2017 builds.

[darthspud2]

[darthspud2]

so, following on from my earlier A-6 build I dug out the venerable Airfix 1/48 scale EA-6B

What we have here is
an EA-6UK
Part of the main Electronic Warfare wing based onboard HMS Winston Churchill ( a.k.a the former USS Ticonderoga) & HMS King George ( the former USS Saratoga). Both carriers 'given' to the Royal Navy following their early USN retirement.


All the wing were supplied from storage and unusually the MoD decided to spend some money. The entire fleet of aircraft were brought up to Y2K standard. All airframes became fly-by-wire, advanced electronics replaced the multiple sensor pods allowing offensive weapons carriage for attack and self-defence, along with air to air refuelling capability.
The aircraft as configured also allowed some 'hands-on' training for Weapons Officers

[darthspud2]

Finally for the moment
a fun quick build (9 months)
Depicted as a 617 Sqn aircraft - mainly as they were to hand and I just wanted this off my bench,

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The base kit is the Italeri F22 Raptor. Not the greatest kit, although that may be me and not the kit.

[Librarian]

Rafale Such a beautiful aircraft.

Be fun too to turn the EA-6B into a fully loaded bomb-truck .

Became somewhat distracted by the marvellous Sir Terry collection in the background. Mine are all paperback and the spines are now illegible from over-reading

[darthspud2]

IF and it's big IF , I do another EA-6UK i'll make it a bomb truck alright.
Got a lot of dumb iron bombs and mers/ters and they fit the wing nicely. I know cos I checked for future reference when I was working out the load for this build.
I think I can get a mer on each inboard station and a ter on the outer pylon and possibly a tornado short rail on the belly point rather than a fueltank.
so in theory 18 1000lb ers plus whatever physically fits on the belly, which could be a pair of gbu's or a sensor pod and a single 1000lb iron bomb.
I might even get a pair of air to air missiles on each side of the inner pylon like the GR4's have.

[NARSES2]

I do like that Rafale  and I'm not a great fan of it's looks normally. Always looked a little "tubby" to me (I can talk  ) as though there was a fold in the plans and it ended up a metre or so short 

[darthspud2]

The Vipers Nest is now up and running, 5 done ( all 1/48 scale)
None oob - most are straight plagiarism.

Red Arrow  - fought me, warped wings and fuselage.






Raspberry Ripple






RAF MEAF - three tone camo.





RAF GW1 - 10 x AMRAAM armed Heavy Fighter





RAF RAFG - JDAM 's

[NARSES2]

Raspberry Ripple is gorgeous 

[McColm]

Great work

[DogfighterZen]

Gotta love a healthy viper nest! 

[darthspud2]

More to follow, just another 6 in build process or stash unbuilt.
Running out of ideas though (ish)

[Charlie_c67]

Delta Wing? Cranked Arrow? British Wild Weasel? Need to get on and do the last one myself TBH...

[Scotaidh]

IF and it's big IF , I do another EA-6UK i'll make it a bomb truck alright.
Got a lot of dumb iron bombs and mers/ters and they fit the wing nicely. I know cos I checked for future reference when I was working out the load for this build.
I think I can get a mer on each inboard station and a ter on the outer pylon and possibly a tornado short rail on the belly point rather than a fueltank.
so in theory 18 1000lb ers plus whatever physically fits on the belly, which could be a pair of gbu's or a sensor pod and a single 1000lb iron bomb.
I might even get a pair of air to air missiles on each side of the inner pylon like the GR4's have.

The only quibble I have is that the back-seaters seem to be facing forward - should they not be facing the rear, in true British fashion? 

[PR19_Kit]

The only quibble I have is that the back-seaters seem to be facing forward - should they not be facing the rear, in true British fashion? 

Tut, tut, that's only aboard transport aircraft.............

[Old Wombat]

The only quibble I have is that the back-seaters seem to be facing forward - should they not be facing the rear, in true British fashion? 

Tut, tut, that's only aboard transport aircraft.............

And makes a lot of sense for passenger survivability in a crash. Civilian passenger aircraft only have the seats facing forwards because people feel more comfortable doing that.