scoobs

Been around the mighty E-2D since 2010 and have a few flight hours in it - figured that when the Deltas started showing up in Japan with USN and JASDF units Hasegawa wouldn't be far behind with an update to excellent E-2C kit but so far no dice - they might be waiting on the Aerial Refueling (AR) configured Deltas to arrive in order to get the full bang for their buck. An interesting announcement is Hellers' unexpected attempt at something resembling a Delta (or a cross between a Charlie and Delta): E-2C Hawkeye (82300) in 1:72 - Heller -Scoobs

Will soon be departing on a New Year's trip to Puerto Rico - are there any decent hobby shops around the island? Would love to support a local business if possible. Best regards, Scoobs

Based on what I've come across the FM-2s on ASW duty in the Atlantic rarely carried external weaponry - they worked in "hunter-killer" teams with the TBFs/TBMs torpedo bombers and provided scouting observation and flak-suppression support for the lumbering Avengers. FM-2s routinely carried 5-inch High Velocity Aerial Rockets (HVARs) late in the war but I haven't come across any photos of Atlantic fleet squadrons carrying them: Grumman Wildcat/Martlet - Aircraft - Fighting the U-boats - uboat.net Probably the best book on the subject that might assist you with further research

Awesome news! Just received in the mail my first RF-8A kit and my initial impression is good - not only for the kit but also the box as Sword has finally stepped up their game and is now providing a durable top-opening container. Look forward to building several of these - a family friend earned his first Air Medal flying recce Crusaders with VMCJ-2 during the Cuban Missile Crisis. -Scoobs

Huzzah - I was mustering my strength to make a post suggesting the same topic but you beat me to it! Spent some time in the right seat of Jayhawks zipping around the southeast back in my misbegotten youth - would love to have one of the USAF Pensacola T-1s that 20+ years of USN & USMC student NFOs have trained on. -Scoobs

Small world! My dad logged 2 hours of flight time in the left seat of XV242 when the Brits came out to Hawaii for RIMPAC ‘86. He said the most unique feature was the big pipe that ran down the main walkway of the cabin - part of the hastily installed in flight refueling (IFR) probe that had been added to the aircraft before she headed south for the Falklands. -Scoobs

The Hasegawa G4M1 is indeed a rough (& dated) kit - why Hasegawa hasn't updated it with something modern like their G4M2 kit is mystifying. However, before you drive yourself crazy trying to beat together this dinosaur, be aware that Sword has stepped up to the challenge and there is a new G4M1 kit inbound: http://arawasi-wildeagles.blogspot.com/2022/09/heads-up-new-betty-by-sword-in-172.html -Scoobs

Good stuff - looking forward to the sheet featuring USN & USMC options! As a former double-anchor guy who went through the NFO pipeline within the past 50 years, these orange & white terrors of the Pensacola sky bring back memories. I note the telltale VT-86 squadron emblem on the common markings sheet; I didn’t get to spend much time in the T-39 but all my homies who ended up in Prowlers or Super Hornets did. Of note, 2014 saw the final T-39 student training flight at VT-86, closing out almost 50 years of USN/USMC training in the mighty Sabreliner – T-39Ns #7 & #11 had the fin

Nice work! As an a former Navy AEW guy this is right in my wheelhouse - I've got the Broplan kit but hopefully awaiting Amodel or Sova to release a CAEW version. Dare I ask how much it would cost to print another for purchase?? -Scoobs

Pretty sure the kill marking is in regards to the solitary aerial victory claimed by F-14s during the Gulf War involving a VF-1 Tomcat blasting an Iraqi Mi-8 "Hip" helicopter. VF-1 & VAW-116 were both squadrons part of Carrier Air Wing TWO (CVW-2) embarked aboard USS Ranger (CV-61). https://theaviationgeekclub.com/el-coyote-the-story-of-vf-1-wolfpacks-desert-storm-kill/ https://www.navysite.de/cruisebooks/cv61-91/index.html Of note, at least two Sun King E-2s sported the victory marking post-conflict so it's possible the photographed Hawkeye wasn't actu

Another plug for "Deep Sea 129" - or more accurately EC-121M BuNo 135749 / PR ("Peter Rabbit") 21. The excellent "World Watchers: A Pictorial History of Electronic Countermeasures Squadron ONE (ECMRON-1) and Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron ONE (VQ-1)" from Ginter Books has numerous photos of VQ-1's special mission of EC-121s, including the ill-fated PR21. Of note is that particular aircraft had a long association with VQ-1, being the first Navy EC-121 deployed to Vietnam in October 1964. At the time she had the more traditional white over dark blue scheme - presumably she was later repain

Tragic news! Mark and I had corresponded before in the past regarding several schemes that eventually made it onto his wonderfully diverse & detailed decal sheets. So sorry for his family's loss and what it likely means for the Wolfpak brand. -Scoobs

Pre-ordered one myself from cyber-hobby.com - always wanted to build a Saturn IB as my old man was Officer Of the Deck (OOD) aboard USS Hornet (CVS-12) during the AS-202 capsule recovery off Wake Island in August 1966. Dad's got some good stories about this recovery and recently did a write-up on it for the USS Hornet Sea Air Space Museum. Hadn't heard a peep from Cyber-Hobby folks in months so I followed up - guess I now have a "partial order" in bound from China which might have this long overdue kit. -Scoobs

Good to hear - you might yet have better luck with the Navy archives, but in all likelihood they're pulling from the same squadron war diaries and AARs that are now available on sites like Fold3.com. Undoubtedly such records documenting individual aircraft numbering & marking once existed at the squadron level, but they were likely chucked at "non-essential" at the end of the war. As mentioned, I got lucky in researching my Dad's cousin, a backseater in night attack TBMs, who was KIA over Taiwan in early 1945 - his AAR lists the side numbers of all the Avengers involved. Great find for

For what it's worth - VC-81's Aircraft After-Action Report (AAR) for the 3 March 1945 strike against Chichi Jima (same island of George H.W. Bush fame). Confirms that LT(jg) Huston was flying FM-2 BuNo 74037 at the time of his death, although unfortunately no details regarding the side number. Having spent a considerable amount of time researching the activities of two relatives who flew for the USN in the Pacific War, it's pretty rare at this late date to find documentation matching individual BuNos to squadron side numbers, short of a match between a known photograph & individual aviat