Marineflieger FA/18A Hornisse

[Mossie]

It didn't come as a suprise to many industry commentators, but in late 1977 the multi-national Panavia MRCA (Multi Role Combat Aricraft) was cancelled, shortly before it was due to go into service.  The partners could not agree on the costs involved & workshare & the program that had seen turbulent times from it's inception was terminated.

This left the three partner nations, Italy, Germany & the Great Britain with serious gaps in their respective front line aircraft capability.  Italy & Germany needed to replace their Fiat G-91's & Lockheed F-104 Starfighters (a role for which both nations thought MRCA was over designed) & Great Britain their vintage English Electric Canberra's, Blackburn Buccaneer's & Avro Vulcan's.  No clear alternative was available to any nation for some time in the future.

Italy ordered General Dynamics F-16's, while the UK went on with a development of the MRCA, hoping export sales would cover costs.  As a stop gap, Germany took a number of reconditioned McDonnel Douglas F-4 Phantoms, but for the longer term looked to the same company for an aircraft that fitted the bill as an F-104 & G-91 replacement almost perfectly.

In 1983, Germany received a small number of a much larger order for around 300 F/A-18A Hornets (Hornisse in german).  This inital batch was delivered ahead of Canada & the USA's F/A-18's to allow Germany to start intergrating the type into service.  The Hornet is operated by the Luftwaffe for ground attack & air defence, & by the Marineflieger for anti-shipping strike.  In this role they use the AS-34 Kormoran, a formidable anti-ship missile.  It is expected that the Hornet will remain in service with Germany until at least 2012 when they will likely be replaced with F-35 Lightning II's.

[Mossie]

I picked this up again recentley after leaving it about 3/4's finished from summer 2007.  It was supposed to be a 'quick build' but ended up being anything but!  I really wanted to do it in anything but BOG.  Spookily, almost to the day that I made my mind up to do it in Marineflieger colours, Maverick posted a profile!

The decals & Kormorans came kindly from Hobbes, the rest is a nearly OOB Revell 1/144 F/A-18C.  Apart from the weapons & decals, the only changes I made to create an F/A-18A where to remove two of the ECM fairings on the tails.  You'll notice that the Sidewinder rails are of the unusual shortened version used on German Hornets, i.e. I kept knocking the ends off!  There's also no gun, becuase it's very lightly engraved on the Revell kit & the coats of paint soon obliterated it.  It's brush painted & the blue colour is hand-mixed as I couldn't get hold of a suitable equivalent.

Shown here with a 'double whammy' load of Kormorans & HARM's, two AIM-9M's & a centerline gas bag.

[Brian da Basher]

Looks great, Mossie! The F-18's a natural in Marineflieger colors! Nice load-out too!

Brian da Basher

[AeroplaneDriver]

Nice job!  I'm surprised we dont see more German Hornets.  It looks great in those colours.   

[Shasper]

Thats about as close the Bug will ever come to being pure sex!

Shas

[John Howling Mouse]

Beats BOG anyday---good job, Mossie.  Nice to see another one under your belt as this hints at the promise of more and more.   

[kitnut617]

Another finished build Simon! you're on a roll    Very nicely done F-18, I might add 

[Maverick]

Glad to of been of help Simon, looks a corker 'in the flesh' so to speak.

I was pondering a Marinenflieger build for another type myself, but now your mention of RAL 5008 Blaugrun as a non-starter paint wise tends to put a dampner on things.

I think you've carried it off rather well, especially given the scale!

Regards,

Mav

[GTX]

What would be cool would be to do a Luftwwaffe Hornet with the Wespe emblem of WWII:



Regards,

Greg

[Hobbes]

Well done, sir. I like the color scheme. 

[ysi_maniac]

MarineFlieger implemented several interesting schemes, we should comment here...

BTW, Nice model and idea

[Mossie]

Thanks everybody!  I enjoyed doing this one.

Glad to of been of help Simon, looks a corker 'in the flesh' so to speak.

I was pondering a Marinenflieger build for another type myself, but now your mention of RAL 5008 Blaugrun as a non-starter paint wise tends to put a dampner on things.

I think you've carried it off rather well, especially given the scale!

Regards,

Mav

Thanks Mav, I got a suprise to see your profile just as I was contemplating it & it helped me make a firm decision.  RAL 5008 is available, just I couldn't get hold of any at the time.  Xtracolor X264 (not in Xtracrylix as far as I know) & Revell 351, although again, not in their Aqua Color acrylic range.

Beats BOG anyday---good job, Mossie.  Nice to see another one under your belt as this hints at the promise of more and more.  

Well, I've got big plans for the Flying Sorcery GB, a (almost) total scratchbuild!  Last attempt I had at something like that stalled (I'll probably pick it up again sometime) so I'm pretty determined to finish it in the GB.  It'd be bad form not to finish a build which I'm modding!

[Spey_Phantom]

i love everything i see about this model, and especially since its 1/144 
nice work there m8 

[Maverick]

Thanks Mav, I got a suprise to see your profile just as I was contemplating it & it helped me make a firm decision.  RAL 5008 is available, just I couldn't get hold of any at the time.  Xtracolor X264 (not in Xtracrylix as far as I know) & Revell 351, although again, not in their Aqua Color acrylic range.

Thanks for that info Simon.  I guess if I look on Don Colour they might have some other references for the rest of the RAL range.  Plum forgot about that one!

Regards,

Mav

[PanzerWulff]

Ok I admit I HATE the Bug with a Passion,But DANG  yours looks Good!!! 
"Panzer"