Once again, Eduard steps up with an innovative photo etch accessory to add realism and context to 1/72 scale aircraft. In the tradition of their superb PE sets to go in and on aircraft kits, the growing series of pre-painted PE flight deck and airfield operating surfaces adds this little beauty to its ranks.

Pre-painted in the wood stain flight deck color, this little gem provides a convincing and contrasting base to the blues of US Navy aircraft of the period. A few snips, and a tiny bit of filing or sanding, and the deck section is ready to mount to a firm base or slide underneath a favorite WW II Navy carrier plane. The only drawback is the small size, as larger aircraft like TBF/TBM Avengers and SB2C Helldivers may seem to dwarf the piece – it seems better-suited for the smaller types like the F4F Wildcats, F6F Hellcats, and SBD Dauntlesses.

After receiving this review sample, I have to say I have yet another favorite publisher. I have a particular interest in the Pacific theater of WWII, and this book succinctly discusses the history of the air war between the start of the conflict at Pearl Harbor through the battle of Coral Sea. It also discusses many of the battles in between. The book includes not just the US and Japanese forces, but also sections dedicated to Allied forces from Russia, England, the Netherlands, and the AVG in China.

There are ten sections to the book:

History

The Nakajima B5N torpedo and attack bomber was developed during the late thirties to replace the 1936 Yokosuka B4N biplane carrier-based torpedo bomber. Roughly comparable to, but also decidedly superior to, the U.S. Navy’s Douglas TBD-1 Devastator torpedo bomber, the B5N was code named Kate by the Allies when the name-codes came into use during 1942. Beating out the Mitsubishi B5M, which had an elliptical wing and a fixed landing gear, the B5N featured manually folding wings and a retractable landing gear. Strongly influenced by the Northrop A-17A attack bomber then in service with the U.S. Army, the B5N was produced in two basic models, differing mainly in powerplant. The B5N1 was equipped with an 840 hp. Nakajima Hikari 2 radial engine, while the later version, designated B5N2, had the upgraded 1000 hp. Nakajima Sakae twin-row radial engine, which was housed in a more streamlined cowling.

First, thanks once again to Carol Pesch at Hobbico for providing IPMS/USA yet another new item to review. Grateful as always, we are… keep the cool stuff coming!

Here we have a plastic model of a plastic airplane. Admittedly, this new addition to the airways is graceful, and definitely has a different look. When IPMS/USA provided me the opportunity to build Hasegawa’s new ANA 787, it was an easy choice. I am hopeful this bird is as successful as everyone expects!

I tend to build rather fast; that has pitfalls, but in the case of this model, the build only took three separate sessions; the painting and decal effort added another six! The kit consists of approximately 57 parts; included is the standard metal screw weight thorough the forward internal bulkhead to ensure the nose sits on the ground. A smoke-gray clear stand is included, along with gear doors in the closed position if you choose to show the model in flight.

If you have read my review of the 1/48 scale detail set from Master Model for the Messerschmitt 163, this is going to seem eerily familiar, but as Halloween is approaching, eerie is not a bad thing. The topic for this review is a new set designed to upgrade your 1/72 scale Komet, and is the same as the company’s offering in 1/48. As with my review of that set, there is no recommended kit to use these new parts on, so I chose an Academy Me-163B/S release that was sitting in my stash. As with any of the other Master Model releases that I have come in contact with, these parts will greatly improve the look of your small-scale Komet.