Lockheed PV-1 Ventura by Academy
1/48 scale
Kit No. 12347
Retail: $59.00
Decals: Three versions, all U.S. Navy
Comments: Engraved panel lines, highly detailed cockpit, bomb bay and main gear wheels
History
Conceived in 1940 as a patrol bomber derived from the Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar commercial transport, the PV-1 Ventura was a testament to Lockheed’s design genius. In less than a year, its engineering team transformed a civilian plane into a military marvel. In June 1940 the Vega Aircraft Division of the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation at Burbank, California, was awarded a contract by the British Purchasing Commission to supply 875 examples of a new bomber derived from the Lockheed Hudson.
The new aircraft was given the designation Lockheed V-146, or Vega 37. Resembling the Hudson, the new aircraft had a longer fuselage, more armament, and more powerful engines. Dubbed the PV-1 Ventura, it was a twin-engine medium bomber and patrol bomber, it was flown by the U.S. Navy, the Royal Air Force, and later the Australian and New Zealand air arms.
The Ventura first entered combat in Europe as a bomber with the No. 21 Squadron of the RAF in October 1942, and went into action against the Phillips works at Eindhoven in the Netherlands. Its combat debut was not a success, since (like many other bombers used by the RAF) it was too vulnerable without long-range fighter escorts. Replaced in this role by the de Havilland Mosquito, the Venturas were gradually transferred to patrol duties with Coastal Command; 30 went to the RCAF and some to the South African Air Force.
After its less than spectacular debut in Europe, the US Army Air Force took delivery of the type as the B-34 Lexington, but it was never flown operationally — rather used for training and reconnaissance purposes. A night fighter version, which was fitted with a Mark IV radar and six 0.5 in machine guns in the nose, was placed in service in March 1943 by the US Marines on Bougainville and in the Solomon Islands. Its performance in the Solomons led to a change in the Navy’s perspective about its usefulness.
By the end of June 1943, the type was ordered for the US Navy as the PV-1. These 500 aircraft had an increased wingspan, larger fins, more armour, revised armament, and more fuel to provide a longer range. It was at this point that the PV-1 came into its own. It proved very effective at maritime patrol and anti-submarine warfare in the Pacific, starting with its engagements in the Solomon Islands.
Some key differences between the PV-1 and the similar B-34 Lexington, the U.S. Army Air Force version that proceeded it, were the inclusion of special equipment in the PV-1, adapting it to its patrol-bombing role. The maximum fuel capacity of the PV-1 was increased from 1,345 gal (5,081 l) to 1,607 gal (6,082 l) to increase its range; the forward defensive armament was also reduced for this reason. The most important addition was an ASD-1 search radar.
Early production PV-1s still carried a bombardier’s station behind the nose radome, with four side windows and a flat bomb-aiming panel underneath the nose. Late production PV-1s dispensed with this bombardier position and replaced it with a pack with three 0.50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns underneath the nose. These aircraft could also carry eight 5 in (127 mm) HVAR rockets on launchers underneath the wings.
In addition to the Navy’s use of the PV-1, the Royal New Zealand Air operated the type extensively, receiving 116 PV-1’s under the Lend-Lease Act which were quickly deployed. Operated by a number of operational units, including Nos 1, 2, 3 and 9 Squadrons RNZAF, the type was used on air-sea rescue patrol operations in the region of St George’s Channel.
The Venturas were operated from a number of Pacific Islands during the island-hopping campaign. No 1 Squadron was the first to get the type, receiving 18 Venturas at Whenuapai Air Station in August 1943, and flying to Henderson Field, Guadalcanal in October. They were initially operated as patrol bombers, these including anti-shipping and anti-submarine, bombing and strafing land targets, mine-laying, photo-reconnaissance, supply drops to Australian coast watchers, and navigation escort for fighter ferry flights.
In all, 1,600 Venturas were built from December 1942 to May 1944. Following World War II, the Ventura proved very popular as a fast civilian transport for up to 15 passengers. About 150 were converted in the USA for various roles by a number of companies, and given such appellation as the Howard Super Ventura, etc. At least two examples survive.
The Kit
Academy’s PV-1 Ventura is injection molded in grey plastic and consists of 154 parts, including 21 clear parts for the windscreen, nose blister, dorsal turret, windows, observation dome and landing lights. The cockpit is highly detailed with seats featuring integrally molded cushions, bomber-style control yokes and a large main instrument panel rich with engraved detail.
The landing gear and wheel wells are also richly detailed with interior ribbing and what appears to be an oil reservoir in the port side well. The fuselage halves bear a small amount of superficial detail for the cockpit sidewalls, and extensive ribbing detail above the part of the rear fuselage holding the tail wheel. The fuselage assembly itself includes a central wing spar in addition to three bulkheads forming the bomb bay.
The plane’s twin vertical tails are each two parts, with integrally molded rudders. For the nose, while there are sufficient clear parts for earlier versions such as the B-34 Lexington to form the original glazed nose, there are also parts for the PV-1 as depicted on the box art with an all-metal nose featuring a pair of .50 caliber machine guns in the upper nose section, and triple gun pack to be attached to the ventral section of the nose.
The bomb bay has room to accommodate what appear to be two 500 lb. bombs and four 250-lb. bombs. The bomb bay doors can be depicted open or closed; if open, the door attaches to additional parts representing folding arms, and the two halves of the forming the door fold in on themselves. There are also two auxiliary fuel tanks to be cemented to the dorsal wing surface outboard of the engine nacelles. The nacelles each consist of four parts, but the engines and cowlings form a separate assembly, of five parts which may require seam-hiding skill since the engine cowlings consist of two halves and a separate cowling lip. The engine faces themselves are a single part, with two additional parts for the airscrew shaft and three-bladed propellers.
One assembly that may be tricky is the dorsal turret assembly. First, the exterior turret is to be fitted through a dorsal section of fuselage and cemented to a turret ring in the interior of the aircraft, without any cement getting onto the portion of the dorsal surface of the fuelage, if you want the turret to be able to turn. In addition, once this step is complete some seam hiding may be necessary to ensure the dorsal section containing the turret blends into the rest of the fuselage.
Markings
The kit provides decals for three versions, all World War II U.S. Navy types carrying a mid-war paint scheme of Navy Blue upper surfaces, Intermediate Blue on the sides of the fuselage and engine nacelles, and Insignia White on the ventral surfaces.
The first, White 5 on the tail, is a PV-1 of an unknown unit based in the Russell Islands of the Solomon Island chain in mid-1943, bearing an image of a reclining blonde nude woman with the name “Blonde Blitz. The second aircraft, White 3 on the tail, is also a PV-1 of an unknown unit at the same location and same time (mid-1943) as the first aircraft. The final version, Black 641, was an aircraft assigned to VB-148. This aircraft was part of a successful operation against Japanese vessels at Truk Lagoon in July 1944. Its paint scheme differs from the other aircraft only in that the Intermediate Blue covers a larger area of the fuselage sides and nacelles and ends higher up.
Conclusion
This is a highly detailed version of the famous Lockheed patrol bomber employed so effectively by the Navy and Marines in the South Pacific during World War II. Highly recommended.
References
- www.vp4association.com
- www.silverhawkauthor.com
- www.aeropedia.com.au
- www.jetprops.com