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CD48084 - O-2 Skymaster


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CD48084 will be a 1/48 sheet featuring markings for the Cessna O-2 Skymaster; with options covering the USAF service of the type from Vietnam till the 1980s, and possibly one or two foreign aircraft. Designed for the old Testors kit, it will be available in early summer.

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Great news Kursad. I have my Cessna O-2 partly built and I had intended to do one of the USAF's FAC aircraft used in Vietnam in the all black scheme.

What was neat was the large white lettering "THE FAC" on top of the wing. I have several shots including the ones from the Squadron book on these aircraft used in Vietnam but my biggest problem is relating serial numbers to the various aircraft. Since these aircraft were overall black the red serials were very difficult to see.

I also have another O-2 sheet produced by Draw Decals for the Testors kit but it has a different FAC scheme.

Kursad, from your research, by any chance were any of these aircraft in any sort of camo? I am thinking mostly grey or black.

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Great news Kursad. I have my Cessna O-2 partly built and I had intended to do one of the USAF's FAC aircraft used in Vietnam in the all black scheme.

What was neat was the large white lettering "THE FAC" on top of the wing. I have several shots including the ones from the Squadron book on these aircraft used in Vietnam but my biggest problem is relating serial numbers to the various aircraft. Since these aircraft were overall black the red serials were very difficult to see.

I also have another O-2 sheet produced by Draw Decals for the Testors kit but it has a different FAC scheme.

Kursad, from your research, by any chance were any of these aircraft in any sort of camo? I am thinking mostly grey or black.

Hi Chris,

In addition to the overall-gray scheme, I will provide markings for at least one black O-2 and one in the later Euro-1 scheme applied in the 1980s. I will also try to do a camouflaged Vietnam O-2B if I can find information about the camouflage scheme.

Portuguese O-2's were camouflaged and served until fairly recently, and I will try to include markings for one. I really like the later Chilean Navy scheme but unfortunately their aircraft seem to have been equipped with a different door.

I don't have exact serial for the black aircraft marked with "THE FAC", but I will provide the marking anyway; explain that I have no evidence that it was carried by that specific aircraft and leave it to the modeller to apply it or not.

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somewhere I have some slides of an O-2 I took at Lemoore way back that was gull gray and white with yellow bands on the fins with NJ codes. I seem to recall however that is was a private aircraft and not part of the VF training squadron at the time. They were flying TA-7C's at the time. I also have some slides of the CA ANG 196th squadron in their O-2's which they flew when they moved from Ontario International Airport over to the then March AFB after loosing their F-102's. The O-2 was flown between the F-102 and the transition into the F-4's. Will work on digging these out.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I agree with the "THE FAC" or "DON'T SHOOT" O-2's & the all black O-2's for USAF Skymasters. For foreign options, I've found a few pictures of other operators.

El Salvador El Salvador AF (gov't) O-2 website

o2_002.jpg

o2_001.jpg

o2_003.jpg

also Sri Lanka, Portugal and Rhodesia/Zimbabwe. I'll try to find some good images for these; that I can post without obvious copyright issues...

:cheers: and happy modeling, Bryan

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Ok those camo ones are very nice and something different than the standard USAF ones.

As an aside, I remember my Testors kit being the chrome plated version so I had to strip it off. Along with that my kit did not have that extra lower observation window so I had to cut it out myself. I pretty much shelved it since I did not have enough info about the rear compartment and no decals. I am guessing that it probably packed with some sort of radios and stuff like that, at least for the FAC birds.

Looks like I may have to pick up a couple of more kits when this sheet comes out.

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  • 7 months later...
  • 1 month later...

This sheet is now being printed and it will be part of my February batch - this first profile is one of the more plain options on the sheet, but there is a good variety of options on the sheet including an all-black Vietnam example with "THE FAC" over the wings, a few USAF and US Army examples, and a Portuguese bird.

o2promo1.jpg

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To get a Portuguese one (FTB337) from the 0-2 is needed to do some changes on the windows, wings, engine exhausts, hub propellers...

Yes you're right. I 've been wanting to do a Rhodesian Lynx. But it is based on the Reims (License built in France) FTB337.

So a lot of mods are needed like you say.

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  • 1 month later...

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