Kit Previews P – Z
Bell P-39Q Airacobra
Ironically, although designed with features that would have made it an effective high altitude interceptor, a combination of NACA recommendations and changing Army directives regarding fighter powerplants relegated the Bell P-39 — through no fault of its own — to second-class status as a low-altitude fighter bomber. It excelled in this role, and, despite its critics, the Japanese viewed it as a respected adversary. The Russians, in a word, loved it.
Curtiss P-40 Tomahawk Mk. II
The Curtiss P-40 entered service in May 1940, just as Hitler invaded Western Europe. 140 planes were soon sold to the British, who dubbed them “Tomahawk,” armed them with additional .303 Browning machine guns and sent them to fight the Germans in North Africa.
Curtiss P-40E Warhawk
The P-40E is an icon of WWII, its shark-mouthed paint scheme bringing fame to the Flying Tigers in China and the RAF in North Africa…
Republic P-43 Lancer
The P-43 Lancer was an interim fighter design linking the Severksy P-35 to its ultimate evolution, the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. Having some but not all of the features of a modern fighter, it was nearly obsolete upon entering service with the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1940. Mostly relegated to training roles, it did find its way to the front lines in China in limited numbers, where it performed fighter escort and photo reconnaissance duties.
P-51B Mustang Mk. III
North American P-51B Mustang Mk. III by Revell Germany 1/72 scale Kit No. 4167 Cost: $9.00 Decals: Two versions, both Royal Air Force (No. 316, Polish Squadron, August 1944; and No. 234 Squadron, December 1944) Comments: Engraved panel lines, flushed rivet detail,...
P-51 B/C Mustang
North American P-51B/C Mustang by Pro Modeler (Monogram) 1/48 scale Kit No. 5931 Cost: $22.00 (aftermarket) Decals: 3 versions - all U.S. Army Air Force: Topper III, flown by Captain Edward L. Toppins of the 99th Fighter Squadron, 332nd Fighter Group (Tuskegee...
P-63 Kingcobra
The Bell P-63 Kingcobra was a development of the P-39 Airacobra, intended to address its deficiencies in the areas of speed and armor protection. Unlike its earlier cousin, which was originally envisioned as a fighter/interceptor, the P-63 was designed as a ground-support/fighter-bomber from the beginning. The biggest operator of the P-63 was the Soviet Union, which received 2,397 aircraft, delivered between 1943 and 1945 and mainly used to support infantry units.
P-70 Nighthawk
Coming to the Pacific in the Summer of 1942, the P-70 was meant to be a stopgap night fighter, soon to be replaced by the P-61 Black Widow. But the P-70 served until 1944 due to the P-61’s teething problems….
P-80 Shooting Star
Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star by Monogram 1/48 scale Kit No. 5428 Cost: $15.00 Decals: One version - United States Air Force Comments: Raised panel lines; first released 1977; detailed cockpit with option for open or closed canopy; detailed gun bay and wheel wells; rear...
RF-4C Phantom II
Ordered by the U.S. Air Force partly in response to the Navy’s RF-8 Crusader, which highlighted deficient Air Force performance in the low-altitude reconnaissance role during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, the RF-4 ushered in a quantum improvement in USAF reconnaissance capability. Italeri’s RF-4 features a three auxiliary drop tanks, a multi-part canopy and a series of clear plastic parts depicting camera ports in an elongated nose.
RF-8A Crusader (Sword)
As of October 1962, the Vought RF-8A Crusader was the one aircraft capable of the finest, most detailed low level reconnaissance photography in the entire U.S. military. Derived from the superb F-8 Crusader, the U.S. Navy’s shipboard interceptor, with its guns and fuselage-mounted missile pylons removed, it became an equally superb photo-reconnaissance platform. During the 1962 Missile Crisis, it yielded intelligence that may well have helped avoid nuclear war.
Republic RF-84 Thunderflash
The RF-84 was the reconnaissance version of the swept-wing Republic F-84F Thunderflash, a modification of the first jet fighter to enter service with the USAF after WWII. It was the first such aircraft allowing pilots to use a view finder and camera controls to focus on specific targets, and a voice recorder to describe what was being photographed.
Dassault Rafale B
The Dassault Rafale is a multi-role fighter bomber designed to replace the venerable Mirage series of fighter-interceptors and the French version of the Jaguar strike aircraft. The Rafale has a delta wing design with canards to optimize aerodynamic efficiency and stability. It is powered by two French built SNECMA M88-3 afterburning turbofans.
Dassault Rafale M
The prototype of the Rafale M first flew in December 1991 and it entered service with the Aeronavale, the air arm of the French Navy, in 2002. One indication of its versatility and the breadth of its performance envelope is that it replaced not one, but four aircraft in French service: The Mirage 2000, the Jaguar, the F-8 Crusader and the Super Etendard. It is the only non-U.S. aircraft certified for operations from U.S. Navy aircraft carriers.
Roland D. VIa
Roland D. VIa by Fly 1/48 scale Cost: $30.00 Kit No. 48005 Decals: Three versions Comments: Engraved panel lines; resin engine and cockpit components; photo-etch seat straps and machine gun jackets History The Roland D.VI was designed by the Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft...
Ryan FR-1 Fireball
The Ryan FR-1 Fireball was the result of a 1942 U.S. Navy specification for a unique, hybrid fighter that incorporated both jet and piston engine propulsion into its design. Entering service in March 1945, the Fireball was thought to be the only hope of stopping the Japanese Ohka rocket powered Kamikaze weapon. But by the time the FR-1 was operational at squadron level, the war in the Pacific was over.
Ryan PT-20
MPM Ryan PT-20 Trainer 1/72 scale Kit No. 72084 Cost: $22.00 Decals: Three versions - One for U.S. Army Air Corps, and two for the Dutch East Indies Comments: Engraved and raised panel lines; vacuform windscreens; parts for conventional fixed landing gear or...
Saab J21A
Saab J21A by Heller 1/72 scale Kit No. 261 Cost: $10.00 Decals: One version - Flygvapnet (Swedish Air Force) Comments: Older kit, unusual twin-boom fighter; raised panel lines; decals for national insignia are out of register, aftermarket replacements highly...
Saab J21R
Saab J-21R by Special Hobby 1/72 scale Kit No. SH 72207 Price: $22.00 -- 26.00 Decals: Four versions - all Flygvapnet (Swedish Air Force) Comments: Engraved panel lines, resin wheels with radial tread, highly detailed cockpit including PE and film parts, PE exterior...
Saab JA37 Viggen
The Swedish Saab JA 37 “Viggen” (“Thunderbolt”) was the all-weather variant of a distinguished family of fighter-interceptor, attack and reconnaissance aircraft that served the Swedish Air Force for 34 years. Entering service with the Flygvapen in 1979, it had a radically modified Boeing 737 engine and shared avionics in common with the F-14 Tomcat and the F-15 Eagle.