The Little World

I drifted past the RCAF historian’s site and glanced at the trainers – in this case at the new ones.

The BAE 100-series two-seat Hawk seems to have been a hit with the RCAF as an advanced fighter trainer. I looked at Scalemates and was encouraged to see that AIrfix make a new kit of it. As I am a firm fan of new Airfix products I determined to see if I could convert one to my purposes.

The price was fair, if not precisely as low as Hobby Boss, and I was pleased to see that the new moulding was very precise. The contours of the plane are entirely unfamiliar to me, so I look forward to this as an learning exercise as much as a build.

Of course, very little flash, and no sink marks to view. No short-shots, either, so perhaps they reserve the good stuff for export and save the duds for Phil Flory. Good looking decal sheet, but the markings didn’t seem to be the same as those I saw on Skaarup’s pictures. His Hawks are dark blue with white markings, rather like the RAF example also included in the kit. I worried about how I was going to get the white ” Canada ” on the side neatly.

Then I looked further on the net and hit a surprising image from the RCAF training base at Kamloops, B.C. A Hawk painted in brown/green upper works with a black underside. The caption said it is a commemorative scheme for an RCAF squadron that served in the UK in WWII.

Then I looked back at the Airfix box and decal sheet…and at the colour call-out portion of the instructions. The second scheme there is the exact aircraft seen on the internet image – flying out of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. It’s not a complex scheme, but there it is – straight out of the box!

Don’t mind if I do…

This is to be a Saturday Historic Modelling Friends club project, with suitable airbrushing here at home. It is already fun just looking at the parts in the box.