Flag Plot

Here is the Tamiya F-51D depicting a Mustang assigned to the SC National Guard circa 1946-7. (The Air National Guard would come with the passing of the National Security Act of 1947 that established the Department of the Air Force.)  This is a great kit with a good fit and a wealth of details. I used no filler. It's painted in Alclad metal lacquers. The decals are from the  commemorative  decal sheet of the 2016 IPMS/USA National Convention held in Columbia, SC.   I tried the hair spray technique on the cockpit floor to replicate the black paint wearing off the plywood deck.   Deck got a coat of interior green, and the green portions were masked.  More masking to define the plywood deck then a shot of wood brown followed by a coat of hairspray.    Interior black applied to the cockpit and green masking removed. I exposed the wood color with a stiff nylon brush.  Complete Interior:  Complete:  REFS:...

  Feb 12, 23:  Last three Kingfishers models for the Patriot's Point museum. These models depict the OS2Us onboard the USS Baltimore (CA-68) circa 1944.  Sept 25, 22: 3 more Kingfishers for USS North Dakota (BB-57)  May 16, 2022: The  Coastal Carolina Modelers Association  of which I'm member is   restoring  several ship models at the  Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum . The USS Yorktown (CV-10) is the center of the museum and where most of the model work is taking place.  My latest part in the restoration effort is the building of the model aircraft to be displayed on the ships. The first planes are two float planes to display on the battleships and cruisers. Club member Gary of GT Resins  fame is casting the models in 1/96 scale: the scale of the ship collection.   Here are two kits of the Vought OS2U Kingfisher with a 3 inch/ 8cm ruler:   Here's the main floats; the aft strut isn't quite long ...

  Hasegawa F9F-8 Cougar Here's the model finished as a VF-61 Cougar embarked on the USS Intrepid circa 1955. The Kit:   This is the Hasegawa kit with decals from the kit & the SSI sheet "Carrier Air Wing 8" 72-338. The kit was painted with Model Master gloss Dark Sea Blue and Alclad ll duraluminium ALC-102. The  nose decal from the SSI sheet didn't come close fitting around the nose cone, so I used the kit decal. It's a bit translucent. Note that this is an early version of the dash 8 Cougar, the intake splitter plates were left off.     An enjoyable kit.  RJ 

Hasegawa F9F-2 Panther  Here's the model finished as a VMF-115 Panther based at Pohang Korea. History:   In 1949, VMF-115 was the first Marine Corps squadron equipped with Grumman F9F-2 Panther jets, and on November 20, 1950, the first Marine squadron to carrier qualify all 18 pilots aboard the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt. The squadron then deployed to Pohang, Korea, for combat operation in February 1952. In late-June 1952 they participated in the attack on the Sui-ho Dam. Throughout the Korean War, VMF-115 expended more ordnance than any other Marine jet fighter squadron. A total of 15,350 flight hours were logged on 9,250 combat sorties with a price of 19 aircraft lost. Six pilots were lost with their aircraft in a single day and a total of 14 pilots were killed in action. Close air support was provided by VMF-115 in battles such as Bunker Hill, The Hook, Reno, Carson-Elko, Vegas, Berlin, East Berlin, and the Marines famous battle at the Chosin Reservoir. (1)  The Kit: ...

  History:   VF-11 was the first operational squadron to receive the F8U-2NE, receiving its first aircraft on February 8, 1962.  The squadron embarked on the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt (CV-42) with CVG-1 and deployed to the  Mediterranean Sea from September 1963 to April 1964.   (Ref 1)       The F8U-2 NE was the last production version of the F-8 Crusader for the US Navy and Marine Corps. The F8U Crusader was redesignated  F-8 with F8U-2NE becoming the F-8E. This version had a AN/APQ-94 radar which required a revised and larger radome, and the ability to carry  air-to-ground weapons with the addition of a wing pylon for each wing. F-8E version introduced the AAS-15 infrared track-and-search system contained in a bullet faring forward of the windscreen.  (Ref 2) The Kit:   This model is the Academy 1/72 scale F-8E Crusader kit (kit No: 1615) with SuperScale decal sheet 72-832 (OOP). The ejectio...

  History: The A-4M Skyhawk was the last A-4 version procured for US forces and was used exclusively with the Marine Corps while in front line service. The A-4M's existence was inevitably tied to the development and procurement of the A-7 Corsair. The Navy specified that a follow-on airplane to the Skyhawk be based on a design already in production and optimized for the attack mission utilizing the P&W TF-30 turbofan engine. Douglas Aircraft submitted an upgraded design based on the Skyhawk. In 1964 Voight Corp was award the contract for the A-7 using a designed based loosely on the F-8 Crusader.  However,  Vietnam war attrition ensured the A-4 would stay in production along side the new A-7 Corsair. As the war in Southeast Asia wound down, the Marines were procuring the British AV-8A Harrier "Jump-jet" and revising their doctrine and force structure to incorporate the new V/STOL  technology.  The AV-8A was innovative but limited in its c...