Orion Field Posted September 13, 2022 Share Posted September 13, 2022 I wanted to share the new Windecker YE-5A Eagle from Out of the Box Models. The Eagle was purchased in 1973 by the US Air Force to study the Radar Detectability of Composite Aircraft. The sole YE-5A was given USAF serial Number 73-1653. The YE-5A was destroyed in a crash during a classified project in 1985. Below is the first test print of the kit. It also comes with 3D printed clear parts (not shown, waiting on clear resin delivery) as well as decals for 73-1653 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JohnEB Posted September 22, 2022 Share Posted September 22, 2022 (edited) For good color photos of civil Windeckers, look at the free FLYING magazine archive on google. Might be useful for painting details and interior. Look in the 1969-73 timeframe. It appeared on the cover, so that should help you find the articles. The (white on the example shown) trim stripes as seen above were standard on the civil ships. IIRC, the base color was molded into the plastic so the aircraft were not painted. Dr. Windecker was a dentist in Midland, Texas who developed a new type of plastic. It was not fiberglas...more like an early composite. Hence, the Air Force's interest in a possible stealth material. The FAA didn't know how to deal with the material, so they imposed a lot of structural requirements...which basically helped bleed the company's funds. Edited September 22, 2022 by JohnEB Fix punctuation. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Orion Field Posted September 22, 2022 Author Share Posted September 22, 2022 26 minutes ago, JohnEB said: For good color photos of civil Windeckers, look at the free FLYING magazine archive on google. Might be useful for painting details and interior. Look in the 1969-73 timeframe. It appeared on the cover, so that should help you find the articles. The (white on the example shown) trim stripes as seen above were standard on the civil ships. IIRC, the base color was molded into the plastic so the aircraft were not painted. Dr. Windecker was a dentist in Midland, Texas who developed a new type of plastic. It was not fiberglas...more like an early composite. Hence, the Air Force's interest in a possible stealth material. The FAA didn't know how to deal with the material, so they imposed a lot of structural requirements...which basically helped bleed the company's funds. Thanks! That was really interesting! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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