Academy as re-boxed the very good Accurate Miniatures SBD-5 and it has added value to it by providing a mask set and a small photo-etch fret.

Upon opening the box you find 7 plastic sprues -one of them clear-, plus a PE fret for minor details like seatbelts and a really nice mask set to take care of that greenhouse canopy. Please note that the mask set is customized to the open and closed canopy options, meaning you get a full spare set of masks for another SBD in your collection (and who does not have a few of them?). You are provided with markings for 3 Dauntless, one of them a Marine Corps one, with mission tally markings.

Despite the years, the molds hold really well with no flash anywhere to be found and the panel lines remain sharp and well defined.

Aircraft and History

The Beechcraft T-34A Mentor is a single engine, two place (tandem cockpit) military trainer developed in 1948. The design is based on the highly successful Model 35 Beechcraft V-tail Bonanza but uses a conventional tail and narrower fuselage seating two in a tandem arrangement. The T-34A first entered service with the US Air Force in 1953 and replaced the North American AT-6 Texan as the initial primary trainer. Two years later the Navy ordered the T-34B for the same role at the Air Force. The T-34A remained in service with the USAF for just a few years until it was replaced by the T-37 “tweet”. T-34’s that were not sent to flying clubs or foreign military sales were transferred to the USAF auxiliary Civil Air Patrol until they were retired in 2003.

Instructions

The kit instructions are printed on 8 half-sized sheets, including the aircraft’s history, a sprue diagram and color guide, 3 sheets of exploded assembly drawings, 3 sets of color four views showing two Mk. III’s and one Mk. I.

Decals

Decals are provided for the three aircraft represented in the drawings. When I obtained the review kit at the Phoenix IPMS Convention, there were no decals with the kit. I contacted Special Hobby and they promised to send a set of decals. I waited a couple of months and finally just used decals from my spares box, printing the numbers on my computer. Naturally, I had just installed the decals when an envelope came, from all places Malta, containing the kit decals. I used a few of them and the results were most satisfying.

The latest journal of Cross & Cockade International - Autumn 2018, features a front cover photograph of Jean Chaput in front of his Nieuport 11, N940. This color 1916 photograph was based on the Autochrome technology developed by the brothers Auguste and Louis Lumière. The inside rear cover features color illustrations by Juanita Franzl of Lt. Dawson’s and Lt N. E. Williams’ Ship’s Camels. The outside rear cover features color illustrations by David Méchin of Jean Chaput’s aircraft. If you check out the web site link above, you can get additional sample pics of the current issue.

In my stash are a couple of Hobby Boss 1/48 EMB-314 Super Tucanos. These aircraft are used by several nations as the primary and advanced trainer platforms, as well as light attack and CAS roles for their Air Force pilots. Among those air forces are those from For the modeler it represents a blank canvas for a multitude of colorful camouflage and markings. For that reason, I was eager to review this excellent reference paperback offered by Casemate Publishers.

This 80-page paperback follow-up to the EMB-312 series by the same publisher provides the modeler with a fully-packed and detailed reference book on the type. The reader will learn about the conception and development of the Super Tucano and the differences from the earlier 312 series, along with a short detailing of the Tucano’s run at JPATS for the US.