SCALE MODEL NEWS

THE AVRO VULCAN V-BOMBER is a charismatic aircraft, one that was well-known for its characteristic engine 'howl' when it flew spectacular displays at air shows. SMN report: There have been plenty of Avro Vulcan kits over the years, including examples from Airfix, Dragon, Lindberg, and Trumpeter. But of them all, the Airfix one is probably our choice and the upcoming 1:72 scale Vulcan B2 looks to be well worth the wait.  The Airfix Vulcan B2 can be built with two finishes, high-altitude anti-flash white and low-level green-and-grey camouflage. Worthy of note is that the kit has two-piece wings, designed for ease of assembly and strength when complete. The white finish was the earliest V-bomber paint scheme, designed for protection against the flash of an air-burst nuclear explosion. Later on, Vulcans were retasked for low-level attack, as improved Soviet anti-aircraft missiles had become deadly accurate at high altitudes. On the deck flying meant a change of paint, hence the ca...

SINGAPORE'S PETER CHIANG recently ran a two-week Phantom II model build. For Phantom Phans, this was a superb competition, and the results reflect this. SMN report: The rules allowed just two weeks to start and build any Airfix Phantom kit. Social media communications were required, to show the start and to mark progress toward each finished model. The initial reaction from a lot of people was that it could not be done because of the number of stencilled markings that needed applying! Judging was by Mick Stephen, Tony James, C L Kwek, Mat Irvine and Peter Chiang ( wearing a tie in the pic below ). The results you can see in these pictures, and top marks to all from SMN. The winners were: Best build: Yee Soon Tuck (prize: Airfix 1:24 Spitfire) Fastest build: Razali Ahmed (prize: Airfix 1:24 Hurricane) Most colourful: Andrew Rozario (prize: £50 sponsored by Henry Low) Most difficult: Kevin Khoo (prize: £50 sponsored by Henry Low)