Aerobonus is part of Aires and focuses on enhancement additions such as pilot figures for kits. This product provides a pilot figure seated, in 1/32^nd scale for the Trumpeter/Revell P-51B/C Mustang. The set comes in four parts (head, hands, and set/body) all perfectly cast on a single block. Preparation was easy by using a razor saw to cut all the parts free (after a good washing). I then used the back of a #11 blade to scrape what few seams there were and glued everything together. I used perfect plastic putty on the arm seams and wiped with water and the seams were gone. I primed with Alclad gray primer.

Painting was done with acrylics using Scale 75 for the flesh and various sources for the rest. The seat was painted with ModelMaster paints. As you can see from the included paint guide, you need to look on the internet to get more specific but with all the references, it was not too difficult. A final flat coat and the project was done.

Brengun, from the Czech Republic, specializes in aftermarket details; for the most part releasing drop-in resin or photoetch replacement parts.

This set is intended to enhance the 1/48 Skyhawk A-4 C/E/F/M. This set can be used with any of the 1/48 Skyhawk kits, like the Hasegawa, ESCI/AMT/Italeri, Hobbycraft, HobbyBoss, or Monogram. If I am missing any other maker in the list, it is an honest mistake on my end.

Please note that the instructions list the variant of the airplane to be in 1/72. That is clearly a mistake, this set is molded in 1/48 scale.

The parts are molded in grey resin, free of bubbles or imperfections and with great surface detail. The attachment points to the casting blocks are miniscule and removal and clean up should be an easy task.

I do not think the RATO rockets saw widespread use in the Skyhawk fleet, so you might want to do some research as to which version, or even down to tail number you are modeling.

Harpia Publishing has been producing very high quality aircraft books for a while. These books are lavishly illustrated and have covered subjects from subjects covering Iraqi MiGs to Chinese aircraft to specific planes like EMB Tucano. The latest volume is Modern USMC Air Power written by Joe Copalman. This is 256 pages of soft cover wonderfulness. The first thing that hits you is that the pictures in the book are amazing pictures all in perfect focus, great flying shots and lots and lots of them. Wow!

I have included a picture of the table of contents. As you can see, there is a brief history and then it moves into the training aircraft, helicopters and all kinds of planes. The table of contents is below:

With both engines mounted astride the vertical stabilizer, the supersonic Tu-22 Blinder was unique among modern bombers. It entered Soviet Air Force service during the height of the Cold War in 1961 and was a contemporary of the USAF’s B-58 Hustler. Though a direct comparison between the two aircraft is close to the “apples and oranges” conundrum, the Tu-22 was not as fast as the B-58, but was more versatile. In addition to its conventional and nuclear bombing capabilities, it could fly reconnaissance, anti-shipping, and radar & comm jamming (ECM) missions.

The book was first published in 2005 and this volume is a reprinted soft-cover version. Burdin and Dawes (who is also the translator) document the development, system design, operations, and combat experience of this bomber. Below are the Chapter headings which show the scope of the coverage.

The P-51K is basically the same airframe as the P-51D with a few differences. Other than being manufactured in Dallas Texas, the only visible difference is the cuffless Aeroproducts propeller instead of the “Cuffed” Hamilton Standard propeller. The two blade differences can be seen in a photo from Trumpeters P-51B kit and the Quickboost propeller. This set is designed to work on the Tamiya P-51K/Mk.IV Mustang, which I do not have yet to show what the Tamiya kit propeller looks like.

The propeller set comes in a sealed bag with picture of the parts and what portions to trim. This is the extent of the instructions which is all that is needed for this simple set. The resin is flash free and zero bubbles for a flawless surface. There is a small part of excess resin at the tips of the propeller blade that needs to be trimmed and sanded flush. This excess portion helps ensure all the necessary resin reaches the propeller tip and does not leave a void.