A snapshot in time - aircraft

[Adam Poultney]

A snapshot in time

 

The core principle of this group build is simple. We will all build aircraft from a given year. It is essentially a year-long snapshot in time.

The year is yet to be determined but I think something around the mid to late 1960s would be ideal. There would be a great variety of types that are eligible, but development had slowed somewhat since the rush of the 1940s and 1950s so it is more of a snapshot of current aviation technology at a given time; if we were to do a WW2 version of this I'd probably suggest a using specific month rather than an entire year.

 

Suggestions on which year to base this potential group build on are welcome

 

What is eligible? 

 

Any aircraft that was in service* between 1st January and 31st December in the chosen year. 

 

*Prototypes will also be allowed, even if they never entered service. As with other aircraft they should be in an appropriate scheme and configuration for the timeframe. 

 

The schemes and airframes chosen should be appropriate for the given timeframe, or as close as you can reasonably make them. Yes, this group build will be research heavy but it will be rewarding.

 

What ifs are not eligible

 

At present I don't want to open this up to tanks, ships, etc but perhaps if this is a success then someone else would like to run a similar group build for those in another year.

 

 

 

So, anyone interested?

[Chrisj2003]

@Adam Poultney really like that as an idea; and those dates are around my core interest so count me in.  May not get the votes, IIRC the NATO v WP in 90s didn't fly; and that was a lot broader. I actually like the GBs that cross subject matter, so Vietnam or the current ground attack, where SPGs and ships are joining in.

 

(What I do is look at the list of GBs then match the stash to GBs; make the eligibility broad enough and enough of us can see do that and will vote it in; make it narrow and we cant.)

 

Chris

[Bertie McBoatface]

I think this would be a great idea for a one person project but I'll be very surprised if many members will sign up to any particular date. I think you'll have fun debating which year to pick as everyone will have their own ideas about that. I, for example, would choose either the year I enlisted or my birth year just because of the personal connection. 

 

Now I'm getting quite interested in the one man project idea! 

[Marklo]

Definitely be interested. I’d vote for 1966 solely because it’s the year I was born. 
 

Time to revisit some references for appropriate picks. I was half hoping the Saunders roe SR.A1 was if that vintage as an excuse to build one but it’s way earlier.

 

So a quick trawl through the British fighter since 1912 gives me the Lightning and the Folland Gnat.

 

http://village.photos/images/user/4687b1d8-729a-4290-bd01-dd7e49aa5009/4cfa4905-dd52-4f49-9afc-5bf616375212.jpeg

 

And most of this lot.

 

Edited January 24, 2022 by Marklo

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 hour ago, Marklo said:

I’d vote for 1966 solely because it’s the year I was born

 

See what I mean, Adam?

[Corsairfoxfouruncle]

Interesting Idea @Adam Poultney, why not let the members sign up for a specific year that means something to them ? That way you get a broad spectrum, and wider appeal. You could open it to other subject natter then as well. Though its your build and if you wish to stand firm to your guideline's my suggestion is 1968. This way you get Vietnam, the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia. There would be the space race connections if you're open to real spacecraft. 

[Adam Poultney]

Just now, Corsairfoxfouruncle said:

Interesting Idea @Adam Poultney, why not let the members sign up for a specific year that means something to them ? That way you get a broad spectrum, and wider appeal. You could open it to other subject natter then as well. Though its your build and if you wish to stand firm to your guideline's my suggestion is 1968. This way you get Vietnam, the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia. There would be the space race connections if you're open to real spacecraft. 

Saying to just go with any year that you want defeats the entire purpose of the group build. The idea is we collectively end up with a somewhat cohesive but varied set of models showing the state of aviation technology at a given point in time.

 

I suppose opening up to a range of a few years in the latter half of the 1960s would be within the spirit of the group build, perhaps 1966-1969?

 

And if enough people would like to see it, I suppose other subjects than aircraft can be included. But I would like to see if more interest will appear first, then maybe tanks, ships, etc can have their own similar gbs in a few years

[Marklo]

Actually I like the idea of a single year maybe even a single month on which the subject has to have been in service or if a prototype, flying.  My only real caveat ( and it’s a personal one) is that any particular time in the sixties is outside of my usual modelling range, but that said it’s an excuse to build something that I wouldn’t normally do.

 

I’d probably second the idea that it were linked to some major historical event, not a war but say anything that fits the MIA ( mavericks, incidents and accidents) scheme; the launch of Apollo 11, Gary Powers U2 being shot down  or the Cuban missile crisis, more to anchor it than anything else.

Edited January 24, 2022 by Marklo

[Adam Poultney]

3 minutes ago, Marklo said:

Actually I like the idea of a single year maybe even a single month on which the subject has to have been in service or if a prototype, flying.  My only real caveat ( and it’s a personal one) is that any particular time in the sixties is outside of my usual modelling range, but that said it’s an excuse to build something that I wouldn’t normally do.

 

I’d probably second the idea that it were linked to some major historical event, not a war but say the launch of Apollo 11   or the Cuban missile crisis, more to anchor it than anything else.

I like your suggestion, anchoring to major events. 

[CliffB]

I like the idea of a 'single year' Group Build Adam . 

Personally, I'd prefer to see non aircraft subjects included too.  I can't see the downside in doing this (most people are still going to build their planes), and even a few extra votes from the broader appeal, could well make the difference between getting through the bunfight or not.  It will be interesting to see how diverse the subjects end up being in Big & British (not long now !) 

 

Cheers

[Bertie McBoatface]

12 hours ago, Corsairfoxfouruncle said:

why not let the members sign up for a specific year that means something to them ?

 

And they could write a little article about why that's their chosen year and what was happening in their chosen genre at that time in history. The ploo could be based on model and essay combined.

 

This is not really a serious suggestion as I don't think it would appeal to many 😁

[Rabbit Leader]

Adam, a few years ago I hosted the “In the year I was born” Group Build. It was moderately successful, however it was a bit difficult to ensure that subjects were built that represented subjects of that particular year. We had aircraft that first flew in say 1962, however the final scheme depicted was something from a few years later. That was not exactly what I was intending, however to keep the peace it was opened up and allowed to proceed. 
 

Personally I would think that a year from WW2 would garner more interest, just like @Heather Kay’s ongoing obsession with 1940, but it’s not my GB proposal, so hopefully you will gain some traction and it will attract interest. I’ll put my name down to help out as I’d like to see what comes out of this one. 
 

Cheers and best of luck.. Dave 

[Bertie McBoatface]

I was 

12 hours ago, Rabbit Leader said:

“In the year I was born”

 

I was going to suggest that too. 

 

Also, GBs as distinct from STGBs are usually quite inclusive of all the genres. Saying the AFV/Maritime/Vehicle/figure modellers can do their own GB another time seems a bit exclusive to me.

[Marklo]

My own (limited) experience has been that the best GBs promote diverse subjects without being incoherent. Or to use a more practical metaphor if all the entries ever ended up on the same display table, to the casual observer collectively they would make sense. 

Eg I’d love to see some really see some focused GBs like a single squadron/jag staffel or Geschwader.

 

I’m not a fan of the di whatever you like types. That said I really enjoyed the Less then a tenner and anything but injection  GB’s last year.

 

 

 

 

[Broadway]

Changing the criterion to a  first production date range might result in a more cohesive family of subjects.