1/72 Philippine Army Air Corps Balisong

[Brian da Basher]

Fillipino Air Aces Destroy Japanese Bombers! screamed the headlines of the Manila Daily Mail on December 9, 1941. Led by the daring Air Captain Luis Acquino, a small flight of P-2 Balisong fighters had saved the airfields of Luzon from the Japanese bombers which allowed the combined U.S. - Philippine Far East Air Force to mount a defense of the island nation that kept it from becoming part of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere and a thorn in Hirohito's side for the remainder of the Pacific war.

In 1940, with war clouds gathering, the small armed forces of the Philippines sought modern weapons, including aircraft. While the U.S. was able to offer much aid, when it came to a modern fighter, all that could be spared were obsolete P-26 Peashooters. Fortunately, the nascent Fillipino aeronautical iundustry had some true geniuses on staff and were able to use the P-26 as the basis for their own indigenous fighter, the P-2 Balisong. THe Balisong was up-engined and up-gunned from the original P-26, being powered by a 14 cylinder radial and armed with two wing-mounted 20 m.m. cannons. The new fighter also featured a modern enclosed canopy and a pair of incredibly streamlined spats which were the envy of the Far East. Fortunately for the Philippines and their American allies,  two and a half squadrons of Balisongs had been fielded by the time of the Japanese attack. Air Captain Acquino shot down three of the Japanese attackers on that fateful morning and his mount, Old No. 6, can be seen today on display at the Museum of Fillipino Air Power in Manila.

Brian da Basher

[Brian da Basher]

The basis for this project was the wonderful 1/72 vintage Revell P-26 Peashooter. It took me a bit to figure out how I was going to modify it. Then I came across a canopy for a 1/144 F-15 in my spares box which oddly enough was a perfect fit once I chopped down the prominent headrest fairing the P-26 is known for. I filled in the gap at the rear of the canopy with putty and then found the engine left over from that Fairey Flycatcher HOG sent me along with a cowling from my spares box. I decided to replace the kit's spats with Aeroclub ones and new struts cut from scrap plastic. The wing cannons were bits of sprue and the prop is leftover from that P-6 I mangled a while back. As I was running short on time, I decided on a simple O.D. and tan scheme and was able to find all the decals I needed in my stash, including the wingwalks. The Fillipino markings were cut from white decals and the center blue diamonds colored in with blue permanent marker.

I had an absolute blast with this group build and I've been bowled over by the incredible talent and imagination shown by the completed entries. It's great to know there are so many modellers out there who share a knack for spats!

Brian da Basher

[cthulhu77]

Good heaven's ! Does your whole house have spats!

Yet another wonderful build, Sir B, we need a big table at the next whatif table for your collection.