Models of the Month - Volume 1: Naval Aviation

For the past few months I've been pretty much building all sorts of things. There's half a German S-Boot sitting on the table next to me (still waiting to be finished), a Curtiss P-40 boxed for transit to it's new owner and three dozen 15mm AFVs all painted up and ready to go.

Orderly, this work area currently is not.

Beginning this month - I've decided to just focus on one type of model. To begin with I decided to focus on stuff that flies over water. There is a semi-sensible reason for this.

It is a basic fact that most aircraft in the world are land-based - so those make up the vast majority of the planes I model. I still buy all sorts of different planes based on any good deals or new releases that take my fancy irrespective. I tend to buy carrier-based or maritime kits; yet never actually build them. That is changing this month.

First up is this 1/72 Grumman Wildcat. Compared to the sleek lines of a Mustang or Spitfire - this thing looks a bit stocky. The Airfix model does a good job of replicating that heavy-set fuselage - dominated by that massive radial engine. Below is the real thing at Duxford - photographed in the hangar where they maintain many of the airworthy residents at the museum.

The kit itself went together with no issues whatsoever, it creates a smart looking model. This was built straight out of the box and using the second kit option with the brighter tail markings / old-style roundels. For newer modellers you might want to take your time around the landing gear area; it was a tad fiddly.

Second up was the Wildcat's historic rival - the Mitsubishi A6M 'Zero'. Physically smaller and more agile than the big Grumman; it was the Japanese naval fighter in the Pacific War. Ironically, there were far more potent / capable machines turned out by the Japanese as the war went on - but the Zero is the one that people remember.

The kit (1/72 Airfix) went together with no problems - it builds up into a decent replica of the A6M and was one of those kits that just kind of assembled itself without too much drama.

Not yet started but certainly on the to-do list, a pair of Sea Harrier FA2s - one in 800 NAS anniversary colours and the other in standard Fleet Air Arm markings.

The Harrier-stash-overpopulation problem is still very much a thing...