Patton: The Final Generation

Historical Background

During the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, a captured Soviet T-54 was driven onto the British Embassy's garden at Budapest. After the armour and the gun were inspected, it was concluded that the armour is able to withstand hits from 20-pounder rounds of British Centurion tanks and 90-mm rounds used by the US M47 and M48 Patton tanks. Royal Ordnance took note of this development and consequently developed and produced the famous L7 105-mm gun. In Europe it led to a discussion between the UK, France and West Germany to develop a 'Europanzer' based around the gun (the programme broke down and the parties went with their separate ways with the UK adopting a 105 mm-armed Centurion, the French with the AMX-30 and the West Germans with Leopard 1). In the US, it led to a decision to adopt and produce the gun under license (as the M68) and design a new platform based on the M48A3 Patton. Studies were started in 1957 and was designated M68 in 1959. However the Bureau of Ordnance renamed it as the M60, after the year of its acceptance.

The M60 is based on the M48, with a one-piece steel cast hull divided into three compartments : driving at the front, fighting in the middle and engine to the rear. The bottom hull is still boat-like although it has a straight front slope (the M48 has rounded slope). The M60 series was powered by a Continental AVDS-1790-2 V12 air-cooled, twin-turbo diesel engine, allowing a range of up to 480 km while reducing fuel consumption and servicing. Initially, the M60 had the same clamshell-shaped turret as the M48, but this was changed to a 'needle-nose' shape in 1963 on the M60A1. The new turret face presented a smaller frontal profile to the enemy, while at the same time optimising the layout of the turret on the same width as before. The original M60 had no commander's cupola, which was introduced in the M60A1. The fully rotating cupola is armed with a 12.7mm M85 machine gun, allowing the commander to operate it from behind cover. A M73 7.62mm machine gun was provided as a co-axial weapon. The main armament is a licence-built L7, known as the M68. The M68 can fire a whole range of American-built rounds: be it APDS, HEAT, HEP (HESH) and APERS (HE) but also foreign-manufactured ones should the need arise.

The original M60 was upgraded to M60A1 in 1963. Apart from the new turret, it was two tons heavier, requiring a shock absorber on the second wheel pair and the relocation of the first return roller. The armour was thickened further (e.g. 254mm RHA equivalent for turret face compared to 217mm RHA equivalent for M60). In 1972, the Add-On Stabilization system was fitted, but still not allowing the the tank to fire on the move. In 1974-75, the M60A1 received the RISE (Reliability Improvements for Selected Equipment) upgrade program, which include upgraded engine design and a new track type. In 1977, they were given RISE Passive program, consisting of passive IR sights for the driver, gunner and the commander, eliminating the need for the IR searchlight above the gun. USMC M60A1 RISE Passives were outfitted with Explosive Reactive Armor (ERA) blocks in the 1980s. In 1969, the M60A2 appeared. Nicknamed 'Starship' because of its 'space age' looks and technology, it was intended to be an interim design pending the introduction of the MBT-70. It has a different, low-slung turret than the rest of the family, which was somewhat spoiled by the rather high machine gun cupola. The main armament was the M18E1 152 mm gun-missile launcher, similar to the one arming the M551 Sheridan and capable of firing the MGM-51 Shillelagh missile. The M60A2 was a disappointment, with many rebuilt as M60A3 or converted to AVLB vehicles when the MGM-51 Shillelagh system was withdrawn in 1981. 

In 1978, work for a vastly enhanced version, designated M60A3 was begun. The hull and turret remain as the M60A1, but it was fitted with two banks of smoke grenade dischargers, AN/VVG-2 laser rangefinder, M21 ballistic computer and turret stabilisation system. From mid-production onwards, the commander's cupola was eliminated, as it actually created a shot trap, and was replaced with the Israeli-style 'Urdan' cupola. Some M60A3s were fitted with AN/VSG-2 thermal sight, creating the M60A3 TTS (tank thermal sight). Other variants of the M60 family include M60AVLB (Armored Vehicle-Launched Bridge, with 60-ft scissors-type bridge) and M728 CEV (Combat Engineer Vehicle) with a folding A-frame crane and winch and armed with a M135 165 mm demolition gun. It was also commonly fitted with a D7 bulldozer blade.

The M60 family first saw action with the Israeli Defence Force during the 1973 Yom Kippur War. The M60 proved superior to the T-54/55 and T-62 facing them, but suffered losses when confronted with the portable 9M14 Malyutka (AT-3 Sagger) anti-tank missiles. The Israeli M60s were later upgraded to Magach 6/7 standard and saw further combat during Operation Peace For Galilee in 1982. Iranian M60s saw combat during the Iran-Iraq War despite being handicapped by spares problems and acquit themselves well against the Soviet-made Iraqi tanks, including the T-72.  In 1991, during Operation Desert Storm, 200 Marine Corps M60A1s took part in the battle at Kuwait Airport, destroying some 108 Iraqi T-54/55, T-62 and T-72 tanks for the loss of just one M60A1. The M60, by this time relegated to training role,  was phased out of US Army service in 2005. The type however still see service with several other countries.

The Kit

The Academy 1/35 kit of the M60A1 RISE Passive was released in 1993. The parts are spread among five dark green sprues, upper and lower hull halves, vinyl one-piece tracks, polycaps and tyres, plastic mesh and a decal sheet. I have never actually seen the Tamiya version of the M60A1 but the Academy seemed to be a reworked copy of the Tamiya kit (the motorization hole under the hull gives the clue). The parts are well-moulded, with the usual exceptions for injection-moulded parts, such as solid fender support brackets (which should be hollow). The kit also allows one to build an M60A1 without the ERA blocks while equipped with the passive IR sight. A small number of accessories are also included. Decals provide markings for two tanks : 'Rolling Thunder' in desert camouflage and an anonymous M60A1 in NATO 3-colour camouflage.

Construction

As usual with armour kits, construction starts at the bottom of the hull. Another attack of laziness strikes again and I decided to leave the motorisation hole as it is, afterall, the hole is at the very bottom of the hull and not visible to the casual observer. The upper half of the side hull was cemented into place which resulted in a small gap. Nothing to pull my hair about, it just need a bit of putty and sanding. Next, the assembly of the shock absorbers. It was quite a shock (pun intended) when I realised that the struts don't meet up with the suspension. So I used a road wheel to see if this would be unsightly. Luckily the road wheels hide this major problem and I left the absorbers as they were. The suspension arms are of a very tight fit and I have to sand them down. I decided not to fit the wheels at this time and finished the lower hull by cementing the rear panel into place.

Construction then moved to the upper hull. There weren't much to do here, just assembling the exhausts, some stowage bins, the headlights and their guards and some other items on the rear deck such as the gun travel lock. The driver's hatch was made moveable but I decided to glue it shut. The ERA blocks that need assembly were done so but I decided to leave them off the model at this time to facilitate painting and decaling later on. The upper and lower hull were then mated together. There are gaps at the rear which need to be filled. Next was the turret. The turret shell was assembled and there is a gap where the mantlet meet body of the turret. The turret is also the place where most of the options for building an ERA-less M60A1 were noted. Having already decided to build an ERA-equipped M60A1, most of the parts for the plain M60A1 were discarded. The gun barrel is the usual two-piece affair but no gaps was encountered the halves were cemented. For the bustle rack, Academy provided jigs to assemble it, easing the task. They also provide templates for the wire mesh (somewhat inexplicably, I used the one for the floor of the rack only). The commander's cupola was also assembled but remain separate from the turret. The hatch cover remain loose as I was still undecided whether to use the commander's figure or not.

Painting and Decaling

I decided to paint my M60A1 in the desert scheme. I used the same concoction I used for my M1A2 SEP, that is 40% XF-59 Desert Yellow, 40% XF-57 Buff and 20% X-2 White. The tracks were painted XF-64 Red Brown and washed with AK Interactive's Track Wash. The rubber parts of tracks were painted H77 Tyre Black. The vision blocks were painted Gloss Black - a colour I believe more suitable for a buttoned-up tank. I then sprayed some Gloss Clear to help the disreputable Academy decals conform to the surface, although I still doubt their ability to cling over raised details, such as the bolt heads on the ERA blocks. The decals were then applied and as I thought, their cardboard-like stiffness made them unable to cling over the raised details, tearing them. I ended up using only the decals for the lines and the nickname on the gun barrel and the tank serial number. The ID markings, of which a few were torn, was done using paint. The stencil on the left rear fender has a spelling mistake: 'Two' instead of 'Tow'! It wasn't used however as it folded upon itself and cannot be salvaged. The rest of the decals however suffered from silvering despite repeated baths in Mr Mark Softer. The model was then washed with a wash mix of Flat Black and Red Brown.

Finishing

I started off by putting on the tracks. They are of the old-style heat-type and I have to hide the joint underneath the fender. They are also quite loose and I have to superglue them onto the return rollers. The commander's cupola was then inserted into place and I finally decided to close the commander's hatch. The ERA blocks can now be placed. However, Academy chose to simplify matters here (not always a good thing) by having the blocks attached directly to the main body while the Tamiya kit (upon which this kit is apparently based on) include the mountings which were placed onto the turret before attaching the blocks. This apparently affected the fit of the blocks. To make them adhere better, I used superglue rather than the normal cement. I then apply Mig Productions' Gulf War Sand pigment in enamel thinner all over the lower hull and rather sparingly on the wheels and the tracks. Once dry the excess was removed with a stiff brush while those on the track pads was removed with a tissue paper dipped in thinner.

I then add some of the accessories that came with the kit ( 'some' because the rest were used in my M1A2 kit). It looked bare and I added more stuff from Academy and Tamiya accessory kits and also the spares box. They include MRE boxes, 105mm ammo crates, water cans, 40mm ammo box, a sleeping bag, an M60E3 machine gun and a portable stereo.

Conclusion

Being the main battle tank for the US Army for decades, there are a number of kits dedicated to it. However they are all  using 1980s (or even earlier) technology for kit-making. However of all the existing M60A1s to date (the AFV Club M60A1 is yet to be released at the time of writing), the Academy offering is the best (well at least to me). I heard that the ESCI kit is better but as it wasn't readily available, the Academy kit took the top spot. The Academy kit have generally good fit although the ERA blocks should be better represented a la the Tamiya kit. Above all it does look like an M60A1 to me!

The Last Of The Weasels

Historical Background

In 1953, the McDonnell Aircraft Corporation began designing the replacement for its F3H Demon fighter. In the chain of events that followed, the US Navy ordered the prototype of the F4H-1 to be evaluated as a fleet defense interceptor. McDonnell named the F4H-1 (redesignated F-4 post-1962) as Phantom II, continuing the tradition naming their aircraft with 'spooky' names. The suffix 'II' reflects the fact that this was the second aircraft named 'Phantom', after the first Phantom (FH-1) of the late 1940s. Although designed as a fleet interceptor, the-then Secretary of Defense, Robert S. McNamara pushed for the Phantom to be used by the USAF as part of his attempt to create a unified fighter for all branches of the US military. A F-4B was used in a fly-off competition named Operation Highspeed against the Convair F-106 Delta Dart, in which the Phantom won. Following this, the USAF swallowed its pride and borrowed 29 USN F-4Bs in January 1962 for evaluation. Liking what they saw, the USAF ordered their version of the Phantom, with the designation F-110A Spectre. It differed from the F-4B by being an all weather tactical fighter and able to carry a wide selection of weapons, including nuclear. The wheels are wider, resulting in distinctive wing bulges. The engines were the Dash 15 version of the J79 with option for cartridge start. Refueling system was changed to the USAF's boom method, primary sensor was the AN/APQ-100 radar and a duplicated flight controls for the second pilot at the back. With the introduction of the Tri-Service aircraft designation system in September 1962, The F-110A was redesignated F-4C.

The F-4C was developed further into the F-4D with upgraded electronics, allowing the usage of 'smart' munitions such as laser-guided bombs. Other F-4C variants were the RF-4C tactical reconnaissance aircraft and the EF-4C Wild Weasel IV SEAD aircraft. The EF-4C was equipped with AN/APR-25 Radar Homing and Warning System (RHAWS) aerials, AN/APR-26 missile launch warning system, ER-142 ECM receiver and AN/ALQ-119 external ECM pod. The offensive weapons were AGM-45 Shrike ARM and cluster bombs but was unable to carry the AGM-78 Standard ARM. The definitive USAF Phantom variant was the F-4E which finally introduced a built-in General Electric M61 Vulcan 20mm cannon. The nose profile was also slimmed down with the introduction of the AN/APQ-120 radar. The 'E' was the most numerous variant with 1,370 built for USAF and various export customers. 116 of USAF F-4Es were converted into F-4G Wild Weasel V SEAD aircraft. While retaining the radar of the F-4E, the cannon and its associated equipment were removed to make way for the APR-38 RHAWS (later replaced with AN/APR-47). External ECM pod include the ALQ-87, AN/ALQ-101, AN/ALQ-119 and AN/ALQ-131. The F-4G can carry the AGM-78 and later on, the AGM-88 HARM, AGM-65 Mavericks can also be carried. A further 18 F-4Es were converted as attrition replacements.

The F-4G entered squadron service in 1978 and were deployed to three active fighter wings: the 35th at George AFB, California; the 3rd TFW at Clark AFB, The Philippines and the 52nd TFW at Spangdahlem AFB, Germany. While earlier Wild Weasel aircraft fought in Vietnam, the F-4G were only used in action during Operation Desert Storm, with only the 3rd TFW not deployed to the Gulf. The Weasels flew 3,942 sorties, fired 1,000 missiles and destroyed 200 missile sites. The Weasels used the same tactic used during the Vietnam War: the 'Hunter-Killer' team where the Weasels destroy the site's radar emitters allowing conventional attack aircraft to destroy it using normal munitions such as cluster bombs. Another tactic used during Desert Storm was enticing Iraqi SAM sites to radiate by using unmanned drones simulating attack aircraft. The active sites were then subjected to ARM (especially AGM-88) barrage. Following the war, some of the 35th TFW were assigned to the 190th FS, 124th FW Idaho ANG while the rest of the F-4G fleet were transferred to 561st FS, 57th FW at Nellis AFB. The F-4Gs remained in service until 1996, being the last of Air Force Phantoms.

The Kit

Fujimi came up with new-tool 1/72 Phantoms in 1985 and like Hasegawa, has sprouted various versions and boxings (from what I read, it seems that it was Fujimi who started this trend). The F-4G was originally released in 1986 and the kit I used is a 2006 reboxing. From initial observation, it looks OK to me with good details, although not as good as Hasegawa's when I compared it to my F-4B. In fact, I think the Fujimi engraved detail is too fine and might be lost under the paint. The cockpit is what is expected from a 1980s kit - sparsely detailed with the instrument and side panels being decals. Stores include two 370-US Gal wing tanks, one 600-US Gal centreline tank, AN/ALQ-119 ECM pod and most inappropriately, an air combat load of four AIM-9 Sidewinders and four AIM-7 Sparrows. Three planes are represented in the decal sheet, all in SEA camouflage scheme:

1. 69-582, tailcode 'WW', 39th TFTS, 35th TFW, George AFB, CA

2. 69-290 tailcode 'GA', 39th TFTS, 35th TFW, George AFB, CA

3. 69-210 tailcode 'PN', 90th TFS, 3rd TFW, Clark AFB, The Philippines

Construction

The cockpit parts and the sidewalls were first painted Gunze H317 Dark Gull Grey. As mentioned beforehand, the instrument and side panels are in the shape of decals and were applied accordingly. The rear cockpit lacked the details of a vanilla F-4E, let alone an F-4G! The ejection seats are so-so although they do have the face curtain handles moulded (out of scale of course). The cockpit assembly was then cemented to the nose wheel bay cum forward fuselage bottom. The fuselage halves can then be cemented together. Next were the intake assembly which were made up of the outer wall and the splitter plate/inner wall. Fit is not that good however, with seam lines running between the intake and the fuselage. The next step is concerned with the wing but I skipped it and continue with the fuselage. The APR-38 fairing was assembled and then cemented onto the nose. There is a bit of fit problem with the halves but the fairing fit nicely to the fuselage. This was followed by the ram air intake on the cheeks.

Moving on to the wings, holes were drilled into the bottom half of the wing in order to place fairings located there - there is however no need to drill holes for the pylons as they were already pre-drilled. The wing halves were then cemented together and the assembly was then mated with the fuselage, more or less finishing the initial part of the build. I did not cement the tailplanes at this time and would paint it separately.

Painting and Decaling

All three marking options feature the T.O-1.1.4 camouflage and since all three feature the same pattern, I proceeded with the painting, and only thinking about the marking options afterwards. The bottom colour (FS36622) was painted using Tamiya AS-16 Light Grey. The upper camouflage colours were FS30219, for which I used a mixture of Tamiya XF-59 Desert Yellow and XF-64 Red Brown; FS34102 was Tamiya XF-67 NATO Green and XF-13 JA Green was used for FS34079 while the radome and the forward part of the fairing were painted XF-1 Flat Black.  The  exhausts were painted Burnt Iron while the metallic parts of the tailplanes were painted Steel and and Steel mixed with Silver. For markings, the 35th TFW Weasels were quite boring, so I chose the 3rd TFW F-4G with the shark face. The Fujimi decals are comparable to Hasegawa's but without the off-white decals plaguing Hasegawa kits of the same vintage. The decals were then received the Mr Mark Softer treatment.

Finishing

The remaining parts can now be permanently cemented onto the model. Nothing of issue here except for the loadout which came with the kit. The air combat loadout was replaced as follows: an AGM-45 Shrike ARM on each of the outer wing pylons, an AGM-78 Standard ARM on the starboard inner pylon and a AGM-65 Maverick on the port inner pylon. Two AIM-7 Sparrows on the rear fuselage missile recesses and an ALQ-119 ECM pod on the port forward missile bay. All the missiles and the ECM pod came from Hasegawa Weapons Set. While OK, the fit of the AGM-78 halves was not good, resulting in a visible seam line. I decided not to enhance panel lines of this model and just doing it on the control surfaces only.

Conclusion

This is my second Fujimi kit and like the MiG-21, the Phantom is a nice and easy build. There is some fit problem but the fix wasn't tough either. The cockpit however really needs aftermarket help as it featured not even an F-4E cockpit layout. Anyway, the Fujimi Phantom is cheaper than the Hasegawa counterpart. Sure, the detail and accuracy is less than its more well-known rival but it could still be made into a nice representation of a F-4G. 

Fighting Viper

Historical Background

Analysis of the aerial campaign during the Vietnam War showed the need for better air combat training for USAF pilots and air superiority fighters. Based on his experience during the Korean War and as a fighter tactics instructor in the early 1960s, Col. John Boyd, together with mathematician Thomas Christie developed the Energy-Maneuverability (E-M) Theory to model a fighter aircraft's performance in combat. Their work called for a small, lightweight aircraft that could maneuver with minimum energy loss and incorporating an increased thrust-to-weight ratio. In the late 1960s, Boyd, together with defence analysts Pierre Sprey and Tom Christie, aeronautical engineer Harry Hillaker and test pilot Col. Everest Riccioni formed the core of the so-called 'Fighter Mafia'. The Fighter Mafia worked quietly behind the scenes to pursue a lightweight fighter as an alternative to the USAF's F-X project (which eventually become the F-15 Eagle). In 1969, Defense Secretary Melvin Laird and his deputy, David Packard, became interested with the proposal and threw their support behind the idea. The Fighter Mafia won a $149,000 to study the concept and the money was split between Northrop and General Dynamics to build the embodiment of the E-M concept: a small, pure fighter with no provisions for ground attack capability. Northrop build the P-600 while GD build the Model 401.

In May 1971, the Air Force Prototype Study Group was established for the now-named F-XX programme, with Boyd a key member. One of Boyd's proposal was for a Lightweight Fighter (LWF) and a Request For Proposals was issued on 6 January 1972 calling for a 20,000 lb-class air-to-air day fighter with a good turn rate, acceleration and range and optimized for combat at speeds between Mach 0.6 and 1.6 and altitudes of 9,100-12,000 meters. Apart from Northrop and GD, three other companies responded. The Air Staff selected Northrop's and GD's proposal as the YF-17 and YF-16 respectively. The USAF hierarchy opposed the concept of a Lightweight Fighter, viewing it as a threat to their F-15 programme. To overcome the resistance, the LWF proponents led by the Fighter Mafia advocated, successfully, the idea of complementary fighters in a high/low mix. The first YF-16 was rolled out on 13 December 1973 and the maiden flight was made at Andrews AFB on 20 February 1974, although the USAF was still non-commital to the LWF. At the same time NATO members Belgium, Denmark The Netherlands and Norway were looking for the replacements for their F-104 Starfighters. They reached an agreement with the United States that they would consider buying the LWF if the USAF bought the aircraft.

To reflect these renewed interests, the LWF program was turned into a new competition called the Air Combat Fighter (ACF) program in April 1974. In addition to Northrop, the DoD invited other competitors, namely Dassault's Mirage F1M-53, SEPECAT Jaguar and Saab's proposed J37E Viggen Eurofighter. The Secretary of Defense at that time, James R. Schlesinger also made it clear that the ACF order would be in addition to F-15s, ending resistance to the LWF/ACF. On 13 January 1975, the YF-16 was declared the winner of the ACF competition on the grounds of cost, range and performance. The YF-17 was selected to fulfil the parallel Navy ACF program, eventually becoming the F/A-18 Hornet. The production-version F-16A flew for the first time on 7 August 1978 and was accepted by the USAF on 6 January 1979. On 21 July 1980, the official nickname 'Fighting Falcon' was bestowed on the F-16 and the type entered operational service on 1 October 1980 with the 34th Tactical Fighter Squadron, 388th Tactical Fighter Wing at Hill AFB, Utah. The pilots gave the nickname 'Viper', due to a perceived resemblance to a viper snake or to the Colonial Viper starfighters from the popular late 1970s TV series Battlestar Galactica. 

The F-16 is a highly-maneuverable, supersonic multi-role aircraft. It was the first fighter aircraft designed to pull 9-g maneuvers and can reach speeds exceeding Mach 2. It was also designed to be relatively inexpensive to build and simpler to maintain than previous fighters. It was also the first operational fighter aircraft deliberately designed with a built-in aerodynamic instability to improve maneuverability. To counter the tendency to depart from controlled flight, the F-16 has quadruplex fly-by-wire flight control system, with no hydromechanical back-up. A key feature of the F-16 is the superb visibility from the cockpit. The single-piece canopy provides 360° visibility with a 40° look-down angle over the sides and 15° down the nose. The pilot sits on a ACES II ejection seat with a tilt-back angle of 30°, which increases tolerance to g-forces. The F-16 also pioneered the HOTAS controls where various switches and controls were on the control stick and the throttle lever. It is also controlled through a side-mounted, rather than centre-mounted stick. Targetting information was supplied by a Westinghouse AN/APG-66 multi-mode radar in F-16A/B and AN/APG-68 from F-16C Block 25. Block 40/42 F-16C/Ds introduced the AN/APG-68(V)1 version compatible with the LANTIRN pods and with a high-PRF to allow it to illuminate SARH missile like the AIM-7 Sparrow. The F-16 was powered by a Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-200 afterburning turbofan rated at 23,830 lb thrust. Later on, General Electric also became the engine provider for the F-16 with its F110-GE-100 turbofan, from Block 30 onwards. To differentiate between aircraft equipped with those engines, blocks ending with '0' are powered by General Electric while blocks ending with '2' are powered by Pratt & Whitney.

The F-16 first saw combat with the Israeli Air Force when a Syrian Mil Mi-8 helicopter was shot down over the Bekaa Valley on 28 April 1981. On 7 June 1981, eight F-16s executed Operation Opera, severely damaging the Osirak nuclear reactor near Baghdad, Iraq. During the Soviet-Afghan War between 1986 and 1989, F-16s of the Pakistani Air Force shot down at least 10 intruders from Afghanistan including four Afghan Su-22 'Fitters', one Soviet Su-25 'Frogfoot', one An-24 'Coke' and two An-26 'Curl' transports. One F-16 was shot down in clashes with Soviet-Afghan forces. The USAF's first combat actions with the F-16 was during Operation Desert Storm in 1991. The Falcons were armed with AGM-65 Mavericks, Mk.80 series of bombs and CBU- and Rockeye-series of cluster bombs in the medium-level bombing role. The F-16 was also used in the 'Wild Weasel' (Supression of Enemy Air Defences - SEAD) missions alongside the older but more capable F-4G Phantoms. The 138th TFS, 174th TFW, New York Air National Guard flew F-16s equipped with 30 mm GPU-5/A Pave Claw gun pod but wasn't successful and finished their deployment using cluster bombs. 249 USAF F-16s took part, losing seven of their number. The Falcons were used in numerous other US deployments since then.

F-16 models are denoted by increasing block numbers to denote upgrades. The original F-16A/B were given block numbers 1,5,10 and 15 with the last-mentioned the first major upgrade to the family. The F-16C/D variant first entered service in September 1984 with Block 25 being the first in the line. Block 25 introduced the Westinghouse AN/APG-68 multi-mode radar and improved night attack capability and cockpit avionics. Today, only Air National Guard and the USAF Air Education and Training Command units use Block 25 F-16s.

The Kit

Hasegawa came up with a new-tool 1/72 F-16 kit in 1986 when they released a model of the F-16A Plus. A year later, they came up with this kit, entitled F-16C Fighting Falcon, It wasn't mentioned on the box but it's pretty clear that this is a Block 25 model. The model features nice surface detailing with engraved panel lines while interior parts have reasonable raised details. Holes were already pre-drilled for pylons. And unlike other Hasegawa aircraft kits, the F-16 came loaded with one 300-gallon centreline tank, two 370-gallon wing tanks, two AIM-9J and two AIM-9L Sidewinders, and bafflingly, a pair of British BL.755 cluster bombs. Also included is a pilot figure. The canopy is moulded in the normal clear plastic, even though the real thing is normally tinted. Decals are for three aircraft:

1. 363rd TFS 'Gamecocks', 19th TFW, Shaw AFB, NC

2. 512th TFS, 86th TFW, Hahn AFB, Germany

3. 312th TFTS, 58th TFW, 'F-16C No.1', Luke AFB, AZ

Construction

Work, as usual, started at the cockpit. The cockpit, as befitting a 1980s kit, is made up of just four parts. The cockpit parts and the sidewalls were painted FS 36375 using Gunze Aqueous H308 with the control stick XF-1 Flat Black and the seat cushion XF-62 Olive Drab. The kit seat is so-so, without much detail. I cut a bit of Tamiya tape, paint them khaki and stuck them on the seat, pretending to be seat belts. While I do have a resin Neomega ACES II ejection seat in my stash, I did not use it as the seat fitted to the F-16 has a larger incidence of reclination. Once the paints are dry, decals for the instrument and side panels were put into place. I have no intention to use the pilot figure. However, I believe that if used, the pilot would be in an awkward position as his right hand is moulded to pose a centrally-mounted control stick, which is non-existent in the F-16! The front and the rear bulkhead for the mainwheel bay were then cemented onto the lower fuselage half before the upper and lower fuselage halves were cemented together. Fit was generally OK although there is a slight step on the right of the nose.

Next up was the intake/nosewheel bay assembly. The wheel bay was assembled first and I did not concern myself much with seams on the upper part as it will be hidden underneath the fuselage. The intake mouth was then inserted into the wheel bay assembly and the whole thing was then cemented to the fuselage. Next, the one-piece wings were attached to the fuselage, together with the tailplanes. This was followed by the tailfin and the ventral fins. The two antenna bumps on the forward fuselage were glued in place. Finally, the bulkhead separating the main wheels and the pylons were cemented prior to painting.

Painting and Decaling

With the exception of the F-16s of the USAF (and the USN) Aggressor units, all USAF F-16s were painted the same pattern consisting of FS 36375 (bottom), FS 36270 (radome), FS 36320 (forward fuselage and tail) and FS 36118 (rest of the fuselage). The paint of choice was Gunze's Mr. Hobby Aqueous paints and they were painted accordingly. I believe I added too much white (for scale effect) to the gunship grey (36118) and it ended up just slightly darker than FS36270. The exhaust can was painted Burnt Iron and a custom mix of silver. The inside of the exhuast was painted XF-2 Flat White. As I mentioned earlier, many F-16Cs have their canopies tinted with gold (to reduce radar reflectivity or for better protection for the avionics). To replicate that, I mixed Tamiya X-19 Smoke and X-24 Clear Yellow and painted the inside of the canopy. I rushed this part, hence the paint application was terrible (plus I used a paintbrush, rather than an airbrush). For markings, I chose the decals for the first option, an F-16 from the 363rd TFS. The decals are typically 1980s Hasegawa although the ivory-coloured white decals weren't really a problem here.

Finishing

The landing gears were assembled and inserted into their places on the model. This was followed by the bay doors. As for the external stores, I decided to hang the wing tanks first while contemplating what my model should be armed with. While the air-to-air loadout is acceptable (although I have yet to see photos of both AIM-9P and -9L being carried on the same aircraft), the bombs included are not, since as far as I know, the US armed forces use the Rockeye and CBU-series of cluster bombs and not the British-designed BL.755. Anyway, I decided to model an F-16 during the Gulf War (the 363rd TFS was deployed to the area) and managed to find a website listing the typical weapons loadout carried by Coalition aircraft. The loadout chosen was an ECM pod on the centreline station (ALQ-119 or ALQ 131), two 370-US Gallon wing tanks, a Mk.84 2,000-lb AIR bomb on each middle wing pylons and two AIM-9L Sidewinders on the wingtip missile rails.

The Sidewinders and the fuel tanks came from the kit while the ALQ-119 came from Hasegawa's weapon set. Hasegawa did not have the Mk.84 AIR (Air Inflatable Retard) bombs in any of their sets but I found a pair in Italeri's NATO Weapons Set. The external difference between a 'slick' Mk.84 and a retarded version is that the latter has a shorter tail with a larger fin. The problem is that, while Italeri more or less got the tail right, the bomb body look undersized, looking more like a Mark.82 than Mk.84. I decided to cut both bombs, using the main body from Hasegawa and the tail from Italeri. The cuts weren't perpendicular to the bomb axis though and I have to cover up the gaps with putty. The model was then put through the sludge wash treatment and finally finished with a spray of Semi-Gloss Clear.

Conclusion

The Hasegawa kit can still hold its own despite being surpassed by the more recent Revell, Academy and Tamiya kits. The parts are well-moulded, have good details and good fit. Furthermore, it was one of only a small number of Hasegawa kits which include weapons and accessories. On the other hand, the kit has some accuracy problems but very minor ones IMHO. Another shortcoming, if you can say that, is the lack of alternative 'big mouth' intake and the relevant exhaust nozzle. But, overall, still a nice kit, especially for an early-block F-16C.