The Little World

And it isn’t even Hockey Night In Canada, Brought To You By B/A ( Canadian joke… ). This is, however an RCAF Sunderland that operated out of Northern Ireland in WW2.

It was kept on Lough Erne along with other flying boats like Catalinas and sortied through the Donegal Corridor out to the North Atlantic – and back again after some very long patrols. The boats of the squadrons stationed there had a number of U-boat kills as well as more passive victories with convoys escorted peacefully.

The luck of the Airfix draw was that the decals were actually that of an RCAF squadron and the further luck of the library was the book I keep of Canadian WW2 aircraft that firmed up the details of the camouflage scheme.

However, Houston, we do have a problem. This is far too big to fit in an IKEA Billy bookshelf. Currently it lives in an outside hangar in my collection room, but it looks as if it is going to be the same problem that the KB-29A presents – it’ll be a custom cabinet or nothing. If I proceed to a B-47 or B-52 one day that will make the decision for me. I despair of ever encountering a 1:72 B-36 kit.

If there is anything on this kit – a kind gift from friend Warren – that makes me proud it is the paint job on the clear cockpit canopy. The gun turrets are the best of a bad lot but the cockpit is actually good. I am also a little bit proud of the filthy water-level mark that shows where she rides in the water. All the real ones looked like that in the photos.

I think I can finally put paid to my 1960’s experience.