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MikroMir is to release a 1/48th Kaman OH-43D (HOK-1) Huskie kit - ref.48013 So for sure a family of Huskie Source: https://www.facebook.com/mikro.mir.dnepr/posts/1925194124224981 First 3D renders - a damn complex heli! V.P.

Have had this in the stash for many years, purchased in the USA for $11.09, the Testors 1/32nd Kaman HH-43B Huskie (or 'Pedro'). My record of completing group builds is not good (have managed just one) but is a great way to get started, especially as I occasionally get this one out for a look. A closer view of the box artwork: More to come. Michael

Kaman SH-2F Seasprite Kitty Hawk 1:48 The Kaman SH-2 Seasprite was originally developed for the US Navy as a fast utility helicopter. Only later would it be developed into the Anti-submarine Helicopter we know. In the late 1950s the US Navy launched a competition to meet its requirement for a compact all weather utility helicopter. After looking at all the submissions the USN chose the then model K-20 for further development. The K-20 was a conventional single engine helicopter with a four bladed main rotor and a four blade tail rotor. The first flight test was 1959 for the by now HU2K-1 Seasprite. This would then become the UH-2B under the 1962 Tri-Service system. The original helicopters were found to be underpowered and were extensively re-manufactured bringing in twin engines. In the late 1960s the US Navy had identified an urgent need for a light helicopter to operate from and support non-aviation ships. This was to be The Light Airborne Multi-Purpose System of LAMPS as it became. The UH-2 was selected for conversion to the SH-2 anti-submarine configuration. The small size of the SH-2 allowed it to be operated from decks which were to small for other helicopters in use at he time. The SH-2 with its radar and other sensors allowed ships to extend their situational awareness over the horizon of the ships own radar, and for submarines further out than the shipboard sensors would allow. The SH-2 was then upgraded to the SH-2F configuration in the 1980s. The upgraded countermeasures and additional equipment allowed the helicopter to operate in hostile areas such as the Gulf where the submarine threat was limited. The US Navy retired its SH-2F Seasprites in 1993. The only other operator for the SH-2F was the Royal New Zealand Navy who operated the type in an interim role between retiring its Westland Wasps and taking delivery of SH-2G Super Seasprites. The kit There has been some excitement amongst helicopter modellers since Kitty hawk announced they would issue a 1:48 Seasprite. The only previous kit of the helicopter being the old and basic Matchbox kit. On opening the full box you get six sprues of grey plastic, one of clear plastic, a decal sheet, a small Photo etched fret and the instruction booklet. The two main fuselage sides are not moulded on a sprue but are loose inside their own plastic bag. These look to have been moulded on their own so there are no sprue attachment points to clean up, just a few injector pin marks depending on how much you open up the doors. These parts are that well made that they in fact clip together! Generally the parts are well formed, they feature fine engraved detail, and raised detail where needed. The detail especially on the main fuselage parts is so fine I am worried it will disappear under a few coats of paint. The sprue gates seem to be thicker than some manufactures and care will be needed to remove parts. There as been some thought in how some parts fit together. For example the engine pod halves have the seam on the model parts where the seam is on the real parts. Some parts though like the nose (which is split into four parts) seem to be over engineered (though I hate to use that term) Why use 4 parts for this I dont know? A couple of areas of disappointment are; there is just a simple bench seat provided in the rear, not much in the way of the sensor station and no seat for the third crew member. The seat and its occupant can be seen on all shots of the helicopter from the left side. I cant understand why you would provide sliding doors for this area and not include the correct interior? Additional I am told the transmission cover above the cockpit looks to be from the SH-2G and for the SH-2F needs to be further back, and lack some of the detail shown. Construction of the kit starts with the interior. The Pilot and co-pilot stations are both provided with full flight controls. The seats are three parts with photo etch seat belts being provided. Decals are provided for the instrument panel and are added at this stage. Once these parts are assembled the wheel wells are made up and fixed into each fuselage half and the front lower windows are added. The rear left door is added at this stage as it appears to fit from the inside. Once all of these parts are in the fuselage halves can be assembled. The next step is to add the glazing to the front of the helicopter. Care will be needed here as the clear parts need to attach to each other. The horizontal tail parts and tail rotor drive shaft are also added. Following this the main transmission housing is completed and added to the top. PE parts are provided for vents in this area. The four part nose is then assembled and added to the front. Crew doors are also added at this time. The next step is to assemble the two engines, and also the covers for the landing gear. These are then added to the main fuselage. Next you get to assemble all the parts which hang of the side of the helo. Two different sized fuel tanks are provided as well as two torpedoes. The sprues also include maverick missiles though they are not mentioned anywhere. The MAD (magnetic anomaly detector) is also assembled at this time. Part of this is formed by bending a PE part into a cone. It is not shown on the instructions how to do this and no plastic part is provided if you dont want to do this. All of the external fittings and landing gear are then added to the main fuselage. The main rotors are then assembled. The rotor head seems fairly well represented and the rotor sandwich the head parts with a backing part. Hopefully this will make for a strong join. The main rotors have the signature Kaman parts which will look good. The tail rotor is also assembled at this time. Once these are finished they are attached to the finished model. Lastly a set of PE windscreen wipers are added to the front. Canopy As you would expect for a Helicopter there is extensive glazing. Kitty Hawk have captured the blown side windows and general shapes of the glazing very well indeed. The parts are clear and free from any problems. Due to the complex shapes of some of these parts there are more attachment points than usual. The modeller will need to take care when removing these. Decals The decal sheet is quite small and contains insignia for one aircraft, with schemes for three. Also included as decals are the stripes for the tail planes and supporting struts. SH-2F 151309 of Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Light THREE ONE. SH-2F 151314 of Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Light THREE SEVEN. SH-2F 149750 of Naval Air Test Center Patuxent River. There is no manufacturer listed for the decal sheet. It looks to be all in register with good colour definition and depth for the white parts. The carrier film seems very minimal and these should present no problems to the modeller. A second small sheet is provided with cockpit instrument decals and Squadron markings. It should be noted that the prominent white walkway markings for the topside of the airframe are not included on the decal sheet. Lastly I would like to mention the instructions. On these whole these are good, and printed so that there are colour profiles for all three decal options. There are some steps which are a little vague but nothing a competent modeller will not be able to work through. The colour call out for the main helicopter is wrong though. Midnight Blue is called for when by this time the helicopters should be Engine Grey FS36076. For the China Lake example the Orange should be International Orange FS12197 and not fluorescent/Dayglo. Conclusion On the whole this is welcome release from Kitty Hawk who seem to be giving us kits we have asked for. There are a couple of areas they could pay more attention to, but as a new company they should be applauded for releases like this. We also have a Walkaround of the Seasprite Review sample courtesy of and available soon from major hobby shops

Kaman SH-2 Seasprite, pics thanks to Stephen.