Some experts warn against the antique Airfix, the other half - against the quality of the French short-run (though no complaints about Revell's wings and details). I don't have enough space in my display case to build both and I don't care whether my A300 will be Garuda's B4 or American's -600. Just help me choose, please (both kits are available in Polish stores). Cheers Michael

Aviation Traders Limited Carvair. 1:144 Roden kit with Classic-airlines.com decals. The Carvair was developed to replace the Bristol Freighters used to transport cars & passengers across the English Channel to France, hence its name (Car-via-air). Modified from C-54/DC-4 airframes it was considerably cheaper than an all new aircraft would have been. The modifications consisted of a completely new forward fuselage, relocating the cockpit on top, much like the later Boeing 747, and a new tail fin to counter it. Its has been widely thought that the fin was from a DC-7, but apparently this is not true, they were new build units. The Roden kit build very well, although I did have to shim the upper inboard wings to avoid a gap where they meet the fuselage. The main gear legs were way too short, initially resulting in the rear of the fuselage almost touching the ground. I removed them and inserted a platform about 4mm deep to attach the legs to, in order to achieve the 'sit' you see here. I wasn't too keen on the kit supplied colour scheme for British Air Ferries, but found this 'British United' scheme at Classic-airlines.com, which I really like. There are also several others available. They are laser printed on constant film, so you have to cut each subject out individually. I can heartily recommend them though, they went on superbly and were easy to use. Enough chat, time for the photos (ugly innit?) ; 'With something else - an easy choice - A Welsh Models Bristol Freighter. Thanks for looking, John

Hello everyone! Here are the other two of four Me 262 kits I finished right at last year's end (10 minutes before midnight!). Both are Me 262B-1a trainer variants from the Mark I Models 1:144 reboxing of the Eduard kit. Both kits were built very much OOB with only the wing pitot, underside IFF aerial and the radio mast and wire added from stretched sprue. The FuG 16ZY Morane mast and the spine loop antenna came with the etched fret in the kit although the instructions fail to mention the former. The painting instructions show a rearward-pointing aerial under the tail. This is a mistake as this was only present on the nightfighters. Both kits were fully painted and varnished by brush but were barely weathered at all as both machines were new. Firstly then, Messerschmitt Me 262B-1a V15 (ex S5) VI+AJ (W.Nr. 130010), with Blohm und Voss, responsible for the conversion, at Wenzendorf Air Base, Luftwaffe, Germany, July 1944. This was the prototype of the B-series and can be considered the first jet trainer. I didn't find any photos or profiles of this one except after being repainted on entering service with KG(J)54. Mark I suggests RLM83 Dunkelgrün for the darker colour of the top surfaces but I disagree. The change to the new green tones was stipulated at around this time so this machine must have still been in the previous grey 74/75/76 scheme as other early Me 262s were in this period. When I finished the kit, I realized that this one didn't sit on its nose leg at all, so I had to glue it to a base. Interestingly, the other one does, apparently thanks to the drop tanks! I decided to do this one with the racks but without them. Secondly, Messerschmitt Me 262B-1a B3+SH (W.Nr. 170075), of 1./KG(J)54, Luftwaffe, at Giebelstadt Air Base, Luftwaffe, Germany, November 1944.. KG54 'Totenkopf' ended its career as a bomber unit in August 1944 and was reformed as a fighter unit, hence the "(J)", in October, converting to the Me 262. Its career wasn't very illustrious. Although it scored several kills, mostly of US bombers, the inexperience of its pilots in fighter combat saw many shot down by Allied fighters. This must have been one of the first machines delivered to the unit together with other two-seaters. Only about 15 trainers were built in total. "So this is what we are going to fly now!" Thank you for looking and all comments are welcome. Miguel

Hello everyone! Here are two of four Me 262 kits I finished right at last year's end (10 minutes before midnight!). Both are Me 262A-2a attack variants of KG51 using the Trumpeter 1:144 kit although one uses the main decals form a Mark I issue of the Eduard moulds. Both kits had the incorrect inner main u/c doors replaced with new ones made from Evergreen card using the Mark I kit parts as templates. I added the spine loop antenna from the Mark I etched set which came with four, so there were spares. The underside aerials were made from stretched sprue. The schemes are 'representations' using educated guesses and considering that reproducing them accurately in 1:144 is really difficult if possible at all. Both kits were fully painted and varnished by brush. For more details and WIP build, check out my posts on the Kampfgruppe144 site: http://www.kampfgruppe144.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=84&t=10269. The Kettenkrads came with each kit. Firstly then, 9K+YH of 1./KG5, Luftwaffe, based at Rheine, Germany, autumn 1944. I am well aware the white Y is wrong and it should be a "y" instead. I left it alone as painting it with a black outline wouldn't work out well. The bomb load consists of a single SD500 bomb which was a common practice in attack missions. Trumpeter actually supplies both 250 and 500 kg bombs as well as R4M rocket racks (but ignore using them on this variant and with bombs loaded as they suggest in the instructions). Secondly, 9K+BH of 5./KG51 Luftwaffe, Schwäbisch Hall-Hessental, Germany, autumn 1944. This scheme was in one of the Mark I Models reissues of the Eduard kit and I used the decals here. I modified two 250kg to represent AB250 cluster bombs, another load often used by the Me 262. I questioned the wave pattern being only applied on the fuselage so I applied it on the wings too. Mark I suggests the wavy pattern should be white and I have seen suggestions of using RLM02 but, in the only photo I found, a close-up of the nose of one machine painted like this, I agree with others in that it may well have been RLM76. Thanks for looking and all comments are, as always, welcome. Miguel

Hello everyone! Here is my latest kit. It's Minicraft's 1:144 Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress representing 44-8007/JD-Z "Screaming Eagle", with the 545th BS, 384th BG, USAAF, based at Grafton Underwood, UK, from August 1944 to May 1945 when it was transferred to the 305th BG at Chelveston. It was assigned to 69 missions and received combat credit for 50. This kit was the old Crown moulds from the 1970s repackaged (several times) by Minicraft and this time with a small upgrade in the main canopy area, making the upper windows available as clear plastic. The kit OOB is very basic but the general shape is there although some features ruin it. The improved main canopy was a poor fit by the way. I decided to make a series of improvements which I'll list in no particular order: - I opened up all of the solid windows and some that weren't even marked. The kit supplied them as silver decals but they would have looked bad on the metal finish anyhow. Most were filled with Kristal Klear and some were made from clear flat sprue. I realized too late that I didn't make the waist guns in the staggered position. - I managed to sand the nose glazing to practically the right shape. This is one of the worst features of the kit but the plastic is thick enough to allow all the sanding. - The same applied to the chin and top turrets which are too tall and needed some reshaping. - All guns were replaced by new ones made from stretched sprue. - The wheels were replaced by lovely resin ones by Armory. - The straight turbocharger pipes just behind the wheel bays were removed and replaced by new ones curved outwards from Evergreen half-round strips. All four exhaust holes were opened up. - The missing pipes on the outer sides of the inner nacelles were added from the same material after opening the corresponding trenches. - All of the intakes along or just below the main wing leading edges were made. - The cut outs for the main wing landing lights were also opened up and filled with clear sprue sanded to blend with the wing leading edge. - The cowlings were opened up and 3D-printed engines added. The files for these are available at the Kampfgruppe144 forum. - The awful propeller blades were reshaped to just about the right shape. - Wingtip lights were made from drops of Kristal Klear. - All of the missing antennae and wires were made from stretched sprue. The bullet-shaped D/F loop antenna was fashioned from one of the 'in-flight' propellers in the kit with CA glue and sanded to shape. No cockpit detail was added as I surmised correctly that none could be seen! The kit was fully painted (freehand), weathered and varnished with brush. I may have overdone the weathering but it looks good. The decals were all from the kit and performed well. For more details and WIP build, check out my posts on the Kampfgruppe144 site: http://www.kampfgruppe144.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=84&t=10115 This gave me more work that I expected but I had fun improving this old basic kit and the end result, although not perfect, was really worth it and I am very pleased with what I have achieved. Looking at it, I can hardly believe it's the old Crown kit!! Thanks for looking and all comments are welcome. Miguel

BAC 1-11-500 British Airways. Mark One Models with 26Decals. 1:144 New airliner kits are few and far between, especially those from the 60's/70's/80's, so I was very pleased when Mark One announced a new range of 1-11-500s. The kit is fairly basic with no clear parts, but nicely engraved mouldings, but at around £35 retail in the UK fairly expensive. I had to get several though, and first up I wanted to do G-AVMH in the 'British' version of the Negus scheme, as I flew in this aircraft in the jump seat from Heathrow to Bordeaux and back in April 1981, with a turn in the left hand seat on the way back! 'MH was the first production 500, which added further interest, but sadly it no longer exists as it was scrapped in 2002. The kit assembles well, but I had to shim both wing roots to avoid a gap, and next time I will probably replace the wing fences with thinner plasticard. the Cockpit area used the excellent Authentic Airliners photo realistic decals, and should be considered essential for this kit due to the lack of clear parts. The engines have a curious 'S' curve where they meet the pylon, when the should be straight. I left mine alone, as modifying them would be a lot of work. Resin replacement might be better if it bothers you. I used to modify Airfix short fuselage 1-11-200s to make a 500, here is a Landor schemed one with the Mark One kit. I had a bit of a disaster during the build, nothing to do with kit I hasten to add, but the painting. I have used Halfords grey plastic primer for years, and recently bought a new can. It now comes in an orange coloured can, rather than the old silver one. On first spraying I noticed it had a very different smell, but went on very smoothly. I then gave it a coat of Halfords 'Appliance White'. Next up was to apply a thin strip of Tamiya tape to mask the lower fuselage dark blue. Upon putting the the tape down, and then lifting it to adjust, it ripped up all the paint, down to the bare plastic. I ended up with a big area around the nose that just flaked off: There were patches all over the model that just came away in small to large areas, flaking off like paper. I've never had this happen with the old formula, so won't be using this new stuff again. Anyone else had problems? I'll try Tamiya 'Surface Primer' next, but it is a blow that the Hafords stuff has been changed as I have relied on it for years. (It was not just this 1-11 that suffered, I'm also building Armory's 1;48 Dragon Rapide and had the same problem). I nearly binned the whole thing, but put it aside for a week to think about it. I then went over it with wire wool to cut it back, and found I still had a little of Halfords original White primer, and re-did it with that. Decals are from 26Decals, and were as superb as usual, with the 'British' and 'British Airways' titles as options, and all fleet names and registrations for the 1-11 500's and 200's used by BA. It has the red & blue fin flashes on the sheet, but I chose to mask and paint all the red areas to avoid having to match the painted tailplane with the red on the decal sheet. This is the finished paint job before any decals were applied: Thanks for looking, John

Hello everyone! Here is the other kit I finished this weekend. It's Messerschmitt Me 262A-1a "White 4" of Kommando Nowotny, Luftwaffe, at Achmer, Germany, October 1944. This time it's an original Eduard kit (1:144). Kommando Nowotny was the first true Me 262 fighter unit set up under the command of Walter Nowotny from elements of Ekdo 262. It was established on 26 September 1944, achieved operational status on 3 October and, following Nowotny's death on 8 November, formed the basis of III gruppe of JG7 "Nowotny", on 19 November, being officially disbanded on the 24th. From Wikipedia: Due to the experimental nature of the unit, and the technical difficulties in operating the jet fighters, the unit had a less than illustrious record. In the time from 4 October to 24 November, a total of 24 enemy aircraft were claimed shot down for a loss of 28 Me 262s either damaged or destroyed. The decals came mostly from the Eduard kit with some extra stencils coming from those unused on my Mark I Me 262 S3 kit. I discovered a flaw while putting the decals. The top colours should extend lower on the fuselage sides. The Eduard instructions confused me and I should have checked photos which I did too late. On seeing photos and a profile of this machine in the Jagdwaffe Volume 5 Section 4 book, I painted the rear section of the nacelle black. I later noticed that the colour profile suggests a forward panel aft of the intake may be RLM75 but I had finished the kit by then. I therefore decided to use the description from the book rather than the Eduard kit which represents the kit at Lechfeld in November. I did do some subtle weathering on this one since I think this machine was inherited from Ekdo 262 and so had been a bit longer in service. All painting and varnishing was with brush. As with the other kits, I added the missing underside antennae and the wing probe, as well as the radio wires from stretched sprue. The loop antenna on the spine came from an etched fret in the Mark I Models kit. As always, thanks for looking and feel free to comment Miguel

Hello everyone! Here is one of two kits I completed this weekend, both having been started at the same time as my previous kit which I completed before my summer holidays. This time it's Messerschmitt Me 262A-1a/Jabo "Black F" (W.Nr. 130179), of Einsatzkommando Schenck, Luftwaffe, at Lechfeld, Germany, July 1944. This was the first aircraft assigned to the Kommando and was used for bombing trials. It was plagued by mechanical failures and poor construction and left behind when the Kommando moved to France. It was written off on 19 July in a bombing raid on Lechfeld. It's also a Mark I Models 1:144 kit (Eduard reboxing). The Me 262A-1a/Jabo were a series of standard A-1a fighters modified to carry bombs while waiting for the A-2a bomber variant to come off the production line and therefore carried all four cannon unlike the latter which only carried two to compensate for the extra load. Kommando Schenck was a short-lived operational detachment of KG51 (June to September 1944) under Wolfgang Schenck that was actually based in airfields in France and later Holland. Between the troubles with the new type, poor weather, a 4000m minimum bombing altitude imposed by Hitler himself and the rapidly changing situation in the front with the Allies advancing, the impact of this detachment, although with several missions over France, Belgium and Holland, was ultimately negligible. By September, it was back in Germany and renamed as 3./KG51 before the month's end. The number of aircraft available and serviceable for missions ran from just one or three to fifteen at most (and this was rare). The instructions of the kit have two errors. First they state the top colours were RLM75/83. I find that unlikely as RLM83 only came into use later and the first service Me 262s were painted in the, until then, standard Luftwaffe fighter grey scheme. This is confirmed by profiles I have found of this machine. I therefore painted it accordingly. The other mistake is stating it was based in France. The information I mention above came from the Osprey Combat Aircraft No 83 book which has three photos of this machine and has comments about it. As usual, the kit was painted and varnished by brush. I added the missing underside antennae and the wing probe from stretched sprue, as well as the radio wires. Apart from highlighting moving surfaces, I refrained from any weathering since this machine had a short life. Thank you for looking and, as usual, all comments are welcome. Miguel

Hello everyone! Here is the first of three Mark I Models/Eduard 1:144 Me 262s I have been working on for a month and the only one I have managed to finish just before my holidays. The other two will have to wait until after I return. It represents the third of 22 early production machines used to test the type in operational conditions and iron out problems. A few were destroyed by bombing and never used and some others were converted to prototypes of other variants. Most were used by EKdo 262 (Erprobungskommando - Operational Test Command) at Lechfeld, Germany and they hardly saw combat. EKdo 262 eventually became Kommando Nowotny, the first Me 262 true fighter combat unit. The kit represents Red 3 / VI+AH (W.Nr. 130008), of EKdo 262, Luftwaffe, at Lechfeld, Germany, April 1944. It was damaged by Allied bombing on 18th March, 1944 but repaired. It was assigned to EKdo 262 on 1st April and first flown on the 6th. It was used to test improvements in the cannon and the landing gear. It suffered extensive damage during landing on 26th June 1944 and was scrapped. The Mark I Models kits are basically repackaged Eduard kits with new decals and etched parts. The Eduard kit is very nice though it has a couple of flaws which are not insurmountable. The join along the top of the nose leaves a gap, the rear cockpit bulkhead fouls the fit of the wing to the fuselage and needs to be reduced along the bottom and the retraction arms of the main undercarriage are too long. Assembling the undercarraige and getting the engine parts centred is tricky but patience and care pay dividends. The spine loop antenna came with the Mark I etched fret. The wing probe and the underside antennae were made from stretched sprue as were the radio wires. The kit was fully painted and varnished by brush. Apart from highlighting the moving surfaces, I refrained from any weathering as the machine was new in April 1944. Despite its plain and uninteresting colour scheme, it looks good in it and is quite a contrast to the variety of schemes the type sported throughout it's year-long career. I'm happy I made it and happy with the result. Thje Me 262 is one of my favourite aircraft and the S-series represents a major milestone in its development. Thanks for looking. Miguel

Hello everyone! Here is my latest kit. It's F-toys' 1:144 Douglas B-26C Invader modified to represent 7102, of Esquadra 93, Força Aérea Portuguesa, based at BA9 Luanda, Angola, in 1973. Portugal was in dire need for a proper COIN aircraft during the "Guerra do Ultramar" (Overseas War) in its colonies in Africa. Although a NATO member, it could receive material for its use in the Alliance but, due to a UN arms embargo, not for its conflicts abroad. Several different aircraft types were obtained through various means, mostly from France and Germany but also through the civilian market (Harvards). An official request for 20+ Invaders direct from the US was denied. France offered its survivors from the Algerian conflict but they were turned down due to their poor conditions. Eventually, the spares would be taken though. Portugal then resorted to obtain the Invaders through more shady means. With the mediation of a Swiss arms dealer, 20 Invaders were arranged from a US company. These were ferried one by one to Portugal in 1965 under the guise of being destined for the French civilian market. US authorities caught on to the scheme when the eighth machine was being prepared for the flight together with a C-46 loaded with spares. The machines were put into service one at a time but use was limited. Thanks to the spares from France, the seven machines were finally fully overhauled, with the wing spars renewed as had been done to the B-26Ks. One of them was found to have severe corrosion and was cast aside. Its remains are currently in the hands of the Museu do Ar. After several tests and bouts of indecision, the six were finally sent to Luanda, Angola, in December 1971 replacing the F-84s of Esquadra 93. They flew armed reconnaissance and interdiction missions and were well-liked by their crews. With the introduction of the SA-7 Strela missile by the guerillas, the aircraft were repainted in an overall anti-radiation green in 1973. Following the revolution in Portugal in 1974, the war was ended and independence granted to the colonies. The Invaders were left behind but apparently one was taken by the Cubans and is on display at Havana in Cuban markings. Of the six, only one machine was a glass-nosed B-26C, the remainder being gunship B-26Bs. This was a pre-painted, partially decalled and partially assembled snap-fit Gashapon kit. I took apart the assembled sections and bathed the parts in ethanol which helped to easily remove most of the paint using cotton buds. I then treated it as a new kit which I built mostly OOB. I made a rear cockpit wall, added a steering wheel and reshaped the alignment pin in the nose cockpit to disguise it. I covered the top turret holes and scratchbuilt the underwing pylons and the various aerials and blisters along the spine using the limited photos as a guide. The wire was made from stretched sprue. The kit was fully painted and varnished with brush. I used Hataka's A016 Dark Green as the main colour. The insignia came from Mark I Decals Portuguese Insignia sheets. I painted the numbers on clear decal sheet (I managed to get the numbers printed to size on paper and use them as a guide and template - I couldn't print them on the sheet). I decided to represent the plane as recently painted in green and kept weathering to a minimum. This green deteriorated quickly but without references, I had no target guide. The finish should be more matt but after some trouble, I decided to live with the satin finish. Although I packed it with weight, it wasn't enough to sit on its nose so I made a simple base with thick card, and a tarmac image printed on adhesive paper, and glued the kit to it. I'm really glad I decided to do this project and carry it through making a fine addition to a sub-collection of mine dedicated to aircraft used by my country. Thanks for looking and all comments are welcome. Miguel

Golden Age of Transport is an interesting subject for a GB, certainly something that is on my mind every now and then - but I haven't actually built any kits for. So I searched for a kit that would suit this GB and came across a Dornier Do X. The biggest and heaviest of it's kind that made world records that lasted past WW2 - and made a transatlantic test flight that lasted almost two years! It's almost as much as a boat as it's a plane. Pilot controlled two 'throttles' - left and right. But they were not really throttles, they simply signalled the engineers inside the wing - and they made the adjustments to the twelve engines, much like in ships. All in all, certainly a worthy subject of this GB!

Here is another DC-8. I have built this one parallel to the Braniff model, So it was finished almost simultaneously. The kit is from Karaya, run by our Polish modelling friend Radek Kemski, who combined the Minicraft kit with his decals, which allowed to build a couple of Polished leased aircraft operated by Arrow. I picked this one, because I like the large sign. The kit includes only the long -71 fuselage, which has to be shortened to build a -62, which is not really a problem, because the positions where to cut are clearly marked on the inside. I used Revell Aqua colours. The kit decals provided a window, which just did not look right after applying. The side windows were not horizontal, but tilted upwards. So I had to look for spare windows. Only a frame was available, which I had to fill with dark grey colour. I did not want to use the colourful decals by authentic airliners decals this time. Hope you like it!

After much delay, I finally got a moment to post my latest builds completed more than a week ago. I've built three Miniwing Cessna Bird Dog's simultaneously throughout the previous month. This project began because my department head, with whom I have had a great working relation since 2007, is retiring at the end of this year and I had the idea of making a personal gift by building a kit. I've been showing my builds to him and some colleagues throughout the years and he always jokes about buying one from me. When he finally announced his retirement date, I decided to get on with it now rather than later. Having the LF Models sheet for Spanish Bird Dogs, I bought an extra kit and a sheet of extra Spanish AF insignia (Mark I) as the LF sheet only has enough for one kit. While I was at it, I decided to make one for me at the same time and I ended up including the Miniwing US Army option too. These kits have few all-clear parts and go together well in general. This was my first experience with all-clear model kits and I made some mistakes but I have learnt from the experience. The wing-to-fuselage join was the only real trouble spot. I filled the awful forward join with plenty of Kristal Klear since that area is an extension of the windscreen. It isn't worth adding much else in the cockpit as you can't really see it. I scratchbuilt a rear seat and added the forward interior frames from stretched sprue (mucked it up a bit on one kit). The leading edge blisters of the tailwings were removed on all three since this feature belongs to the O-1E and its communications aerials. That's going to be fun to make when I build mine! I also added the underside engine exhausts, the radio wires and the wingtip lights. On the Spanish machines, I added an ADF blister and underwing pylons on one, and an ADF loop on the other, as well as the tall whip antennae. All were painted Vallejo Olive Drab which I realized too late might not be entirely correct, but I'm not loosing sleep over it. It does match older photos of the Spanish machines but on newer ones, such as in the museum, the colour seems to be more of an olive green. I don't know if they were repainted at some point. First up: L-19A 50-1327 of the 10th Liaison Squadron 8th Army, US Army, attached to the 5th Air Force HQ, based at Seoul (K-16), South Korea, December 1952. This was the first production L-19 and was used to fly President-elect Dwight D. Eisenhower on an inspection tour over the Korean war front lines.

Here is my latest kit: the MiG-31 Firefox of the 1982 Clint Eastwood film. It's the Anigrand 1:144 resin kit. Keeping in mind the discrepancies between the full-scale film prop and the "flying models", the kit has some inaccuracies, namely around the undercarriage. The nosewheel should have twin wheels and the bays and doors are wrong but I left well alone and only cut the nose bay door in a way that made it closer to what we see in the film. My only other modifications were replacing the WW2-type seat with one from a Revell/Mark I F-104 kit (chopped down a bit in height to fit) and adding a landing light to the nose u/c leg. One of the major discrepancies is the finish. The full scale prop was a dark grey colour whereas the flying models had a highly glossy or metallic) blue-grey tone. I found a comment of the prop designer in internet that stated that Clint Eastwood wanted the plane to be very shiny and that the plane was a dark blue-grey colour. I tried to get somewhere in between. I made some mixes and the final one was Tamiya Gun Metal with Medium Blue and Gloss Black (+ Vallejo Black when the latter ran out). I got a nice pearly dark blue-grey colour. The kit was fully painted by brush. The kit's painting instructions were fictitious so I tried to follow what I could make out from the film. The leading edge panels were painted Vallejo Natural Steel. The kit's decals were oversized so I used some from a Mark I red stars sheet and I placed them according to what I could make out in the ice floe scene. I applied a slightly gloss satin varnish (mixed from Vallejo varnishes) since a high-gloss sheen would look awful. Thanks for looking and all comments are welcome as usual. Miguel

After my previous two projects, I feel like tackling something simpler for a change. That's why I set my sights on the Boeing 717 by PAS. I've already built the DC-9 and MD-82, so technically, there's no reason for me to build the Boeing 717. But, there will come a time when I've built all the Boeing aircraft, and this one would be missing. That just wouldn't do. The livery is that of Spanair, simply because it's an easy scheme to replicate. That's partly why I've specifically chosen the EC-KRO, as it's the only one without Coroguard on the wings. Spanair was founded in 1986 as an initiative of the regional government of Catalonia, aiming to position Barcelona as a significant aviation hub. The company commenced operations in 1988 with a fleet of McDonnell Douglas MD-80 aircraft and primarily focused on domestic and European routes. Throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, Spanair expanded its network and gained a reputation as a reliable airline with a focus on customer service and operational efficiency. Despite its successes, Spanair faced financial challenges. In 2008, the airline encountered a severe crisis due to the global economic downturn. Efforts to attract investors to improve the financial situation proved unsuccessful. In 2011, Spanair reached a tragic low point when an MD-82 aircraft belonging to the company crashed at Madrid-Barajas Airport, resulting in the loss of 154 lives. Following this tragedy, Spanair's financial problems worsened, ultimately leading to the cessation of operations. In January 2012, Spanair abruptly announced bankruptcy and suspended all flights, resulting in the termination of the airline's aviation activities. The kit is from PAS and as per usual is pretty good. The decals are from Classic-Airlines. Windows from Authentic Airliner decals, as are some details. Antennas are from Counting Rivets Models. Display bases made by myself. At any rate, the pictures: All in all I had a lot of fun with this kit and comes recommended for sure. My next project will be the Authentic Airliners ERJ-145 in the KLM Exel livery. Thanks for reading and see you next time!

Luftosvaret De Havilland DH100 Vampire FB Mk.52, Skvadron 337 Vaernes Air Station, 1953. Tiny little Vampire was nice little kit that I just planned to do 'in-between' - but proved to be more fun than I expected. I might re-visit 1:144 scale again in the future! Painted with Vallejo acrylics and weathered with Ammo products. And no, I still haven't managed to build a Vampire that is not a tail-sitter! So this one received a clear peg under its belly to keep it up

Hello everyone! Here is my latest kit finished a week ago. It's Sikorsky CHSS-2 Sea King "05", s/n 4005 of HS 50, Royal Canadian Navy, on HMCS Bonaventure, in 1965. It is AFV Club's 1:144 kit built OOB with corrections and some details added. This is a nice kit with several options (rear sliding door in any position, rotors an tail folded for storage, search radar and spray shield) but is a bit disappointing in the lack of detail in the rear cabin for example. The box comes with two full kits and four decal options of which that of the Canadian Navy really stood out. Unfortunately, although described as being for a 1965 option on the HCMS Bonaventure, the decals, scheme and the options added (radar and shield) are based on the machine when it was repainted in the old scheme in 2010 for the centennial of the Canadian Navy and with several errors too! Canada received 41 CHSS-2 (later CH-124) Sea Kings of which the first 4 were built by Sikorsky and the remaining 37 were assembled by United Aircraft of Canada (now Pratt & Whitney Canada), in Longueuil, Quebec (just across the river from Montreal). 4005 was the first one assembled there in 1964 and survived up to the retirement of the type in 2018, going through all the upgrades and is now on display at the National Air Force Museum of Canada (NAFMC) at CFB Trenton. I intended to represent the type as suggested by AFV Club on the HMCS Bonaventure which required few additions from stretched sprue, ignoring the radar and shield and adding some flags for the sponsons (sourced from a Mark I H-34 kit). Unfortunately, I couldn't find a replacement for the insignia since those of the kit are for the later type (less-detailed maple leaf). Some errors in the instructions concerning the scheme and the colours were corrected thanks to research and photos of the type in the 1960s. The kit was fully painted and varnished with brush. For more information on the build see my WIP at the Kampfgruppe144 forum: http://www.kampfgruppe144.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=82&t=9016 Thanks for looking and, as always, all comments are welcome. Miguel

Hello everyone! Here is my second kit of the year which I finished last weekend. It is Eduard's 1:144 scale Supermarine Spitfire LF.IXc representing MJ250/UF-Q, of No. 601 "County of London" Sqn., RAF, regularly flown by F/O Desmond Ibbotson, from Perugia, Loreto and/or Fano, Italy, summer 1944. It was built mostly OOB and was built together with the other kit from the dual combo boxing which is taking longer because if its more complex paint scheme. These kits are simple but very nice though, sadly, they lack cockpit detail. I decided to add some detail in the cockpit by making the rear bulkhead and seat only, the most visible elements. I used a spare Beacon Models Spitfire Mk.I part as a template and scratchbuilt the section with plastic card, stretched sprue and an etched seat from a Brengun set. I added harnesses from masking tape. I added some small sections of flat sprue to the cockpit sides to act as a support to attach the bulkhead. A bit of trimming was needed but the part fitted nicely and makes a big difference. My other additions were a rear-view mirror above the windscreen (sprue from etched parts with Kristal Klear) and the underwing probe (from stretched sprue). The kit was fully painted, weathered and varnished with brush. A photo I found of this machine shows it readying to take-off with another one and both are kicking up dust. Engine exhaust stains are clearly visible too so I made this kit a little on the dirty side. Sadly, there was no bomb to put slung underneath as seen in the photo. 601 Sqn was involved in attack missions at that time. Nevertheless, I'm very pleased with the kit and in a metallic finish, it really looks different from any Spitfire I have built so far in any scale. Thanks for looking and, as always, all comments are welcome. Miguel

I was impressed by Kevin Aris' large-scale SD-14 card model and thought perhaps I could have a go at something like that. The SD-14 kit is too expensive for me though, so I am going to attempt doing something of my own. The plan is that this will hopefully build into an aircraft carrier. Initial drawings have been done and the first frames have been cut out. These frames are for the bow section and in this area the gap between each frame is 3 feet. At this scale that works out at 6.35mm betwen each frame. This means I need to put spacers in between each frame and the best way (I think) is to separator strips to each piece. This should also help to strengthen each frame piece, which is only 0.5mm thick. The plastic strips have been cut and then glued around the edge of each frame section, plus a strengthener piece down the centre. The first frame has been glued into place. It is not the front frame, but No.8 frame and I placed this one first as it gave me room to place a try square either side to ensure the piece was vertical. All the other frames can be formed around this one. These strips are 5.75mm wide which, when added to the 0.5mm frame piece, gives a frame gap of 6.25mm which is near enough for me. So far so good, the tops of the frames are all to a uniform height, it is just the positions of the separator strips that make it all look uneven. I've just made some more calculations and realise that this is going to take a lot of plastic, which invariably is going to work out quite expensive............. However, I have found an alternative which is to use card from cereal boxes rather than plastic. I know where I can get an endless supply of card like this! All I then need is to strenghten the edges with thin strips of plastic and this will reduce the amount of plastic I need to buy for this project. It doesn't look much at the moment, and working with white plastic is not the best for photographing progress however, this is just a start, and is really just an experiment but, hopefully, it will give me the incentive to get back into building again. cheers Mike

It's been a minute, but my latest build is the Zvezda Il-62. The Ilyushin Il-62 was originally developed in the Soviet Union. It was the first passenger aircraft in the Soviet Union designed for long-distance flights. The prototype of the Il-62 made its maiden flight on January 3, 1963. However, the Il-62 was only put into service with the Soviet airline Aeroflot in 1967. At that time, it was one of the most advanced aircraft in the world, boasting a large range and the capability to perform transatlantic flights. The aircraft had four jet engines and could carry approximately 200 passengers. The unique feature of the four jet engines positioned at the rear of the fuselage was shared with only a few other aircraft types, namely the Vickers VC-10 and the Lockheed Jetstar. This design similarity led to accusations of espionage between the UK and the USSR, but no evidence was ever provided by either side. It is more likely that the requirements for a new aircraft from British Airways on one hand and Aeroflot on the other hand were somewhat similar, leading engineers to arrive at comparable solutions. During the Cold War, the Il-62 was frequently used by the Soviet government for diplomatic travels and official state visits. The aircraft was also utilized by other airlines in countries friendly to the Soviet Union, such as Interflug and LOT. Over the years, various variants and improved models of the Il-62 were developed. The Il-62M, introduced in 1978, featured an extended range and several aerodynamic improvements. In total, over 280 Il-62 aircraft were built. With the fall of the Soviet Union and subsequent economic challenges in Russia, the usage of the Il-62 declined. Modern aircraft with better fuel efficiency and advanced technology became more popular. Nevertheless, some airlines and charter companies, including Air Koryo, still operate the Il-62 for cargo and passenger flights. It holds a place in aviation history as an iconic aircraft from the Soviet era. Now, about the title "Aeroflot/KLM." Did KLM operate the Il-62? Indeed! Or at least, partially. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union closed its airspace to Western airlines (unfortunately, history repeats itself in this regard). As a result, flights between Europe and the Far East had to detour and make interim stops for refueling. Most airlines opted for a layover in Anchorage, Alaska. To offer passengers a faster route to the Far East, KLM provided the option to fly with Aeroflot. Aeroflot operated flights from Amsterdam to Moscow and then to Tokyo, using the Il-62. Although the pilots were supplied by Aeroflot, the crew consisted of a mix of Aeroflot and KLM personnel. In the 1970s, it was unusual for two airlines to have such a partnership, let alone the national carrier of the Netherlands and the national airline of the Soviet Union. To celebrate this collaboration, the KLM logo was added to some Il-62 aircraft alongside the Aeroflot logo (https://www.airliners.net/photo/Aeroflot-KLM-Royal-Dutch-Airlines/Ilyushin-Il-62/2413817/L). Despite this joint effort, the partnership was not successful and was terminated after a few months. But it does beautifully demonstrates the strong trading spirit of KLM: West meets East - conducting business without paying any attention to geo-political tensions! The kit is the Il-62M from Zvezda. To make it an Il-62 sans suffix I used the NK-8 engines by Druz. The decals are from Ravero (which where incorrect in some places, so I had to make some modifications by using spares, especially near the nose). Details from the Zvezda decal set and windows by Authentic Airliners. Anyway, the pictures: Display bases made by me, by using purchased Shutterstock photo's, modifying them in Photoshop and have them printed on Canvas. Next up will be a an easier build (as a palate cleanser) with the 1:144 Boeing 717 from PAS with Spanair decals. Thanks for reading and see you next time!