The Little World

And a lovely job it was, too.

The modern Airfix kit will please and delight the builders of cockpits as a great deal of effort has been put into this first stage. Gone are the days of a lumpy pilot figure plugged into a plastic rod from one side of he fuselage, or a bare seat in the middle of a plastic plate.

Now there are multi-piece seats, pedals and dashes, sticks and decals to represent very detailed instrument panels. Take a bit of time to follow the painting instructions ( still unfortunately just Humbrol numbers ) and bed the decals properly – and you’ll get a rewarding cockpit. This Swift had a choice between a plain seat cushion or one draped with seat belts.

Likewise, the construction of the forward wheel well is commendably detailed and it cements to the cockpit – the whole went in the fuselage without fettling.

But where was a lead weight to go – there is very little space in that slim nose. I managed two slivers over the wheel itself and had eventually to resort to a large slab glued onto the back of the pilot’s seat bulkhead. Eventually it tipped forward.

The engine is missing, but the intake nozzle trunking is there, as well as the exhaust fan. You’ll never see them once the fuselage is closed up, but you know they exist.

Dry-fit was marvellous – no filler whatsoever.