Any of us who suffer from AMS (Advanced Modeler Syndrome) are never satisfied with the “stock” kit, even one as fine as Tamiya’s F-16 series! Luckily there is a cure for those who love that insane level of detail but don’t have the time to do it ourselves, and Aires has long delivered the goods. This cockpit set continues to provide the quality we expect from Aires, however there are a few issues with getting it into the advertised kit it was “designed” for.

Quickboost has provided the modeler with replacement parts for the Academy P-38J kit. Cast in their standard gray resin the parts had no flash and are easily removed with a razor saw. The Quickboost parts are direct replacements for the Academy parts C10 and D4. The difference between the parts lies with the air scoops on top; on the Academy parts the scoops were molded solid, while the Quickboost scoops are cast hollowed out.

For modeler who is uncomfortable with drilling out these scoops the Quickboost.net parts are perfect and in that regard I can recommend their use. I want to thank IPMS/USA and Quickboost for the opportunity to do this review.

Polish Wings 12 is part 2 and continues the story of the Mig-29 in Polish service started in Polish Wings 11. This work covers the ex-East German aircraft obtained from the Luftwaffe in 2002. It is a softcover book of 96 pages that includes 226 color photos and 36 drawings (side profiles and 4-views).

Following past format each aircraft is covered individually with photos when in German service and with many more in Polish color schemes. The eighteen single seat Mig-29s are covered extensively in 60 pages. The remainder of the book is devoted to the eight two-seat trainers – Mig-29UB. The last three pages are devoted to cockpit views of these aircraft. Additionally, it is noted on the inside of the front cover that Techmond will be releasing decals (1/32,1/48 & 1/72) for the Mig-29 based on information published in this book in the near future.

Thanks first to Airscale for providing IPMS USA this product sample…. We sincerely appreciate it!

This is a simple, yet effective upgrade for the huge Airfix Mosquito. Consisting of a small set of instrument and panel decals, and an acetate sheet, the instructions guide you through installation. I unfortunately had sold my Mossie before this upgrade showed up; last week! (The postmark showed Dave Morrissette had put it in the mail back in March!). Lost in transit; a first for me. Guess I’ll be buying another Mossie… Because this would be an excellent upgrade to an already noteworthy kit.

Thanks once again to Chris for providing IPMS USA more of his excellent products; in this case, a brace of modern snakes!

The AIM-9X program has been yet another joint effort (Navy/AF) intended to provide better weapons to our warfighters. The AIM-9 series is one of the more effective close-in weapons; it’s notoriously accurate, and usually does the job better than radar guided weapons. Of course, you are in a knife fight at this point if you must use these missiles, so effective and accurate are both pluses. The AIM-9X is the latest generation Sidewinder; it is tied in to helmet-cuing sight technology, and goes where the pilot is looking. It’s an excellent follow-on to the AIM -9L (Lima) and -9M (Mike)… both which have extremely successful history as lethal close-in air-to-air weapons.