Author: Aaron Skinner
Editor
Aaron has been making models of one kind or another since he was six and built his first model — a race car of some sort put together with help from his grandfather. He grew up in Australia and graduated from the University of Queensland in Brisbane with a degree in journalism and history. After moving back to the United States in 1994, Aaron worked as a reporter and photographer for newspapers in Texas and Arkansas, before joining the FSM staff in August 2006. He will build anything that grabs his fancy, particularly commercial airliners, Russian armor, and anything science fiction.
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Airfix Hawker Hurricane Mk.I
FineScale Modeler reviews the 1/48 scale plastic model aircraft kit. Less glamorous than the more modern and arguably prettier Spitfire, the Hurricane was the backbone of defense during the Battle of Britain. Numerically superior to the Spitfire, Hawker’s fighter was tough, shot down numerous Luftwaffe bombers, and helped stem the German tide.
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Tarangus 1/48 scale Viggen
Seeking a fighter capable of operating from short, improvised airstrips, Sweden turned to the Saab 37 Viggen. The delta-wing aircraft featured large canards to aid low-speed handling. The turbofan engine was equipped with a thrust reverser, allowing the aircraft to back up under its own power.
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Zvezda 1/144 scale Ilyushin Il-62M
FineScale Modeler reviews Zvezda’s 1/144 scale Il-62M passenger airline plastic model kit. With room for nearly 200 passengers, the Il-62 was Aeroflot’s permier intercontinental jet from the mid-1960s through the 1980s. Many of the almost 300 built were sold to airlines in Soviet-aligned nations.
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Freedom Model Kits 1/48 scale X-47B UCAS
FineScale Modeler reviews Freedom Model Kits’ 1/48 scale X-47B UCAS drone plastic model kit. Despite there being only two of them, the X-47B, like other drones, has been getting attention from kit makers. Platz released a 1/72 scale kit in 2012. Now, newcomer Freedom Model Kits hits the market with an ambitious 1/48 scale offering.
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Meng 1/35 scale T-90 tank dozer
FineScale Modeler reviews the Meng 1/35 scale T-90 tank dozer plastic model kit. Believe me when I say Meng’s T-90 lives up to the hype. The box is jammed with beautifully molded plastic parts free of flash and ejector-pin marks. This release includes the option to fit the TBS-86 ’dozer blade to the bow.
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Tamiya 1/35 scale Mark IV “Male” tank
FineScale Modeler reviews the Tamiya 1/35 scale World War I British Mark IV “Male” tank plastic model kit. Tamiya’s announcement of a 1/35 scale British Mark IV tank came as a surprise, albeit a pleasant one. Perhpaps the bombshell in the announcement was that the kit would be motorized, a flashback to Tamiya’s earliest armor…
