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In 1949 RKO-Pathe released “Fraud Fighters,” a film short about the work of the FDA produced with the agency’s close involvement for RKO’s “This is America” series.
For more information about FDA history visit www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/WhatWeDo/History/default.htm
A very old star fighter, repeatedly shot at, patched together, repaired with ill-fitting parts, left to rust, duct-taped back together, and finally sold on Craigslist as "lightly used".
For the shitty starfighers contest.
DISCLAIMER
Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background
The Kawasaki Ki-121 was an experimental fighter aircraft that used a license-built (Kawasaki) DB 601 liquid-cooled engine, the Ha-40, augmented by a turbosupercharger. This was at that time an unusual choice because the majority of Japanese aircraft at that time used air-cooled radial engines.
The Ki-121 was designed by Takeo Doi and his deputy Shin Owada of Kawasaki Aircraft Industries (Kawasaki Kokuki Kogyo K.K.) in 1942, who had already designed the Ki-60 and Ki-61 interceptors in 1940. The emphasis in the requirements was for a high speed and a good rate of climb, along with a cannon armament. This was in due response to a complete change from the usual IJAAF penchant for lightly armed, highly manoeuvrable fighters with lightweight structures, which proved to be unsatisfactory against heavy bombers and their escort fighters.
The first prototype of the Ki-121 emerged in March 1943 as a compact, all metal, stressed skin monoplane, bearing a strong resemblance to the Ki-61. Its tapered wings featured initially square wing tips and were built around a system of three spars; a Warren truss main spar and two auxiliary spars. The rear spar carried the split flaps and long, narrow chord ailerons, while the front spar incorporated the undercarriage pivot points. The undercarriage track was 3 metres (9 ft 10 in). The pilot's seat was mounted over the rear spar, the cockpit sported a bubble canopy, another innovative feature that allowed the pilot excellent view.
The first prototype was powered by an imported DB 601A-1 with a radial compressor, rated at 960 hp. This was soon replaced by an Aichi AE1 Atsuta 12 engine (a license-built, modified version of the DB 601) which was mated with a turbo supercharger, installed on the port fuselage side, right behind the engine block. This new engine put out 1.560 hp and drove a four-bladed propeller. This especially improved performance at greater heights.
Another innovative feature of the Ki-121 was the steam vapour cooling system for its engine, which had been successfully tested in parallel for the heavy Ki-64 fighter on a Ki-61 test bed. The system was installed in the outer wings. It effectively reduced drag and made an external radiator superfluous. The oil cooler was mounted under the engine (the first prototype sported a single radiator bath, which was later replaced by two drum coolers). A total fuel capacity of 550 l (121 Imp gal) was carried in self-sealing fuel tanks in the lower hull and inner wings, which could be augmented by 2 x 200 l (44 Imp gal) drop tanks under wing hardpoints.
The armament consisted of two synchronized, fuselage mounted 12.7 mm calibre Ho-103 machine guns which were set in a "staggered" configuration (the port weapon slightly further forward than that to starboard) just above and behind the engine. In the prototype, one German-made Mauser MG 151/20 20 mm cannon was housed in each wing, just outside of the landing gear wells and the propeller’s radius. The wing hardpoints could, alternatively to the drop tanks, carry a maximum bomb weight of 160kg each or unguided 60 lbs. air-to-air rockets.
From the start of flight testing it became apparent that the original design was seriously flawed in several key areas. The take-off run was unacceptably long, while in flight the aircraft displayed some directional instability, excessively heavy controls and poor control response. The spinning characteristics were described as 'dangerous' and the stalling speed was very high. On the positive side, the re-engined Ki-121 prototype showed an impressive top speed of 640 kilometres per hour (400 mph) and a very good rate of climb. Additionally, the cooling system worked well and reliably, only the oil cooler capacity had to be improved.
As a result the second prototype, which was still being built, was hurriedly modified in an attempt to mitigate some of the more undesirable traits. Some 100 kilograms (220 lb) was removed, primarily by replacing the MG 151 cannons with Ho-5 machine guns and through structural simplifications. The stabilizer areas were tremendously enlarged (both vertical and horizontal fins). Coupled with a slight increase in wing area to 16.80 m² (180.8 ft²) through rounded wing tip extensions this resulted in a slightly lower wing loading and better handling characteristics. Detail changes were also made to airframe sealing and to the contours of the oil cooler air intakes.
Flight tests carried on, and while most shortcomings could be ironed out, the modified prototypes still displayed most of the shortcomings, just to a lesser extent. The supercharged engine also caused teething troubles – maintenance requirements were high. By this time Kawasaki's Ki-100, which had also been designed as a dedicated interceptor as a Ki-61 derivate, was also beginning to show promise and the Koku Hombu selected this type in fulfilment of its requirements.
Nevertheless, the Ki-121 was approved by the Koku Hombu as 'Army Type 6 Fighter' because of its high speed. An order was placed for one additional prototype and eighteen pre-production aircraft with even more enlarged tail fins. These bore the designation Ki-121-I and were named "Hitofuki" (‘gust of wind’ or ‘blast’). A further version with enlarged wing span as a high altitude interceptor, the Ki-121-II, was also in the design stage, but did not become hardware. The use of 2 × 30 mm (1.18 in) Ho-155 cannon in the wings was also envisioned.
The war's soon end however stopped the construction of further planes. The number of prototypes remained two, and twelve Ki-121-I pre-production aircraft with marginal improvements reached frontline squadrons in April 1945. It is not known if the Ki-121 was actively involved in homeland defence, it never received an allied code name - active planes will probably have been mistaken for Ki-61 fighters. Eventually, the Ki-121 did not progress any further. Its place was taken by the less complicated and more promising Ki-100 with a radial engine.
General characteristics:
Crew: 1
Length: 8.90 m (29 ft 2 in)
Wingspan: 10.58 m (34 ft 9 in)
Height: 3.05 m (10 ft 0 in)
Wing area: 16.80 m² (180.8 ft²)
Empty weight: 2.580 kg (5.690 lb)
Max. take-off weight: 3,900 kg (8,600 lb)
Maximum speed: 640 km/h (345 kn, 400 mph) at 7,500 m (24,600 ft)
Range: 950 km (515 nmi, 590 mi)
Service ceiling: 11,500 m (37,730 ft)
Time to 5,000 m altitude: 4 min 47 sec
Engine: 1 supercharged Aichi AE1T Atsuta 12 twelve-cylinder inverted vee liquid-cooled engine, rated at 1,560 hp for take-off, 1,340 hp at 2,100 m and 1,190 hp at 5,800 m.
Armament:
2 × 12.7 mm Ho-103 machine guns, 400 rpg, in the nose
2 × 20 mm Ho-5 cannon, 250 rpg, in the wings
Bombs: 2 × 160 kg (350 lb) bombs or 2 x 200 l (44 Imp gal) drop tanks on underwing hardpoints
The kit and its assembly
In case you are in doubt: this is a whiff! The fictional Ki-121 actually is an Italian Macchi C.205 'Veltro' (an Italeri kit). I settled on this machine since it can easily be mistaken for a Ki-61 – e. g. both planes used the same DB 601 engine, and originally I just wanted to create a colour version in Japanese markings. But with building progress, things turned more and more Frankenstein, so that only hull and wings are original.
Cosmetic surgery and replacement parts include:
● Bubble canopy from an A-1 Skyraider single seater (a bit large, took some putty work…)
● Rear fuselage section was lowered for the new bubble canopy
● Horizontal stabilizers from a DH.88 Comet
● Vertical stabilizer is the tip of a Ju 188 elevator
● New wheels on the original (though reversed) main landing gear struts
● Scratch-built, semi-recessed turbocharger on port side
● Relocating the original air intake to starboard, w/o the sand filter
● For-bladed propeller and spinner from a Spitfire Mk. XVI
● Wing hardpoints (empty, though, for the sake of the plane’s clear lines)
● The original C.205’s radiator bath was omitted
● Flaps were lowered/opened, with some interior details
No dramatic change was intended, since the C.205's lines are pretty elegant and IMHO match Kawasaki’s designs of the era, like the Ki-61 or Ki-64, well. The result is a compact machine, reminiscent of a heavily shrunk Blackburn Firebrand prototype?
Painting
Since the fictional history of the Ki-121 only saw a couple of fighters in uncertain front line use, I settled on a typical late IJAAF livery based on various sources and references: overall blank metal (Testor’s Metallizer Aluminium Plate #1401) with a black anti-glare panel (Humbrol 33), coupled with an improvised, dark green camouflage on the upper surfaces and some colourful squadron markings.
Cockpit interior surfaces were painted in ‘Aodake Iro’, simulated with a base of Aluminium (Humbrol 56) and a coat of translucent blue paint on top of that. The landing gear wells were painted in a mix of Humbrol 225 (Mid Stone) and 155 (Olive Drab), for a greenish tan colour.
Hinomaru and squadron emblems come from the scrap box. The blue markings are fictional, the red dragon head emblems come from an aftermarket decal sheet. They belong to the JASDF 105 Sqn, which flew Ki-61 from Aug.’44-Aug. ’45, so it is IMHO a potential/plausible user for the Ki-121-I. This sentai later switched to F-86D interceptors - and from these machines come the emblems.
Since the improvised camouflage easily chipped/weathered (no primer was applied), a slightly ratty look was intended. Hence, decals were already applied onto the aluminium base coat, after basic markings like the glare panel or the yellow identification marks (with Humbrol 69) on the wings’ leading edges had been painted. Then, Humbrol’s Maskol was dabbed onto certain areas with a toothbrush and a fine, stiff-bristled brush around markings and hinomaru.
On top of that, green mottles and streaks (Humbrol 159, Khaki Drab, as a simultaion of the IJAAF's "A.2 Olive Green" tone) were applied with a small brush. The idea was to create a hand-painted look, with aluminium shimmering through and many extra worn areas that show even more bare metal skin.
After rubbing the Maskol off, the metal surface was sealed with a semi-matte, water-based varnish, while the glare panel remained matte, as well as the propeller (spinner in Red Brown, Humbrol 160, blades in Testor’s ‘Rubber’, #1183). Worn look and details were augmented by a light wash with black ink and some light dry painting, e .g. for exhaust marks and gun smoke residues.
All in all, this small and rather simple model kit was built in a couple of days as a distraction from my major Venator conversion.
The escort fighters in Rebel Moon. Had a lot of fun throwing this together over a couple of days. Took a little bit of liberty, since there isn't an accurate windscreen available and all the still frames I took are super dark. I didn't see any concept art or anything online either. Might help if I actually knew what these little ships were called lol.
Chiroptera - just a generic little ship, all in old gray. I think it looks kind of like a bat from certain angles, the vertical fins are like big bat ears or something. Chiroptera is the scientific name for bats.
+++ DISCLAIMER +++Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
The Gudkov Gu-1 was a Soviet fighter aircraft produced shortly after World War II in small numbers at the start of the jet age, but work on the Gudkov Gu-1 already started in 1944. Towards the end of World War II the Soviet Union saw the need for a strategic bombing capability similar to that of the United States Army Air Forces. The Soviet VVS air arm had the locally designed Petlyakov Pe-8 four-engined heavy bomber in service at the start of the war, but only 93 had been built by the end of the war and the type had become obsolete. By that time the U.S. regularly conducted bombing raids on Japan from distant Pacific forward bases using B-29 Superfortresses, and the Soviet Air Force lacked this capability.
Joseph Stalin ordered the development of a comparable bomber, and the U.S. twice refused to supply the Soviet Union with B-29s under Lend Lease. However, on four occasions during 1944, individual B-29s made emergency landings in Soviet territory and one crashed after the crew bailed out. In accordance with the Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact, the Soviets were neutral in the Pacific War and the bombers were therefore interned and kept by the Soviets. Despite Soviet neutrality, America demanded the return of the bombers, but the Soviets refused. Three repairable B-29s were flown to Moscow and delivered to the Tupolev OKB. One B-29 was dismantled, the second was used for flight tests and training, and the third one was left as a standard for cross-reference.
Stalin told Tupolev to clone the Superfortress in as short a time as possible. The reverse-engineering effort involved 900 factories and research institutes, who finished the design work during the first year. 105,000 drawings were made, and the American technology had to be adapted to local material and manufacturing standards – and ended in a thorough re-design of the B-29 “under the hood”. By the end of the second year, the Soviet industry was to produce 20 copies of the aircraft ready for State acceptance trials.
While work on what would become the Tupolev Tu-4 was on the way, the need for a long range escort fighter arose, too. Soviet officials were keen on the P-51 Mustang, but, again, the USA denied deliveries, so that an indigenous solution had to be developed. With the rising tension of international relationships, this became eventually the preferred solution, too.
While the design bureau Lavochkin had already started with work on the La-9 fighter (which entered service after WWII) and the jet age was about to begin, the task of designing a long range escort fighter for the Tu-4 was relegated to Mikhail I. Gudkov who had been designing early WWII fighters like the LaGG-1 and -3 together with Lavochkin. Internally, the new fighter received the project handle "DIS" (Dalnij Istrebitel' Soprovozhdenya ="long-range escort fighter").
In order to offer an appropriate range and performance that could engage enemy interceptors in the bombers’ target area it was soon clear that neither a pure jet nor a pure piston-engine fighter was a viable solution – a dilemma the USAAF was trying to solve towards 1945, too. The jet engine alone did not offer sufficient power, and fuel consumption was high, so that the necessary range could never be achieved with an agile fighter. Late war radials had sufficient power and offered good range, but the Soviet designers were certain that the piston engine fighter had no future – especially when fast jet fighters had to be expected over enemy territory.
Another problem arose through the fact that the Soviet Union did not have an indigenous jet engine at hand at all in late 1945. War booty from Germany in the form of Junkers Jumo 004 axial jet engines and blueprints of the more powerful HeS 011 were still under evaluation, and these powerplants alone did neither promise enough range nor power for a long range fighter aircraft. Even for short range fighters their performance was rather limited – even though fighters like the Yak-15 and the MiG-9 were designed around them.
After many layout experiments and calculation, Gudkov eventually came up with a mixed powerplant solution for the DIS project. But unlike the contemporary, relatively light I-250 (also known as MiG-13) interceptor, which added a mechanical compressor with a primitive afterburner (called VRDK) to a Klimov VK-107R inline piston engine, the DIS fighter was equipped with a powerful radial engine and carried a jet booster – similar to the US Navy’s Ryan FR-1 “Fireball”. Unlike the FR-1, though, the DIS kept a conservative tail-sitter layout and was a much bigger aircraft.
The choice for the main powerplant fell on the Shvetsov ASh-82TKF engine, driving a large four blade propeller. This was a boosted version of the same 18 cylinder twin row radial that powered the Tu-4, the ASh-73. The ASh-82TKF for the escort fighter project had a rating of 2,720 hp (2,030 kW) while the Tu-4's ASh-73TK had "only" a temporary 2,400 hp (1,800 kW) output during take-off. The airframe was designed around this massive and powerful engine, and the aircraft’s sheer size was also a result of the large fuel capacity which was necessary to meet the range target of at least 3.000 km (1.860 mi, 1.612 nmi).
The ASh-82TKF alone offered enough power for a decent performance, but in order to take on enemy jet fighters and lighter, more agile propeller-driven fighters, a single RD-20 axial-flow turbojet with 7.8 kN (1,754 lbf) thrust was added in the rear-fuselage. It was to add power for take-off and in combat situations only. Its fixed air intakes were placed on the fuselage flanks, right behind the cockpit, and the jet pipe was placed under the fin and the stabilizers.
Outwardly, Gudkov’s DIS resembled the late American P-47D or the A-1 Skyraider a lot, and the beefy aircraft was comparable in size and weight, too. But the Soviet all-metal aircraft was a completely new construction and featured relatively small and slender laminar flow wings. The wide-track landing gear retracted inwards into the inner wings while the tail wheel retracted fully into a shallow compartment under the jet pipe.
The pilot sat in a spacious cockpit under a frameless bubble canopy with very good all-round visibility and enjoyed amenities for long flights such as increased padding in the seat, armrests, and even a urinal. In addition, a full radio navigation suite was installed for the expected long range duties over long stretches of featureless landscape like the open sea.
Armament consisted of four 23 mm Nudelman-Suranov NS-23 cannons with 100 RPG in the wings, outside of the propeller arc. The guns were good for a weight of fire of 6kg (13.2 lb)/sec, a very good value. Five wet hardpoints under the fuselage, the wings outside of the landing gear well and under the wing tips could primarily carry auxiliary drop tanks or an external ordnance of up to 1.500 kg (3.300 lb).
Alternatively, iron bombs of up to 500 kg (1.100 lb) caliber could be carried on the centerline pylon, and a pair of 250 kg (550 lb) bombs under the wings, but a fighter bomber role was never seriously considered for the highly specialized and complex aircraft.
The first DIS prototype, still without the jet booster, flew in May 1947. The second prototype, with both engines installed, had its fuel capacity increased by an additional 275 l (73 US gal) in an additional fuel tank behind the cockpit. The aircraft was also fitted with larger tires to accommodate the increased all-up weight, esp. with all five 300 l drop tanks fitted for maximum range and endurance.
Flight testing continued until 1948 and the DIS concept proved to be satisfactory, even though the complicated ASh-82TKF hampered the DIS’ reliability - to the point that fitting the ASh-73TK from the Tu-4 was considered for serial production, even if this would have meant a significant reduction in performance. The RD-20 caused lots of trouble, too. Engine reliability was generally poor, and re-starting the engine in flight did not work satisfactorily – a problem that, despite several changes to the starter and ignition system, could never be fully cured. The jet engine’s placement in the tail, together with the small tail wheel, also caused problems because the pilots had to take care that the tail would not aggressively hit the ground upon landings, because the RD-20 and its attachments were easily damaged.
Nevertheless, the DIS basically fulfilled the requested performance specifications and was, despite many shortcomings, eventually cleared for production in mid 1948. It received the official designation Gudkov Gu-1, honoring the engineer behind the aircraft, even though the aircraft was produced by Lavochkin.
The first machines were delivered to VVS units in early 1949 - just in time for the Tu-4's service introduction after the Russians had toiled endlessly on solving several technical problems. In the meantime, jet fighter development had quickly progressed, even though a purely jet-powered escort fighter for the Tu-4 was still out of question. Since the Gu-1 was capricious, complex and expensive to produce, only a limited number left the factories and emphasis was put on the much simpler and more economical Lavochkin La-11 escort fighter, a lightweight evolution of the proven La-9. Both types were regarded as an interim solution until a pure jet escort fighter would be ready for service.
Operationally the Gu-1s remained closely allocated to the VVS’ bomber squadrons and became an integral part of them. Anyway, since the Tu-4 bomber never faced a serious combat situation, so did the Gu-1, which was to guard it on its missions. For instance, both types were not directly involved in the Korean War, and the Gu-1 was primarily concentrated at the NATO borders to Western Europe, since bomber attacks in this theatre would certainly need the heavy fighter’s protection.
The advent of the MiG-15 - especially the improved MiG-15bis with additional fuel capacities and drop tanks, quickly sounded the death knell for the Gu-1 and any other post-WWII piston-engine fighter in Soviet Service. As Tu-4 production ended in the Soviet Union in 1952, so did the Gu-1’s production after only about 150 aircraft. The Tu-4s and their escort fighters were withdrawn in the 1960s, being replaced by more advanced aircraft including the Tupolev Tu-16 jet bomber (starting in 1954) and the Tupolev Tu-95 turboprop bomber (starting in 1956).
The Gudkov Gu-1, receiving the NATO ASCC code “Flout”, remained a pure fighter. Even though it was not a success, some proposals for updates were made - but never carried out. These included pods with unguided S-5 air-to-air-rockets, to be carried on the wing hardpoints, bigger, non-droppable wing tip tanks for even more range or, alternatively, the addition of two pulsejet boosters on the wing tips.
There even was a highly modified mixed powerplant version on the drawing boards in 1952, the Gu-1M. Its standard radial powerplant for cruise flight was enhanced with a new, non-afterburning Mikulin AM-5 axial flow jet engine with 2.270 kgf/5,000 lbf/23 kN additional thrust in the rear fuselage. With this temporary booster, a top speed of up to 850 km/h was expected. But to no avail - the pure jet fighter promised a far better performance and effectiveness, and the Gu-1 remained the only aircraft to exclusively carry the Gudkov name.
General characteristics:
Crew: 1
Length: 12 m (39 ft 4 in)
Wingspan: 14 m (45 ft 11 in)
Height: 4.65 m (15 ft 3 in)
Wing area: 28 m² (301.388 ft²)
Airfoil:
Empty weight: 4,637 kg (10,337 lb)
Loaded weight: 6.450 kg (14.220 lb)
Maximum take-off weight: 7,938 kg (17,500 lb)
Powerplant:
1× Shvetsov ASh-82TKF 18-cylinder air-cooled radial engine, rated at 2,720 hp (2,030 kW)
1x RD-20 axial-flow turbojet with 7.8 kN (1,754 lbf) thrust as temporary booster
Performance
Maximum speed: 676 km/h (420 mph) at 29,000 ft (8,839 m) with the radial only,
800 km/h (497 mph/432 kn,) with additional jet booster
Cruise speed: 440 km/h (237 kn, 273 mph)
Combat radius: 820 nmi (945 mi, 1,520 km)
Maximum range: 3.000 km (1.860 mi, 1.612 nmi) with drop tanks
Service ceiling: 14,680 m (48,170 ft)
Wing loading: 230.4 kg/m² (47.2 lb/ft²)
Power/mass: 0.28 kW/kg (0.17 hp/lb)
Climb to 5,000 m (16,400 ft): 5 min 9 sec;
Climb to 10,000 m (32,800 ft): 17 min 38 sec;
Climb to 13,000 m (42,640 ft): 21 min 03 sec
Armament
4× 23 mm Nudelman-Suranov NS-23 cannons with 100 RPG in the outer wings
Five hardpoints for an external ordnance of 1.500 kg (3.300 lb)
The kit and its assembly:
This whif is the incarnation of a very effective kitbashing combo that already spawned my fictional Japanese Ki-104 fighter, and it is another submission to the 2018 “Cold War” group build at whatifmodelers.com. This purely fictional Soviet escort fighter makes use of my experiences from the first build of this kind, yet with some differences.
The kit is a bashing of various parts and pieces:
· Fuselage, wing roots, landing gear and propeller from an Academy P-47D
· Wings from an Ark Model Supermarine Attacker (ex Novo)
· Tail fin comes from a Heller F-84G
· The stabilizers were taken from an Airfix Ki-46
· Cowling from a Matchbox F6F, mounted and blended onto the P-47 front
· Jet exhaust is the intake of a Matchbox Me 262 engine pod
My choice fell onto the Academy Thunderbolt because it has engraved panel lines, offers the bubble canopy as well as good fit, detail and solid material. The belly duct had simply been sliced off, and the opening later faired over with styrene sheet and putty, so that the P-47’s deep belly would not disappear.
The F6F cowling was chosen because it looks a lot like the ASh-73TK from the Tu-4. But this came at a price: the P-47 cowling is higher, tighter and has a totally different shape. It took serious body sculpting with putty to blend the parts into each other. Inside of the engine, a styrene tube was added for a metal axis that holds the uncuffed OOB P-47 four blade propeller. The P-47’s OOB cockpit tub was retained, too, just the seat received scratched armrests for a more luxurious look.
The Attacker wings were chosen because of their "modern" laminar profile. The Novo kit itself is horrible and primitive, but acceptable for donations. OOB, the Attacker wings had too little span for the big P-47, so I decided to mount the Thunderbolt's OOB wings and cut them at a suitable point: maybe 0.5", just outside of the large main wheel wells. The intersection with the Attacker wings is almost perfect in depth and width, relatively little putty work was necessary in order to blend the parts into each other. I just had to cut out new landing gear wells from the lower halves of the Attacker wings, and with new attachment points the P-47’s complete OOB landing gear could be used.
With the new wing shape, the tail surfaces had to be changed accordingly. The trapezoid stabilizers come from an Airfix Mitsubishi Ki-46, and their shape is a good match. The P-47 fin had to go, since I wanted something bigger and a different silhouette. The fuselage below was modified with a jet exhaust, too. I actually found a leftover F-84G (Heller) tail, complete with the jet pipe and the benefit that it has plausible attachment points for the stabilizers far above the jet engine in the Gu-1’s tail.
However, the F-84 jet pipe’s diameter turned out to be too large, so I went for a smaller but practical alternative, a Junkers Jumo 004 nacelle from a Me 262 (the ancestor of the Soviet RD-20!). Its intake section was cut off, flipped upside down, the fin was glued on top of it and then the new tail was glued to the P-47 fuselage. Some (more serious) body sculpting was necessary to create a more or less harmonious transition between the parts, but it worked.
The plausible placement of the air intakes and their shape was a bit of a challenge. I wanted them to be obvious, but still keep an aerodynamic look. An initial idea had been to keep the P-47’s deep belly and widen the central oil cooler intake under the nose, but I found the idea wacky and a bit pointless, since such a long air duct would not make much sense since it would waste internal space and the long duct’s additional weight would not offer any benefit?
Another idea were air intakes in the wing roots, but these were also turned down since the landing gear wells would be in the way, and placing the ducts above or below the wings would also make no sense. A single ventral scoop (looking like a P-51 radiator bath) or two smaller, dorsal intakes (XP-81 style) behind the cockpit were other serious candidates – but these were both rejected because I wanted to keep a clean side profile.
I eventually settled for very simple, fixed side intakes, level with the jet exhaust, somewhat inspired by the Lavochkin La-200B heavy fighter prototype. The air scoops are simply parts from an Italeri Saab 39 Gripen centerline drop tank (which has a flat, oval diameter), and their shape is IMHO a perfect match.
Painting and markings:
While the model itself is a wild mix of parts with lots of improvisation involved, I wanted to keep the livery rather simple. The most plausible choice would have been an NMF finish, but I rather wanted some paint – so I used Soviet La-9 and -11 as a benchmark and settled for a simple two-tone livery: uniform light grey upper and light blue lower surfaces.
I used RAF Medium Sea Grey (Humbrol 165) and Soviet Underside Blue (Humbrol 114) as basic tones, and, after a black ink wash, these were lightened up through dry-brushed post-shading. The yellow spinner and fin tip are based on typical (subtle) squadron markings of the late 40ies era.
The cockpit as well the engine and landing gear interior became blue-grey (Revell 57), similar to the typical La-9/11’s colors. The green wheel discs and the deep blue propeller blades are not 100% in the aircraft's time frame, but I added these details in order to enhance the Soviet touch and some color accents.
Tactical markings were kept simple, too. The "38" and the Red Stars come form a Mastercraft MiG-15, the Guards badge from a Begemoth MiG-25 sheet and most of the stencils were taken from a Yak-38 sheet, also from Begemoth.
Finally, the kit was sealed with matt acrylic varnish (Italeri) and it received some mild soot stains and chipped paint around the cockpit and on the leading edges. Some oil stains were added around the engine (with Tamiya Smoke), too.
A massive aircraft, and this new use of the P-47/Attacker combo results again in a plausible solution. The added jet engine might appear a bit exotic, but the mixed powerplant concept was en vogue after WWII, but only a few aircraft made it beyond the prototype stage.
While painting the model I also wondered if an all dark blue livery and some USN markings could also have made this creation the Grumman JetCat? With the tall fin, the Gu-1 could also be an F8F Bearcat on steroids? Hmmm...
This is an alien deep-space figther craft with no atmospheric capability.
Minifig-scale.
Practice-project for upcoming "Starfighter" competition on HispaLUG.
Deep-space alien light star fighter.
Type: Light fighter
Origin: Alien
Atmospheric capability: None
Crew: 1
Armament:
Primary weapon: 2 medium plasma cannons, direct fire
Secondary weapon: 2 small mass-drivers
Speed: High
Range: low
Maneuverability: Extremely high
Shield: Electro-magnetic
Armour: None
This is a 720 part UCS TIE Fighter. Professional instruction for sale at www.techlug.fr or by email at setechnic-at-gmail-dot-com
A long-range prop fighter used by Yamatai's air force. Armed with 6 12.7mm machine guns and with hardpoiints for either rockets or bombs, this plane excels at escorting bombers, fighting enemy planes, and attacking targets on the ground.
The 123rd Fighter Squadron is stationed at Portland IAP, Oregon. The 123rd was designated as the 123rd Fighter Interceptor Squadron when it received their first F-15A/B's in 1989-1990. The F-15's received used to fly with the deactivated 318th FIS at McHord AFB, Washington. The 123rd FS report to the 142nd Fighter WIng.
The 142nd Fighter Wing mission is to serve the nation, state and community by providing mission ready units, personnel and equipment for: Domination in the air superiority arena; Federal augmentation in support of national security objectives; Response to state and local contingencies; and n Pro-active involvement in activities that add value to the people and communities.
The unit was established April 18, 1941, and activated in World War II and the Korean War. It is the grandfather to Oregon's other Air Guard units -- 173 FW, 270 ATCS, 116 ACS, 244 CBCS and 272 CBCS. The repertoire of aircraft has included F-51, B-25J, F-86, F-94, F-89, F-102, F-101, F-4C, C-131, C-130A, T-33.
Personnel strength includes 475 full-time employees (112 AGRs, 252 federal technicians, 58 Title 5 civilians, 53 state); 645 drill-status guardmembers; 1009 total authorized; 940 assigned (93.16% includes student flight); Officer: 102 authorized, 92 assigned (90.20%); Enlisted: 907 authorized, 786 assigned (86.66%); Student Flight: 62.
It is rully integrated into "Total Force" -- Air Expeditionary Force #9. The location in the Pacific Northwestern United States is key for air defense of the nation. The Air National Guard Base is co-located with civilian international airport. The base has numerous military and civilian support agreements to benefit state and local government agencies. Hence, Portland Air Base is a BIG operation. It is not a typical ANG facility because it is host to an Air Force Reserve Wing and several other ANG/ARNG units. The actual facility employs and/or supports nearly 3,000 employees. The unique operating environment and permits provides many services to area active duty military families and retirees since the nearest active duty military installation is nearly 200 miles away.
Previously designated as the 123rd Fighter Interceptor Squadron, the squadron was renamed the 123th Fighter Squadron in 1992.
The squadron converted to the F-15A/B aircraft in 1989/90, with most of those planes coming from the 318th FIS at McChord AFB, which was being disbanded.
The Unit has been flying the F-15 Eagle jet fighter since 1989. - The 142 FW has 15 PAI and 3 BAI/AR F-15A and F-15B Eagles.
More info at www.skytrailer.com/123 fs.htm awesome web page!
I have been meaning to getting around to build a fighter jet, but just never seemed to have the patience / know-how to do so. Well, I finally buckled down and built one. It has been a while since I last built an airplane, but I soon regained my familiarity with aircraft building.
The scale I built this in is not a typical scale of craft that I usually build in. However, once I obtained the pilot LEGO figure, I knew I had to build some sort of plane for him . Perhaps the most challenging part of the model to build was the back wheel supports and the air intake assembly (or attaching the front nose cone without having the whole front fall apart) on the cockpit.
This impressive fast jet fighter is built for operation in colder regions of northern America. Uncomplicated technics, open cockpit for fast emergency exit (3 of 5 prototypes crashed - don' t worry, we are working on that!), enough firepower - you won't need more.
Features:
- retractable skids
More photos from the airplane: www.flickr.com/photos/48593436@N06/sets/72157625975706483/