Lockheed Martin F-35C Lighting II by Orange Hobby

1/72 scale
Kit No. A72-001-148
Retail: $31.95
Decals: Two versions – both U.S. Navy
Comments: Engraved panel lines and raised surface details, optional position canopy, option for folded wings, detailed weapons bays with AIM-9 Sidewinder and AIM-120 air-to-air missiles

History

The F-35A is the U.S. Air Force’s latest fifth-generation fighter. Its first flight was on December 15, 2006. It is intended to replace the U.S. Air Force’s aging fleet of F-16 Fighting Falcons and A-10 Thunderbolt II’s, which have been the primary fighter and ground attack aircraft for more than 30 years, and to have enhanced survivability in multiple modern air combat situations. With its aerodynamic performance and advanced integrated avionics, the F-35A will provide next-generation stealth, enhanced situational awareness, and reduced vulnerability for the United States and allied nations. It entered service with the U.S. Marine Corps (F-35B) on July 31, 2015; with the U.S. Air Force (F-35A) on August 2, 2016; and with the U.S. Navy (F-35C) on February 28, 2019. Israel was the first nation to use the F-35 in combat in May 2018 when Israeli F-35’s struck ground targets in Syria in response to a rocket attack launched by Iranian forces in Syria against Israeli army positions in the Golan Heights.

The F-35A is an agile, versatile, high-performance, 9g capable multi-role fighter that combines stealth, sensor fusion and unprecedented situational awareness. The F-35A has an advanced sensor package designed to gather, fuse and distribute more information than any front-line fighter today, giving operators a decisive advantage over potential adversaries. Its processing power, sophisticated sensors, information fusion and flexible communication links make the F-35 an indispensable tool in future homeland defense, Joint and Coalition irregular warfare, and major combat operations.

The F-35 is designed to be highly reliable with minimal maintenance challenges, to reduce logisitcs-related costs over the course of its service life. Combined with a highly responsive support and training system linked with the latest information technology, it will be a formidable adversary. Its Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS) integrates performance, operational parameters, configuration, scheduled upgrades and maintenance, component history, predictive diagnostics (prognostics), operations scheduling, training, mission planning and service support for the F-35.

The F-35’s electronic sensors include the Electro-Optical Distributed Aperture System (DAS), providing pilots with situational awareness for enhanced missile warning, aircraft warning, and day/night pilot vision. The aircraft is also equipped with the Electro-Optical Targeting System (EOTS), an internally mounted system providing extended range detection and precision targeting against ground targets, plus long range detection of air-to-air threats.

The F-35’s helmet mounted display system is the most advanced of its kind. All the intelligence and targeting information an F-35 pilot needs to complete the mission is displayed on the helmet’s visor. The F-35 contains state-of-the-art tactical data links allowing the secure sharing of data among its pilots as well as other airborne, surface and ground-based platforms. The F-35 is designed to provide the pilot with unsurpassed situational awareness, positive target identification and precision strike capability in all weather conditions.

The F-35’s power plant, a Pratt & Whitney F135 turbofan engine, produces 28,000 lbs of thrust (43,000 lbs. with afterburner) and consists of a three-stage fan, a six-stage compressor, an annular combustor, a single-stage high-pressure turbine, and a two-stage low-pressure turbine. Derived from the Pratt & Whitney F119 used by the F-22, the F135 has a larger fan and higher bypass ratio to increase subsonic thrust and fuel efficiency, but unlike the F119, it is not optimized for supercruise (sustained supersonic flight without afterburners).

With nine countries involved in its development (United States, United Kingdom, Italy, Netherlands, Turkey, Canada, Denmark, Norway and Australia), the F-35 represents a new model of international cooperation, ensuring U.S. and Coalition partner security well into the 21st Century. The F-35 also brings together strategic international partnerships, providing affordability by reducing redundant research and development and providing access to technology around the world. Along these lines, the F-35 will employ a variety of US and allied weapons. The U.S. plans to buy 2,456 F-35’s through 2044, which will represent the bulk of the crewed tactical aviation of the U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps for several decades; the aircraft is planned to be a cornerstone of NATO and U.S.-allied air power and to operate until 2070.

The Kit

Orange Hobby’s F-35C is injection molded in grey plastic and features engraved panel lines along with a combination of raised detail and recessed rivet detail. It consists of 102 plastic parts, including four clear parts for the one-piece canopy and navigation lights. In addition, there are three photo etch frets providing additional details for the engine, cockpit (seat straps), and the separate towing vehicle.

The cockpit is well detailed, with a tub featuring raised detail including integral rudder pedals molded into the floor along with raised sidewall instrumentation, and a main instrument panel offering a combination of raised relief and a decal. The seat is nicely detailed, consisting of six parts, including two photo etch parts for the seat straps and ejection loop. In an unusual bit of engineering harking back to the F-16, the control yoke is mounted on one of the side instrument panels, while what appears to the the throttle is mounted on the other.

There are boxed in wheel wells and weapons bays with exquisite internal detail, along with two internally carried AIM-120 air-to-air missiles and two AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles mounted externally on wing pylons. Based on the instructions, the weapons bays are to be depicted open, but with some modification can be closed. There is also an option to display the canopy open or closed, and since the F-35C is a naval variant, an option to depict the wings folded or deployed for flight.

Markings

The kit decals provide for two versions, both in a paint scheme of overall dark grey. The first is a test aircraft, serial CF-03/05, and bears low visibility national insignia and U.S. Navy markings. The second is for an active duty aircraft serving with VFA-101, “Grim Reapers,” serial no. 168733. This machine bears the more colorful national markings, as well as the emblem of the Grim Reapers, a flying skeleton carrying a scythe, which appears on the vertical tails. Stencil details are also provided.

Conclusion

This is a richly detailed if somewhat lesser known kit of the F-35, full of crisp detail and minimal flash, and was first released in 2014. Since it is a stealth aircraft, it is surprising in that it provides an option for externally mounted weapons.  Highly recommended.

References

• https://www.af.mil/
• wikipedia.org
• “IAF commander: Israel first to use F-35 jet in combat,” The Jerasulem Post, May 22, 2018