Vickers Valiant Mk. I by Mikro Mir
1/144 scale
Kit No. 144-003
Retail: $35.00
Decals: Three versions – Two Royal Air Force, one Royal Australian Air Force
Comments: Engraved panel lines, boxed in wheel wells, photo etched detail parts
History
The Vickers Valiant was the first of RAF Bomber Command’s V-class aircraft and established Britain’s airborne nuclear deterrent force before pioneering RAF in-flight refuelling. Although subsequently overshadowed by the Vulcan and Victor, the Valiant was the first of the V-bombers to drop a nuclear bomb, the first to see combat, and the RAF’s first operational tanker. Despite these pioneering successes, its career would be cut short by structural problems in 1965.
By 1945 the advent of the turbojet and the nuclear bomb profoundly influenced the Royal Air Force’s requirements for a heavy bomber replacement. Carrying a single weapon with greater destructive force than a Second World War 1000-bomber force meant that only small numbers of aircraft were required to drop nuclear bombs. Designed to fly at high speed and extreme altitude to penetrate Russian air defences, the new V bombers’ sole means of defence was electronic jamming to protect the aircraft as they made high speed, high altitude runs in to the target.
Designed in response to the same specification that eventually produced the Avro Vulcan and Handley Page Victor, the Valiant had uncertain beginnings. Vickers had been working on jet bomber designs since 1944 but with little interest from the government. With the end of the Second World War and the birth of the Cold War, however, interest in a jet bomber was reawakened. The B.35/46 specification issued by the Ministry of Supply called for a bomber capable of carrying a 10,000 lb bomb, and travelling at 500 knots and at 50,000 ft, with a range of over 3,300 nautical miles. It represented a quantum leap in capability over the piston-engine designs of the day.
With its clean, conventional high wing design, from many angles the Valiant appeared to lack any form of powerplant due to the four Rolls-Royce Avon turbojet engines being located deep within the wing roots, and the intakes appearing as thin slots in the leading edge of the wing. It had a top speed of 567 mph and a range of 4,500 miles on auxiliary fuel tanks that could be attached to pylons under the wings — slightly faster than the Soviet Tupolev Tu-95, but slower than the American B-47. It was capable of carrying one 10,000-pound hydrogen bomb, or 21 conventional 1,000-pound bombs. If the Valiant was equipped for a photo reconnaissance role or used as an airborne fuel tanker, the bomb bay could be fitted with more fuel tanks.
On October 11, 1956, flying at 35,000 ft. over the Maralinga test range in Australia, Valiant B.1 WZ366 dropped a live Blue Danube nuclear bomb which detonated at 750 ft. over an area of Australia known to the aboriginals as the ‘Fields of Thunder’. The weapon produced a yield of 3 kilotons (equivalent to around 3 thousands tons of TNT).
Egypt’s nationalization of the Suez Canal in October 1956 led to the first combat deployment of the Valiant when bombers of 148 Squadron struck Egyptian airfields on October 31, 1956. They encountered no fighter resistance and ineffective anti-aircraft fire. This would be the pattern for the rest of the Valiant attacks during the Suez operations; only one Egyptian fighter was ever sighted. It made an unsuccessful attack on a Valiant which managed to evade it with relative ease. Once UK and French forces landed in the canal zone, the Valiant squadrons were recalled to the UK and by early 1957 none remained in Malta.
Valiant production ceased in 1957 with just over 100 examples produced. The next big step in the upgrading of the V-Force’s offensive capability also took place in 1957. On March 15, 1957, four 49 Squadron Valiants were detached to Christmas Island in the Pacific. On May 15th, Valiant B.1 XD818 released a prototype hydrogen bomb at 39,000 ft over Malden Island.
In late 1957, an RAF-wide order led to the Valiant schemes being changed from overall silver to anti-flash white, and serial numbers were changed from black to light blue. Roundels were also changed to much lighter shades of blue and red. By 1962, the Air Staff realized that Soviet air defences were superior to those of Egypt, and that MiG-17s and SAM-2s would make mincemeat of any Valiants attempting to penetrate the Soviet Union at high or medium altitude. The Valiant’s attack profile was consequently switched to low-level tactical operations in 1962-3 and the fleet was repainted in appropriate camouflage in 1964.
104 Valiants were built across all bomber, photo-reconnaissance, and tanker variants in addition to a handful of prototypes. According to BAE Systems, only one Valiant remains intact today. It is on display at the Royal Air Force Museum in Cosford, United Kingdom. No other countries flew the Valiant as part of their Cold War nuclear fleet.
With the introduction of more advanced V-bombers the Valiant was converted to a tanker role for in-flight refuelling. In January 1965, all Valiants were prematurely scrapped after metal fatigue was found in the wings of a few aircraft.
The Kit
Mikro Mir’s Vickers Valiant is injection molded in grey plastic and consists of 72 parts, including two clear parts for the canopy and ventral observation window. In addition there is a photo etch fret providing detail parts including wing fences, landing gear parts, and other surface details. Unlike many aircraft kits of this scale, a flight deck is provided with separate seats for the pilot and co-pilot. Parts are provided for engine intake fans, and the vertical tail features a separately mounted rudder.
The kit is engineered with simplicity in mind, but it may require a bit of extra care when aligning the parts as it has no locator pins. It has a two-part fuselage and a three-part wing assembly that includes separately mounted parts for internal intake channels as well as the intake fans. The engine exhausts are equally detailed.
Markings
The kit decals include markings for three versions. The first is an RAAF aircraft, circa 1961, serial WP206, in overall natural metal with black anti-glare panel, black top section of the leading edge of the vertical tail, as well as black and light grey sections of the underside of the nose. The second and third versions are both RAF bombers, painted in a scheme of overall white, with the vertical tail and nose painted exactly the same as the RAAF version. The first is a machine of No. 7 Squadron, based at RAF Honington, 1961. The second is a maching of 90 Squadron, also based at RAF Honington, 1960. All markings have realistic color and are fully in register with a pleasant semi-gloss finish.
Conclusion
A great Cold War era kit of the first of Britain’s V-bombers, with a modicum of detail in 1/144 scale. Highly recommended.
References
- https://www.key.aero/article/valiant-first-v-bomber
- https://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/collections/vickers-valiant-b1/
- https://www.slashgear.com/1231248/the-vickers-valiant-the-first-of-britains-nuclear-v-bombers/
- https://www.thunder-and-lightnings.co.uk/valiant/history.php