All Era’s
Pfalz D.IIIa
The Pfalz D.IIIa was a rugged but underpowered fighter of WWI. Though difficult to handle, it nonetheless beefed up German late-war fighter strength from November 1917 on. Eduard’s kit features a highly detailed cockpit and complete engine, and is enhanced with separately sold photo-etch detail parts.
Piper PA 47
The Piper PA-47 “Piper Jet” was an effort by Piper Aircraft to produce a single-engined very light jet (VLJ) and help fill a niche market for such aircraft. Its primary competition was the Cessna Citation line and Eclipse Aerospace EA500. The PA-47 never made it into serial production despite having secured 180 pre-orders from various international customers. Spiraling development costs combined with an economic downtown forced its cancellation in 2008.
Gloster E.28/39 Pioneer
Gloster E.28/39 Pioneer by Novo 1/72 scale Kit No. F174 Cost: $6.00 Decals: One version - Royal Air Force Comments: Neat little kit for a quick weekend build; historical interest; separately molded ailerons, elevator flaps and rudder; raised panel lines. Ex-Frog mold,...
Polikarpov Po-2
The Po-2 was a Soviet military trainer that saw service as everything from a crop duster to air ambulance to night intruder, and was used as a light bomber during the Korean War over 20 years after its introduction. The KP kit is generally accurate and features simple construction.
PZL P.24G
The PZL P.24 was a Polish-built fighter developed in the 1930’s as an export derivative of the PZL P.11, a gull-wing all-metal monoplane designed by Zygmunt Pulawski for the Polish Air Force. Although built in fewer numbers than the P.11, the P.24 was for a time during the 1930’s the fastest and most heavily armed single-seat fighter in the world. It represented the ultimate development of Pulawski’s PZL fighters and saw service in the air forces of Bulgaria, Greece, Romania and Turkey.
P-40B Tomahawk II
The Curtiss P-40B was provided to the British RAF under the 1941 Lend-Lease Act, and saw extensive action in North Africa. The B, dubbed Tomahawk II by the British, had additional armor protection for the pilot, and the RAF modified it further by replacing the single .30 caliber wing guns with a pair of .303 Browning machine guns in each wing. In the hands of the pilots of No. 112 Squadron, it provided air cover for the British 8th Army and harassed Rommel’s Afrika Korps with bombing and strafing attacks during its retreat from the Battle of El Alamein, which marked the beginning of the end for the Axis forces in North Africa.
P-47D Thunderbolt
Republic P-47 Thunderbolt by Testors 1/48 Scale Kit. No. 520 Cost: $10.00 Decals: Two versions Comments: Re-Issue of 1960’s Hawk kit; includes decals for all-Black 332nd Fighter Group - the Tuskegee Airmen; optional bubbletop or Razorback canopies; accurate lines but...
P-51D Mustang
P-51D Mustang by Hasegawa 1/48 scale Kit No. JT 30 Cost: $14.00 Decals: Three versions - all U.S. Army Air Force, WWII Comments: Highly detailed cockpit; engraved panel lines; excellent wheel well detail; multiple options for underwing ordnance History The North...
P-59 Airacomet
Bell P-59 Airacomet by Amodel 1/72 scale Cost: $22.00 Decals: Five versions ( 4 U.S. Air Force; 1 U.S. Naval Air Training Center) Comments: Finely engraved panel lines; complex fuselage construction; some parts not to scale History The Bell P-59 Airacomet has a unique...
P-80 Shooting Star
Monogram’s Korean War-era Lockheed P-80 features detailed cockpit and landing gear, and a detachable rear fuselage that reveals an Allison jet engine.
R.E. 8
The Airfix kit is very basic and offers modelers simple construction. The Reconnaisance Experimental 8, nicknamed “Harry Tate,” was a widely used observation platform for the British Royal Flying Corps in WWI, and despite heavy losses remained in service throughout the war.
RF-4C Phantom II
Italeri’s RF-4C features a detailed cockpit, raised and engraved panel lines, and drop tanks. Developed in the 1960’s after the Cuban Missile Crisis, it served to restore the effectiveness of the Air Force’s low-level reconnaissance capability.
RF-8A Crusader
A hybrid kit using an aftermarket forward fuselage by Ventura, it uses the Hasegawa F-8E fuselage as a starting point to create the Navy’s premiere reconnaisance platform in the early 1960’s. Scratch building skill required.
Ryan M-1
The Ryan M-1 kit was a one-off issued by an American model company called Greenbank in 1971, and features good exterior detail and fabric-over-frame effects. Operated as an air mail plane in the mid to late 1920’s, the M-1 formed the basis for Charles Lindbergh’s highly modified Ryan NYP — the Spirit of St. Louis.
S.E.5a
Revell-Germany’s British S.E.5a is a re-box of the 1956 Aurora kit, and is easy to assemble but cries out for some detailing. A roughly accurate build that is fun and relatively trouble-free.
Siemens-Schuckert D.III
The Siemens Schuckert D.III was one of the lesser known but more effective German fighters of the Great War, and entered service with the German Luftstreitkräfte (Imperial German Air Service) in January 1918. Due to engine overheating problems it was quickly withdrawn from service, modified with a cutaway lower cowling, and re-deployed to serve with distinction in a series of Home Defense Squadrons where it was prized for its maneuverability and exceptional rate of climb.