Women Warriors 166

Brazil

China

IDF

Ukraine

Ryazan Higher Airborne Command School, Russia

LCOL Teri Poulton flying a C-17 Globemaster III to Afghanistan in 2010

Captain Nicole “Cougar” Jansen-Hinnenkamp, a Weapons System Officer for the F/A-18 Hornet, is attached to Marine All-Weather Fighter Attack Squadron 224 at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, S.C.

First Aid Nursing Yeomanry 1918

RCAF

HRH Princess Elizabeth

Israeli Defense Forces IDF

Germany

US Air Force Loadmaster

IDF

French Medic

Romainian Soldier with RPG launcher

IDF

IDF

ATA pilot Jackie Moggridge

IDF

IDF

Belgian F-16 Pilot

WREN mechanic

IDF

U.S. Air Force F-15C Eagle fighter Interceptor pilots of the 3rd Fighter Wing, Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, left to right, Major Andrea Misener, 19th FS; Captain Jammie Jamiesen, 12th FS; Major Carey Jones, 19th FS; Captain Samantha Weeks, 12th FS. (U.S. Air Force)

South Korea

WAAF

To see more Women Warriors, click on the tags below:

Arma Hobby North American P-51 B/C Mustang Batch Build in 1/72 Scale Part II

The first fourteen steps in the instructions are building the cockpit and other interior features. That’s half the steps! The radiator under the fuselage is well represented, but I seriously doubt the photoetch parts will be visible on the finished model. The bottom part of the assembly (part A30) has two ejection pin towers which almost look like they might belong there, but they must be removed for the part to fit.

The fuselage sides have a lot of detail right out of the box. There are several decals for each side to enhance the look, which is great because the sidewalls are more visible than the instrument panels on most aircraft. Kudos to Arma for including all the placards!

The kit provides a choice of seats, the Schick-Johnson seat is on the left and the Warren McArthur type is on the right. I had to look them up, the Schick-Johnson was introduced first, but either type could be used as they were installed as they arrived at the factories. Some sources indicate they could also be swapped out in the field during maintenance. Honestly, I’ll be guessing in many cases as to which seat will go into which model. Seatbelts are from the kit PE fret, and look the part after paint and a wash.

Arma provides parts to build three different configurations for the equipment behind the seats. According to Detail & Scale Vol. 50, the 85-gallon fuel tank was fitted on the production lines beginning with P-51B-10-NA and P-51C-5-NT but could also be refitted to earlier Mustangs. The tanks adversely affected the aircraft’s center of gravity, and so were only filled to 65 gallons in service. At some point a “+” sign was added near the data block to remind everyone of the fuselage tank, but I couldn’t pin down just when that happened.

All twelve cockpit assemblies together. Whew! One thing to watch out for is the instructions in step 1 show the brace behind the seat to be mounted in the holes seen here in front of the seat. The brace should actually mount to the step in the cockpit floor.

The instrument panel takes four decals and a piece of PE. I left the PE off as it really didn’t add anything other than texture under one of the decals which would be almost impossible to see even if you knew to look for it.

Everything has a groove, slot, and/or pin to fit into and aligns well. Don’t forget the tailwheel! As you can see here, much of the equipment behind the seat will be invisible once the fuselage is closed up. By this point you have to open up the two indicated recesses if you are modeling one of the F-6 photo-reconnaissance aircraft, or the recess for the HF/DF loop if you’re modeling one of the CBI birds. The instructions don’t mention opening the HF/DF loop hole but show the base going into it later so plan ahead if your subject needs the loop!

In step fifteen of the instructions you finally close up the fuselage. Fit is great. I was a little worried about getting all the cockpit assemblies to line up right, pay particular attention that the cockpit floor fits into the slots on both sides and that the instrument panel sits right. Other than that, flexing the fuselage sides a bit while gluing seemed to seat everything correctly.

Part III here: https://inchhighguy.wordpress.com/2022/05/06/arma-hobby-north-american-p-51-b-c-mustang-batch-build-in-1-72-scale-part-iii/

Eduard Lavochkin La-7 of Captain Pyotr Bazanov HSU in 1/72 Scale

La-7 of Captain Pyotr Bazanov HSU, 156 IAP, Germany, April 1945.  He was credited with 18 individual and 6 shared victories.  Bazanov survived the war and retired as a Lieutenant General in 1985.

Grumman JRF / G-21 / OA-9 Goose Color Photographs

The idea for the Grumman Goose begam with a request from several New York businessmen for a commuter aircraft. Grumman’s design was for a twin-engine amphibian which could seat up to eight passengers. It could also be appointed as a “flying yacht”, complete with luxury accommodations and a bar. (NASM, Rudy Arnold collection)

The potential utility of the design was not lost on the U.S. Coast Guard, who soon placed orders for the Goose outfitted for the Search And Rescuer (SAR) role. Pictured at Floyd Bennet Field in 1940 are two JRF and a Hall PH flying boat in the Yellow Wings scheme.

The U.S. Army Air Corps designated the aircraft the OA-9 and ordered 26 examples in 1938. These were used as light transports in addition to SAR duties. Another attractive scheme.

The British Fleet Air Arm also adopted the type, and the Goose was also operated by Canada. Here is FB486 in the Temperate Sea Scheme on a delivery flight in 1942.

A fine study of a Goose over the inhospitable Alaskan landscape.

After America’s entry into the war, the USCG used the Goose for anti-submarine patrol. At least two kills were claimed, but post-war analysis reduced this to one damaged. Here Coast Guard personnel load depth charges. Modelers should note the color and condition of the ordinance. (NASM, Rudy Arnold collection)

The Goose was well-suited for rescue work, here is a posed shot demonstrating casualty evacuation. (NASM, Rudy Arnold collection)

The red surround to the national insignia dates this photograph to the Summer of 1943. An interesting detail is the retractable wheel, which was apparently painted without the benefit of masking the tire! (NASM, Rudy Arnold collection)

AZmodel Vought OS2U Kingfisher in 1/72 Scale

There is one color and two black-and-white photos of this particular Kingfisher.  It served in the Aleutians during 1943, and was carried aboard the Omaha-class light cruiser Detroit (CL-8).  The white stripes on the tail surfaces are Aleutian theater markings, and like many U.S. aircraft serving in the Aleutians, she carries non-standard national insignia.  Photos of the actual aircraft in this post:  https://inchhighguy.wordpress.com/2019/02/13/os2u-kingfishers-in-the-aleutians/

Construction posts here: https://inchhighguy.wordpress.com/2022/04/08/azmodel-vought-os2u-kingfisher-build-in-1-72-scale-part-i/

Yokosuka D4Y “Judy” Units Book Review

Yokosuka D4Y “Judy” Units

Series:  Osprey Combat Aircraft 140

By Mark Chambers, Illustrated by Jim Laurier

Softcover, 96 pages, index, 30 color profiles

Published by Osprey Publishing, September 2021

ISBN-10: ‎1472845048

ISBN-13: ‎978-1472845047

Dimensions: 7.4 x 0.2 x 9.8 inches

The D4Y Suisei (Comet) was a Japanese carrier-based dive bomber, designed to replace the Aichi D3A “Val”.  It was initially powered by a license-built Daimler-Benz DB 601 twelve-cylinder inline engine which gave it an impressive speed and sleek profile.  Later versions were powered by a Mitsubishi Kinsei 42 fourteen-cylinder radial engine due to reliability and maintenance issues with the inlines.  The type suffered from an unusually long developmental period while various bugs were worked out, which delayed its service introduction until the middle of the Pacific War.  By then Japan had suffered numerous setbacks, and the general decline in pilot training and loss of aircraft carriers reduced the potential impact of the design.

The book covers the Judy’s design history and operational service, along with reconnaissance, dive bombing, nightfighter, and Kamikaze variants.  The type was first used operationally when a developmental aircraft was used for reconnaissance, flying from Soryu during the Battle of Midway.  Similarly, the fourth prototype operated from Shokaku during the Battle of Santa Cruz in October 1942.  Notable successes were the sinking of USS Princeton (CVL-23) by a Judy Kamikaze, and the near-sinking of the USS Franklin (CV-13) by conventional dive-bombing attack.  Kamikaze operations are covered in detail, with a number of pages devoted to the tactics and procedures which they employed.  The final section is devoted to the use of the Judy as a nightfighter.

Like the rest of the Osprey Combat Aircraft series the highlight of the book is the full-color profiles.  These are well-rendered and thoroughly researched.  However, like most Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft, the camouflage was limited to the green over gray scheme with only some variation in the standard markings so there is not much variety.  The earliest profiles are of 1943 machines, so if you’re looking for the Midway or Santa Cruz Judys you’ll need to keep looking.  Despite that the book is well-researched and enlightening, and any book on Japanese aircraft (particularly in English) is most welcome.  Recommended.

Curtiss Wright P-40 Kittyhawk Walk Around Part III

Photographs taken at the Tri-State Warbird Museum, Batavia, Ohio

Part I here: https://inchhighguy.wordpress.com/2022/05/01/curtiss-wright-p-40-kittyhawk-walk-around-part-iv/

Women Warriors 165

Ukraine

IDF

Serbia

Commodore Grace M. Hopper, USN. Commodore Hopper was a Yale mathematics professor who joined the WAVES in 1943. She was a pioneer in computing, and the inventor of the programming language COBOL. She retired in 1986 after 43 years of service. The Arleigh Burke class destroyer Hopper (DDG-70) is named after her.

Brazilian MP

Brazilian Blackhawk

USAF A-10 pilot Capt. Jennie Schoeck and actress Moon Bloodgood in-front of an A-10 during the filming of Terminator Salvation (080718-F-2907C-555)

ATS Dispatch Rider 1941

WASP Dawn Seymour in the cockpit of a B-17 Flying Fortress

Auxiliary Territorial Service plotters at work at 428 Battery, Coast Defense Artillery.

IDF

Syrian T-80

IDF

Kurdish YPJ volunteer

Russia

US Air Force security

Sweden

IDF

WASP pilot Mimi Lindstrom-Segall

US Army, former Philadelphia Eagles Cheerleader Rachel Washburn

IDF

IDF

US Navy WAVEs on the bow of the Battleship USS Missouri (BB-63)

IDF

US Army Pave Hawk MH-60

Commandant of the WRAF Dame Helen Gwynne Vaughan

To see more Women Warriors, click on the tags below:

AZmodel Vought OS2U Kingfisher Build in 1/72 Scale Part II

The paintjob always begins with a surface primer and check for seems and other flaws. Any panel lines which have been sanded away and not properly restored can also be fixed at this point.

My particular Kingfisher carried an unusual set of markings, which were also quite faded so normal decals would not be accurate. I sent away for a custom-sized set of painting masks from Maketar which is my go-to product for painting insignia (Maketar here: https://shop.maketar.com/) The masked lines on the tail surfaces are for the Aleutian theater markings which were white stripes.

Photographs show the Insignia Blue was faded so a lighter mix of blue was sprayed on. In between each color, the seams of the masks were filled with Micro Mask to prevent any bleed through.

The camouflage was also faded and worn, in some areas the Blue Gray was worn away revealing the overall Light Gray finish underneath. I simulated this with a combination of tonal variations using the airbrush and sponge chipping until I was happy with the effect.

Many aircraft in the Aleutian Theater carried non-standard insignia, and this Kingfisher was a prime example. Early in the war the size of the national insignia was increased to reduce friendly-fire incidents. Subsequent directives added the bars and red surround, but on this Kingfisher the enlarged stars left insufficient room for the normal proportions so the size of the bars is smaller than specification. In addition, the insignia on the starboard upper and port lower wings should have been removed, but this was not done on this aircraft.

Here the panel lines have been given a wash and the major components are ready for assembly.

The finished model after a flat coat. I liked this subject for the weathered finish and unusual insignia. The kit needs a little TLC but builds up into a decent Kingfisher. If I build this kit again I will use a vacuform canopy set and side-step the problems I had with the kit parts. Overall though, I have always had a fondness for the Kingfisher and am glad to finally have one in my display case.

More finished pictures here: https://inchhighguy.wordpress.com/2022/04/26/azmodel-vought-os2u-kingfisher-in-1-72-scale/

ICM Polikarpov I-16 of Boris Safonov HSU in 1/72 Scale

I-16 Type 24 of Boris Safonov, twice HSU, CO of the 4th Squadron, 72nd Mixed Aviation Regiment, Soviet Navy Northern Fleet, Vaenga USSR, August 1941.  Safonov was credited with 20 individual and 6 shared victories.  While it is likely Safonov flew this aircraft, it was not assigned exclusively to him.  The slogans are “For Stalin!” on the port side and “Death to Fascists!” to starboard.