The C-54D was a derivative of the DC-4, which was first designed in 1938. It had a 117 foot, 5 inch wingspan, was 94 feet, 3 inches in length, and was powered by four Pratt & Whitney R-2000-25 engines of 1,450 HP each. By the end of production, Douglas had turned out 1,241 machines. They’re best remembered for their role in the Berlin Airlift where they became known as "Candy Bombers" for dropping candy to refugees by small parachutes on the way in to offload supplies.

The kit comes in a large colorful box, and contains 352 parts molded in light gray plastic. The model has recessed panel lines, and many parts had light flash on them. Due to the high parts count, I highlighted the letters on the sprues to make them easier to identify.

Model Art Issue 920 is typical of other Model Art magazines in that it is written entirely in Japanese, with occasional English words, usually in article titles or in captions. This issue deals specifically with the F-86 in Japanese service, painting the Streak Eagle version of the F-15, Orange Hobby’s F-35 kit and a comparison build of the Mercedes-Benz 300SL from Tamiya. Plus, there are lots of advertisements showing what is available and new, always useful for building up that wish list.

This is another of the In Action series of books from Squadron Publications, serving as a follow-up and addition to the previous two versions in In Actions 5 and 65 by other authors. This version includes many pictures not previously included, along with lots of color photos.

Naturally, my eye was initially drawn to the book by the full cover shot of the VF-111 F-4B in their early markings. And, having developed a love/hate relationship with the aircraft after working on the F-4 for over 15 years in the Air Force, I had to give it a look.