The Westland Wessex HU.5 was a British commando/utility helicopter upgraded from the Sikorsky H-34. They were also used by the Royal Navy for SAR work and I was lucky enough to spend a week with our local SAR Flight at HMS Daedalus back in 1981 as part of a work experience programme. I was taken for a number of flights including one where I played the part of a ‘survivor’, being winched up and down from the cabin. Fun times!

Italeri released their 1/48 Wessex HU.5 in 2012 and it is a fine kit, though not without a few issues. Aires’ Quickboost brand has a number of improvement sets for the kit, including this new 3D printed one. The nose of the Wessex 5 has a large and very distinctive debris guard over the nose air intake. In the kit, this is represented by a two-part construct which traps a piece of provided plastic mesh. This looks OK when made, but cries out for a finer, better solution.

Enter Quickboost with this 3D printed debris mesh guard. Created in a medium grey resin, this is a great example of the incredibly fine detail that can be achieved with this new technology. Rather than multiple parts, the whole of the intake guard is printed as one piece with exceptionally fine meshwork and internal detail. By comparison, the kit’s intake guard is very chunky and lacking finesse, while the mesh effect is created using a piece of flat plastic mesh which isn’t particularly fine and will need to be carefully shaped somehow. Out of the box, it’s OK, but the Quickboost part is a huge step up in detail and finesse and will really elevate the all-important front end of the Wessex.

While not an inexpensive accessory, the Quickboost Wessex Debris Mesh offers a superb upgrade for the Italeri kit and is highly recommended. My thanks to Aires for supplying the sample to IPMS/USA.