For me, Aires has always been synonymous with quality aftermarket products. This latest release is designed for the 1/32nd Hasegawa Bf-109F-2. Like many of their cockpit sets, this set is based off of resin parts, accentuated with photo-etch metal parts and a pre-printed decal film. The instructions are on an 8.5x11 sheet of blue paper. They are a little vague with some parts, but present nothing that can’t be determined with good references.

The resin is molded in light grey on 11 resin pour stubs. I did have a bubble on the base of the stick. This was easily fixed with some Apoxy Sculpt. The rest of the detail is exquisitely rendered. My floorboard was slightly warped but a little hot water took care of it. The seat is beautiful and looks great, especially with the addition of the PE seatbelts.

Usually, when I get a Dragon 1+1 kit, it contains two of the same plane or AFV. Not this one. It contains the LTV-4 amphibious landing vehicle and a Jeep, which can be put in as cargo or, with the ramp down, can be shown loading or unloading.

The LVT was developed as a civilian ambulance/rescue vehicle which would operate in swampy areas where “normal” wheeled and tracked vehicles were useless. It had a watertight hull, with propulsion in water provided by the movement of the tracks. The unit could go directly from water to land to water with no problems. The Marines in the Pacific Islands found this particularly useful, as many islands had offshore coral reefs which would stop landing barges well offshore. The “Amphtracs” (or “Amtracs”), as these amphibious tractors were called, could cross the reefs and go up on the beach as far as needed.

I was fortunate enough to review the new Kagero Fokker Dr. I: The Aces’ Aircraft, Legends of Aviation in 3D book. This is the first book in a series of aviation books they are releasing in 3D. Now don’t get freaked out, the whole book is not in 3D, just some prints that show the plane and its components. You get a really nifty 1950’s style pair of 3D glasses, too (the old blue and red kind that some of you might remember from your childhood).