Aggressor

[tc2324]

First WIP from me for a little while and I`m doing a whif for an Aggressor GB elsewhere.

Pretty simple whif really, nothing too taxing, just a change of colour and markings on this F-16.



Got the cockpit bits ready......,



And progress made today.

[Dizzyfugu]

Already an idea for the livery? I'd assume that it won't remain OOB?

[tc2324]

Certainly not the OOB scheme Dizzy.

Going for an RAF aggressor scheme, but with a hint of real world in it and not like the US versions.

Work this morning involved filling in the gaps at the wing roots. It does not appear to be a perfect fit and sliding the two fuselage half's together with the cockpit fixed in place on the lower section was a bit dicey.



Now a word of warning to anyone with this kit and the `destruction's` sheet.

The image below gives you two options for the vertical tail base. One with a blade antenna and one without. There is no advice on the sheet as to which should be fitted.



Now I`m not an expert on F-16`s, but it seems all the American F-16`s have the blade, while export versions do not. I`m sure someone better educated on the matter can explain this, but felt I should mention it in case other modelers, like myself with no idea why, could get caught out.

The other mis-information printed on the destructions involve the nav light locations. In the first of the two pictures below, you are wrongly told to position them on the sides of the cockpit area when in fact they should be on either side of the intakes. Basically someone at Academy has accidentally swapped them around which could/would confuse a newbie.

   



It would seem that `F5` bits should go with where the `D29` bits go and vise versa.

[tc2324]

Sprayed with rattle can gloss black now, although it I do find that the rattle can stuff just isn`t good enough sometimes, so I`ll be adding another couple of coats of gloss to make sure it has that `shiny` look.

[The Wooksta!]

Depends on the primer.  Halfords can sometimes etch itself into the plastic used - I had terrible trouble with the new plastic Airfix use now - so this may be the cause.

[tc2324]

Depends on the primer.  Halfords can sometimes etch itself into the plastic used - I had terrible trouble with the new plastic Airfix use now - so this may be the cause.

I know what you mean about the new plastic. I probably should on used a black primer.

Anyways, apologies for the picture quality.......



..... but as you can now see, I`ve gone for the 100 sqn look on my whif aggressor project.

[The Wooksta!]

Wouldn't matter the colour - it's the chemical composition of the primer itself that is doing it.  Halfords is a hot acrylic, whatever that means.

[Gondor]

With regards to your problem identifying which tail base you should be using, sometimes you can only tell by looking at the colour scheme provided for such information. In this case the fin base with the Ariel is for the C version.

Gondor

[NARSES2]

Looking good in black

[Dizzyfugu]

Looking good in black

Second that. 

[tc2324]

Cheers guys.   

Small penultimate update as I make a desperate attempt to save this one. Have to admit I`m not entirely happy with it and there are a number of corrections that need to be made.

However the u/c is now on, as are the main under wing tanks, with just the drill round, ACMI pod and a few other bits like pitots and this one is done.

[tc2324]

From 1982 onwards, 100 Squadron had operated the Canberra at RAF Wyton in Cambridgeshire as a target facilities unit which it had operated as since 1972. By late 1987 the MOD announced the out of service date for the Canberra T Mk.17 fleet and shortly after started to look for a replacement aircraft that was cheap to operate and had better handling qualities. (An extra requirement for the new type would be Dissimilar Air Combat Training).

Attention was soon drawn to Europe and the abilities of the export version of the F-16 Fighting Falcon now serving with many NATO members. At the same time and purely by chance, the first two of an intended complement of eighteen F-16Cs arrived at RAF Bentwaters on 14 June 1988 as the 527th Aggressor Squadron started to upgrade their aging F-5 Tiger fleet.
 
After three visits to the base to assess the new aircraft in the Aggressor role, Washington was approached for the procurement of seven F-16A fighters to eventually equip 100 Sqn by early 1991.

However, with the collapse of the Warsaw Pact in 1989 and a reduction of defense spending by the US, the decision was made to terminate the entire USAF aggressor program. This had a knock on effect with the UK`s F-16 order in that the US now offered to downgrade seven of the 527th F-16C`s to A standard instead of offering seven new build `A`s. With defense cost implications now coming into effect due to the Soviet collapse, the MOD accepted the revised offer.

Pilot conversion training started shortly after at Bentwaters and within the year all 100 Sqn aircrew were now current on the F-16. One unique aspect of the conversion training was the practice of in flight refueling using the US boom type. While today's main mission parameters include the use of under wing fuel tanks, 100 Sqn aircrew are the only RAF aircrew that regularly practice this type of Air to Air Refueling with the US KC-135`s from Mildenhall.

In June 1990, 100 squadron took delivery of it`s `new` F-16`s and operate from RAF Leeming. The serial numbers allocated to the airframes are VX401 through to VX407. (Note that airframe VX406 was heavily damaged on a landing mishap in 2011 and is at present stored at St Athan awaiting repair).