History

The Miles M.8 “Peregrine” was the first twin engine to be developed by Miles Aircraft Company, and was built at their Woodley Plant in the UK, first flying in Sept. 1936. It was a low wing, twin engine monoplane powered by 205 hp. Gypsy Six air cooled engines. It had a retractable landing gear, and could probably be considered to be one of the world’s first small “executive” transport types. Besides a pilot and co-pilot, it had seats for six passengers. Since Miles had already put the “Magister” trainer into production for the RAF at their Woodley Plant, the plane was never developed, although later, one further prototype was constructed for the Royal Aircraft Establishment, using American Menasco engines. This aircraft was used by the RAE as a test bed. With the beginning of World War II, the type faded into oblivion,

Serving in the U.S. Navy in the late 1980’s, these were the weapons that I could “neither confirm nor deny” were present on my aircraft carriers. The B43 was in service between 1959 and 1991, and could have been carried in a nuclear conflict aboard any U.S. aircraft certified for bomb loads (a rather lengthy list). This new release from Eduard will allow for a unique loading of any aircraft that served during the Cold War in nearly any branch of the service as well as by some NATO allies. Construction of the bombs is clear and anyone with limited experience with resin and brass will be able to put these to use.

Like a lot of modelers, I take this hobby a bit more seriously than I should at times. This kit is a reminder that it's actually fun to build models. Taking real-life subjects and “egg shaping” them into a whimsical mimic seems to be a growing sector based on the number of kits and subjects receiving this treatment. In this case, AFV Club has chosen the F-5E/N Tiger II. The F-5E/N series was an improved version of the F-5 Freedom fighter that incorporated modifications from the unsuccessful F-20 Tigershark. Leading-edge extensions and more powerful engines made it the perfect aggressor aircraft to simulate the MiG 21. This kit draws inspiration from the Navy’s VF 111 “Sundowners”. But enough of that serious stuff.