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1/144 British Airways 747-436


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In July 2020 I found out that the aircraft I flew for a living, the British Airways 747-436, was going to be retired early due to the Covid-19 pandemic. That news prompted me to build a tribute to this iconic aircraft in the shape of G-CIVP, an aircraft that I had flown multiple times over the past few years. Ironically I was to fly in this aircraft one final time, as I was part of the crew that delivered G-CIVP to St. Athan for scrapping on 21st September last year...:sad:

 

It was an interesting build with a few tribulations along the way! It is all documented here if you want to see the kit coming together. The scheme I choose for the aircraft was its delivery scheme - one of the 'World Image' liveries called 'Colum'. These schemes were controversial but I thought this particular livery looked stunning.

 

Time for the pictures:

 

rfi1.jpg

 

rfi2.jpg

 

rfi3.jpg

 

rfi4.jpg

 

rfi5.jpg

 

rfi6.jpg

 

rfi7.jpg

 

As ever, comments or criticism are welcome! Thanks for looking.

 

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Very pretty. I know Maggie Thatcher wasn't a fan of the schemes but I thought they were quite nice, well most of them! A nicely done reminder for you when you sit back and remind yourself of days past!

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She looks absolutely beautiful Matt, but then she is a 747, so that goes without saying!

 

You have made an excellent job of this one, and I enjoyed watching the WIP very much. It has inspired me to dust off a couple of partly built 1/144 models of my own, an old Airfix 737 and an Airfix DC9. 

 

Thanks for sharing

 

Terry

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I love the detail you can see in the flight deck, looks really well done!

 

I really struggled with the tail cone, and wrap-around decals.  Yours looks great!

 

It must be very special to have something that personal to you in your collection.  Where are you going to display it?

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Tremendous result Matt. It must be really satisfying to build a replica of an aircraft you knew personally, so to speak.

 

I wasn't a fan of the World Images at first but when I discovered how much Margaret Thatcher disliked them I became a convert overnight. I was sorry when everything became Chatham.

 

I somehow missed the WIP (all 23 pages!) and I'm looking forward to catching up on it. 

 

Dave G

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Fantastic result, looks superb and I was a real fan of these schemes, some fantastic art and colour. Flew on this one and the whole fleet a few times in my years, always liked J upstairs, had a real exclusive feel to it.

 

I was never able to understand why people supported Thatcher in her views of it, but didn’t get concerned at such things as the carriers being sold (to Australia only to just be saved in time by the Falklands war), and other actions I’d not consider patriotic. Ahead of their time they got there eventually anyway with IAG.

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You’ve done a great job on the old girl Matt. The WIP was really interesting and will definitely be referred to when I finally build mine. I was never a fan of the schemes and was really pleased when Chatham became the scheme of choice.

 

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Cracking Queen of the Skies Matt, really lovely model, so glad you were able to get her finished after the decal problems, and have to say your home made ones look every bit as good as any aftermarket ones, much better than some! Top work!

 

Really enjoyed watching her come together in your excellent build thread!

 

Keith

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15 hours ago, ForestFan said:

Very pretty. I know Maggie Thatcher wasn't a fan of the schemes but I thought they were quite nice, well most of them! A nicely done reminder for you when you sit back and remind yourself of days past!

Thank you! I agree that some of the designs were better than others...😁

 

15 hours ago, Terry1954 said:

She looks absolutely beautiful Matt, but then she is a 747, so that goes without saying!

 

You have made an excellent job of this one, and I enjoyed watching the WIP very much. It has inspired me to dust off a couple of partly built 1/144 models of my own, an old Airfix 737 and an Airfix DC9. 

Thanks Terry, glad you enjoyed the build and it was great to have your company! Looking forward to seeing your airliners once you get them finished!👍

 

15 hours ago, neilg said:

I love the detail you can see in the flight deck, looks really well done!

 

I really struggled with the tail cone, and wrap-around decals.  Yours looks great!

 

It must be very special to have something that personal to you in your collection.  Where are you going to display it?

Thanks Neil! I must admit, the cockpit detail was more visible than I expected - I’m glad I pimped it up a bit!

The decal fit was a struggle. Ironically the first set, which were completely wrong in appearance, fitted the best...

I have a display case in mind and will post a picture once it’s finally in place. For now, it’s sat on a shelf!

 

14 hours ago, Skodadriver said:

Tremendous result Matt. It must be really satisfying to build a replica of an aircraft you knew personally, so to speak.

 

I wasn't a fan of the World Images at first but when I discovered how much Margaret Thatcher disliked them I became a convert overnight. I was sorry when everything became Chatham.

 

I somehow missed the WIP (all 23 pages!) and I'm looking forward to catching up on it. 

 

Dave G

Thanks Dave. It’s not my best build, but it will always be a special model due to obvious sentimental reasons. Enjoy the WIP!

 

14 hours ago, Agent K said:

Fantastic result, looks superb and I was a real fan of these schemes, some fantastic art and colour. Flew on this one and the whole fleet a few times in my years, always liked J upstairs, had a real exclusive feel to it.

Thank you! The upstairs cabin was always popular - it was much quieter up there!

 

13 hours ago, GrahamS said:

Yep, very nicely done.

Thanks!

 

13 hours ago, The Spadgent said:

What a stunner. She looks great in the sunlight. You can be proud of this one for sure. 🙌👏👏👏👏.

Thanks Johnny! I’ve been waiting ages for a sunny day, just to get some photos...!

 

12 hours ago, Glen said:

You’ve done a great job on the old girl Matt. The WIP was really interesting and will definitely be referred to when I finally build mine. I was never a fan of the schemes and was really pleased when Chatham became the scheme of choice.

Thanks Glen, glad you enjoyed it. I quite like the current livery too, but felt the Utopia ones had a bit more character!

 

12 hours ago, RMCS said:

Outstanding 

Thank you!

 

12 hours ago, keefr22 said:

Cracking Queen of the Skies Matt, really lovely model, so glad you were able to get her finished after the decal problems, and have to say your home made ones look every bit as good as any aftermarket ones, much better than some! Top work!

 

Really enjoyed watching her come together in your excellent build thread!

 

Keith

Cheers Keith!👍 It was great to have your input along the way and I glad you like the finished model!

 

 

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Ohh ,how I was looking forward to see her in full glory...

It was very much worth the wait.An absolute stunner and a beautiful tribute to the Queen.

 

I also liked those liveries,it was something very special and it made the visit to the airports for plane spotters a lot more interesting.

 

Again,superb build and the WIP was inspiring as well

 

Alex

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On 01/06/2021 at 11:30, Chrisj2003 said:

Matt, looks absolutely fantastic in the sun; you wouldn't know the decals were home brewed unless you followed your fascinating thread.

Thanks Chris. It has whetted my appetite to try some other designs - I feel I’ve done the groundwork now!

 

On 01/06/2021 at 13:07, Alex1978 said:

Ohh ,how I was looking forward to see her in full glory...

It was very much worth the wait.An absolute stunner and a beautiful tribute to the Queen.

 

I also liked those liveries,it was something very special and it made the visit to the airports for plane spotters a lot more interesting.

 

Again,superb build and the WIP was inspiring as well

Cheers Alex, glad you like it! 👍

 

On 01/06/2021 at 13:29, RichieW said:

That is indeed a stunning livery, on a particularly stunning model!

Thank you Richie.🙂

 

On 03/06/2021 at 11:24, Team Aer Lingus said:

It's been a pleasure to watch you working on this Matt Outstanding looking model great save on the decals very well done :clap2::clap2:

Thanks Eamonn!

 

On 05/06/2021 at 11:21, hurricane39 said:

Lovely job on the queen of the skies.

Thanks Hurricane.

 

On 05/06/2021 at 12:02, Challenger350Pilot said:

Very nice work, Matt. A beautiful completion of a beautiful Queen in a beautiful livery. 

Cheers!

 

On 05/06/2021 at 17:47, Fritag said:

Terrific tribute build Matt, and a thoroughly enjoyable WIP. She’s a big old thing to display now! 

Thank you! A new cabinet will be required soon - I am running out of space!

 

On 05/06/2021 at 17:54, FortyEighter said:

A great model and a very informative WIP thread Matt. 

It's sad that these are no longer part of the BA fleet but perfectly understandable why they were retired early,

Thank you!

 

11 hours ago, BluesModeller said:

Loved reading the WIP thread.  Lot of hard work paid off with an absolute stunner!

Cheers! She’s the pride of my shelf😉😄

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