Following in the footsteps of the P.R.19 - the idea

[NARSES2]

A few of us were discussing our memories of Whiffery and among the names that came out were Mike McEvoy, Ian Hartup and even Terry, however the one model that seemed to come up in everyone's thoughts was the P.R.19 Meteor a beast that acquired a life of its own  Therefore we thought why not a theme build on the subject of aircraft with long wings on the basis of " any aircraft can be improved with longer wings".

One model has already been completed and appeared at Huddersfield, another 2 are on the go and I have just started working mine out. So come on join in if you have a idea and have some communal fun, that's what Theme Builds are all about.

[JayBee]

Chris,

Whether this is a formal GB or not, is there a termination date in mind?

[Captain Canada]

I could see myself getting in !

I'm thinking either a Harvard, T-33, or CF-100 Canuck as a high altitude research plane.

[The Rat]

or CF-100 Canuck as a high altitude research plane.

         Done! 

[PR19_Kit]

Hehehe, what HAVE I done? 

Can I enter again or am I banned?

[The Rat]

Hehehe, what HAVE I done? 

Can I enter again or am I banned?

Banned, totally. In fact, you know all those U-2 wings you have stashed away? You are required to send them to other participants for their projects. 

[Weaver]

  Spackman Aerospace was formed in the early 1960s, initially to conduct aerodynamic research and develop equipment for high-altitude flight. However, a shortage of available aircraft on which to test their products led the company to seek an economical testbed aircraft of their own. The opportunity came when they became aware, through their service contacts, of an RAF Gnat trainer whose wing had been damaged beyond repair when a ground vehicle ran into it. The airframe was duly acquired and fitted with a pair of radically different wings of the company's own design.

  The High Altitude Testbed, or H.A.T. as it is more commonly known, has subsequently served for many years on a variety of projects, the details of which the company are not at liberty to discuss due to commercial confidentiality and contractual restrictions, and this has led to much ill-informed speculation which the company are at pains to dismiss. In particular, the aircraft has only ever been used for civilian and commercial purposes and never as a plausibly deniable surveillance asset by Her Majesty's Government.

  The canopy is painted white purely to reduce solar heating in the cockpit and not, as has been claimed, to conceal the nature of equipment installed in place of the former rear seat. The dielectric areas on the nose, wings and tail are for precision navigation equipment so that the aircraft is always exactly sure of it's location for safety reasons, and the pods sometimes seen under the wings are part of an air sampling project conducted in partnership with the University of Cheltenham. Coincidentally, these pods also feature areas of dielectric material, but in this case it is used purely to avoid static electricity charges interfering with the collection of delicate pollen samples.

  Although Spackman Aerospace does occasionally undertake work abroad for foreign governments, this is always strictly in compliance with HM government regulations and the company never operates near conflict zones or in areas of political controversy. However the similarity of the H.A.T. to a standard Gnat has lead to many erroneous sighting reports from areas of the world where the aircraft has categorically never operated. Areas that the H.A.T. definitely hasn't been seen in include Cyprus in 1967 and 1973, Southern Chile in 1982, Barbados in 1983, Southern Turkey  in 1991 and 2003, Austria in 1991, various parts of Italy in 1992, 1995 and 2011, Northern Greece in 1998 and  Uzbekistan in 2007. Despite the fact that only one aircraft was ever built, scrupulous maintenance and a huge stock of spare parts have kept it serviceable for a remarkable 40 year career.

Hi Kit  

[Gondor]

So as that is a forty year old aircraft makes it old hat then ! 

Nice though 

Gondor

[Hobbes]

I've got the same registration printed up for my project, dammit! 
(photos to follow in a few days, I haven't finished it in time)

[Weaver]

I've got the same registration printed up for my project, dammit! 
(photos to follow in a few days, I haven't finished it in time)

Parrallel universes, parrallel universes........

[PR19_Kit]

I'm laughing my SOCKS off here, that is MAGNIFICENT!  

So was that the model at Hudders that Chris mentioned?

[PR19_Kit]

Hmmm, those wings look vaguely familiar, are they 1/200 747-400 wings by any chance?

[Weaver]

Cheers Kit - glad you approve! Yes, it was the one at Huddersfield.

Can't fool the connoissieur of long wings eh? Yep, they're 747-400 ones. Can't vouch for the scale: they're off a Hobby Model Kits job that I think was described as 1/288th but doesn't actually have anything written on the box.

Other bits:

Nose cone : cut down drop tank (the original nose was cut off too short for another project, which is why this fuselage was spare)

RWR<sorry> radio navigation equipment fairing on the fin top made from various bits of Evergreen.

Paint: ArtFX rattle can from Halfords. This range of acrylics has some tasty shades in it and covers very well in only one coat. However, it has a peculiar "hydrophobic" surface effect when dry which causes water to bead and run off, which makes decalling tricky, so be warned! If I'd had more time (and some acrylic varnish), I'd have given it a coat of acrylic varnish before decalling. This effect basically killed my self-print decals, tested on the paint-hack Meteor you can see in the background.

Decals : Fantasy Printshop Luftwaffe (sorry) serials in various sizes. These were excellent: thin and very fast reacting (almost too fast).

[The Rat]

Weaver, that's worthy of a whiffie for both the model and story! 

[kitbasher]

OK, so more wing is a key attribute, that's a given.  But more engine too (if it already has more than enough wing)?