Shyhart Decals has released a decal sheet for a commemorative scheme flown by an F-4F and a Tornado in 2007, celebrating the 50 years of the aeronautical research institute of the German Air Force.

The aircraft were repainted in International Orange and had the German Flag in the nose, rudder and wing tips. The decal sheet provides decals for the German Flag around the nose of both aircraft, but you are directed to mask and paint the rudder and wing tips with the German national colors. There are instructions as to the size of each band and with straight lines, it should be easy to mask using tape.

These two aircraft also wore lots of physics equations in the fuselage and wings, representing all the fluid and aerodynamics research that goes into modern aviation.

Two Bobs Aviation Graphics are well known for their attention to detail, color accuracy, instructions and graphics, and quality. This latest decal set is no exception. The F-15A Fightin’ 49ers decal set comes with two decal sheets in a protective Ziploc sleeve (6”x 10”) and one-page glossy color instructions (17”x11”) that folds into a four-page booklet.

Included on the instructions, and their webpage, is a brief history of the 49^th Fighter Wing:

“Originally designated as the 49th Pursuit Group in 1940, the unit was one of the first combat units to deploy from the US to the Southwest Pacific after the attack on Pearl Harbor. There were 43 pilots that flew with the 49th who became aces to include Major Richard I. Bong.

Syhart Decals has released a decal sheet for a commemorative scheme flown by an F-4D in 1989 celebrating the North Dakota Centennial. The aircraft was repainted in a vibrant blue. The decal sheet includes recommendations for color matches from Humbrol, Revell, Tamiya, Gunze, Model Master, and the RAL standard. The aircraft wore a very elaborate painting in the lower wing area reproducing the state seal.

The complex decoration of the lower wing is reproduced as an elaborate multipart decal, which will fit within the different missile bays, landing gear bays, etc., of Phantom II. I would recommend starting with the central decal and building the rest of the state seal from the center towards the periphery.

This is an on-the-sheet review, so I have not tested the decals themselves, but the decal sheet itself is printed in vivid colors and perfect registry. They seem thin, and they are quite glossy, which likely means they will conform to the surface detail well.

A great surprise upon opening these decals is finding a set of masks as an alternative to the decals themselves. Then the secondary surprise was finding out that you’re provided enough information to do either the 2001/2002 early type or the 2003/2004 late type Demo scheme. This isn’t obvious from the cover sheet for the decals so it was definitely nice to find in the package. Someone who really knows the display teams would probably recognize the different schemes by year without needing a reference on the cover page. The decals are for the early type and the masks are for the late type. The decals on what I’m learning are a classic dark blue and white background for Syh@rt, making them stand out clearly. All of the decals for the paint scheme are in the gloss black striping. The modeler will need to paint all of the other shades of gray and silver.

Syhart Decal has provided IPMS/USA reviewer corps with a wonderful decal set for the F-16AM Falcon, tail number E-006, with acolor scheme for the Royal Danish Air Force in “Dannebrog 50 Years F-16” special paint scheme in 1/72nd scale. Looking online for E-006, this F-16 variant will be an F-16A Block 20 MLU.

In the Package

There are three decal sheets provided with all the colorful anniversary colors on the two larger sheets. The third sheet is smaller and has the stencils. Markings represent how the F-16AM Falcon flew in 2024 at air shows.

A bonus is the addition of 3-D printed parts for the forward wing probes and ventral antenna under the engine intake for increased accuracy in the build.

The information sheets show all sides of the airplane. Because of the large swaths of decals, a color-coded placement guide is a nice tutorial to locate them. Exterior paint information is also provided in FS color codes and color descriptions.