HOME | DD

Description
When the first jet-powered aircraft appeared at the end of World War II, aircraft designers all over the world literally fell in love with the new kind of propulsion (much like people fall for new technologies nowadays, even if the old ones are still good). Altough still crawling on all fours, jet engines seemed to be the only option for the aviation worldwide. New jets started to emerge, fighers and bombers alike. But time proved that sometimes it's not such a bad idea to stick to the old trends for some time.

At the end of World War II, U.S. aircraft designers started to work on the possible successor to the dive bombers/attack aircrafts like SB2C Helldiver. The prototypes of what would eventually become A-1 Skyraider first flew in March 1945 and by the end of December 1946 the first aircrafts (then designated "AD-1"; "A" stood for "attack", "D" for Douglas, its manufacturer) entered service in U.S. Navy.

AD-1 was a low-wing aircraft with straight wings and massive piston engine driving four-leaf propeller. It seemed to be an anachronism in the world of fast, jet-propelled aircrafts emerging. Military leaders all over the world put stress on speed and manouverability, reckoning that fast aicraft does not have to fear anti-aircraft artillery. However Skyraider had several advantages that spoke in its favor.

As soon as jet engines were applied to ground-attack aircrafts, problems emerged: the payload was low, due to insufficient power of jet engines of that time, the range was short due to increased fuel consumption, and unlike piston-driven aircrafts, which could increase their engine(s) power in 2-3 seconds, jet engines took several (between 5 and 15) seconds to increase their power, which was too long to avoid ground obstacles (i.e. "hop" over the trees). The jet technology of late 1940s and 1950s was not developed well enough, and it was decided that it's easier to find a powerful piston engine than try to create jet engine with desired characteristics. That's why Skyraider remained primary ground-attack aircraft of U.S. Navy even when jet engines became powerful and reliable enough to replace it.

Moreover AD-1's unswept wings gave it an excellent payload of 3,6 t. It did not have internal bomb bay like Helldiver, so more space could be used for internal fuel tanks (though the hardpoints increased its drag), increasing the range. The aircraft had characteristic cross-section, with massive engine in the nose and very narrow tail. The propeller had variable pitch; the landing gear had to be long and strong to resist the weight of hevy aircraft while landing.

Though AD-1 failed to take part in WWII, it was used for the first time during Korean War in 1950s. Skyraiders were used against North Korean forces in both Koreas, launched from USS "Valley Forge" aircraft carrier. Its main advantage over jet aircraft was its greater operational range and flight duration time (10 hours), which allowed it to fly deep into enemy territory or to support its troops for longer time. Besides, its lower speed ment it had more time over their target, so it was more accurate (important during close air support mission). Skyraiders from VA-55 performed the only torpedo attack of Korean War, striking the Hwacheon Dam, controlled by North Korean forces and used to disrupt American and South Korean movements down the dam (by releasing water North Koreans could flood their opponents).

However it wasn't until American involvement in Vietnam War when Skyraider became an icon of American ground attack aviation. Though USAAF wanted to shift to jet powered aircraft like A-6 Intruder or A4D Skyhawk by that time, Skyraider again proved its usefulness. They were one of the first American aircrafts to attack North Vietnamese forces after the Gulf of Tonkin Incident, when alegadly U.S. ships were engaged by North Vietnamese torpedo boats (currently it is assumed that no such incident had place), which was the official reason for U.S. forces to enter the war. Both USAF and U.S. Navy used their Skyraiders, but the former were covered with camouflage, while the latter had grey and white painting scheme. South Vietnamese Air Force used US-supplied Skyraiders as well.

In October 1965, to celebrate the drop of six-millionth pound of ordnance, crew of A-1H designated "572" and nicknamed "Paper Tiger II" decided to add an unusual payload to their standard set of bombs. It was... a toilet. While onboard USS Midway aircraft carrier, one of the pilots saved a damaged toilet seat which was to be replaced and thrown into ocean. The carrier crew made makeshift racks, tailfins and fuse and attached the bizzare "bomb" to the rightmost pylon of "Paper Tiger II's" right wing. Because the crew was going against the rules, which forbade attaching any unauthorised payload to the aircraft, they blocked the view to the last moment when the aircraft was in launch position. As soon as it cleared the deck, a message could be heard: "What the hell was on 572's right wing?" The "bomb" was dropped on Vietnamese positions, almost striking the aircraft's wing due to the wind forces, and allegadly whistled all the way down to Vietnamese soil. The incident became a legend of Vietnam War, to the point of some scale model producers adding the tiny "toilet-bomb" to their kits

Even tough last U.S. Skyraiders were transfered to South Vietnamese Air Force (Gabonese AF was the last to retire it, in 1985), A-1's legacy lives to this day. It's straight wings proved and excellent choice for ground attack aircraft, and was incorporated in now famous A-10 Thunderbolt II assault airplane. First introduced in 1977, A-10 is still used as primary ground attack aircraft and will remain so at least until 2028, when they will possibly be replaced by F-35 Lightning II.

The kit
I always wanted to have Skyraider in my collection, but I never had luck in finding one I could afford (and even if I was lucky in finding one I've never won any auction). Then one day in April I visited model shop on Pó%u0142wiejska street in Pozna%u0144 and there, standing right next to the entrance, I noticed a box with picture of Skyraider taking off from carrier. I bought it right upon seeing it and happily started assembly once I reached home.

The kit is old, and it can be seen in several details. Panel lines are rised, and rivets are way too big, making the plane look more like an Interbellum tank rather than post-WWII aircraft I considered sanding the whole structure, but gave up, because it probably would look flat and uninteresting, because I'm not sure if I would be able to recreate the lines.

The original kit gives us 12 unguided rockets (probably Tiny Tim, but I'm not sure), two bombs (with hardpoint just for one ) and two external fuel tanks (or so I think they are EFTs, because I've found photos of very similar-looking bombs, and the instruction does not give painting specifications for this part). The kit I bought also had a bonus - two underwing triple Bazooka rocket launchers. I had to seal the right- and left-most slits for unguided rockets and replace them with Bazooka pods. I've seen similar ones in Revell's P-51B Mustang and I liked the concept, though the accuracy of these rockets is disputable.

I chose the US Navy camouflage: grey top with white belly and steering surfaces. I also painted black anti-reflection strip in front of canopy. I used green tips for the rockets, though in some places the masking tape was not placed tightly enough and I had to cover the spots by hand. For weathering, I used acrylic paint solved in alcohol, applied with brush.

Airfix' decals are thick and the bigger ones may be difficult to apply. I had trouble attaching the green belts on the cockpit's sides. NOTE: the stars at the side of the aircraft ARE separated on two parts and they ARE ment to be so, because they are partially placed on the air brake.

Model: Airfix
Paints: grey, black, green: Pactra; white: Humbrol
Scale: 1/72

Description
When the first jet-powered aircraft appeared at the end of World War II, aircraft designers all over the world literally fell in love with the new kind of propulsion (much like people fall for new technologies nowadays, even if the old ones are still good). Altough still crawling on all fours, jet engines seemed to be the only option for the aviation worldwide. New jets started to emerge, fighers and bombers alike. But time proved that sometimes it's not such a bad idea to stick to the old trends for some time.

At the end of World War II, U.S. aircraft designers started to work on the possible successor to the dive bombers/attack aircrafts like SB2C Helldiver. The prototypes of what would eventually become A-1 Skyraider first flew in March 1945 and by the end of December 1946 the first aircrafts (then designated "AD-1"; "A" stood for "attack", "D" for Douglas, its manufacturer) entered service in U.S. Navy.

AD-1 was a low-wing aircraft with straight wings and massive piston engine driving four-leaf propeller. It seemed to be an anachronism in the world of fast, jet-propelled aircrafts emerging. Military leaders all over the world put stress on speed and manouverability, reckoning that fast aicraft does not have to fear anti-aircraft artillery. However Skyraider had several advantages that spoke in its favor.

As soon as jet engines were applied to ground-attack aircrafts, problems emerged: the payload was low, due to insufficient power of jet engines of that time, the range was short due to increased fuel consumption, and unlike piston-driven aircrafts, which could increase their engine(s) power in 2-3 seconds, jet engines took several (between 5 and 15) seconds to increase their power, which was too long to avoid ground obstacles (i.e. "hop" over the trees). The jet technology of late 1940s and 1950s was not developed well enough, and it was decided that it's easier to find a powerful piston engine than try to create jet engine with desired characteristics. That's why Skyraider remained primary ground-attack aircraft of U.S. Navy even when jet engines became powerful and reliable enough to replace it.

Moreover AD-1's unswept wings gave it an excellent payload of 3,6 t. It did not have internal bomb bay like Helldiver, so more space could be used for internal fuel tanks (though the hardpoints increased its drag), increasing the range. The aircraft had characteristic cross-section, with massive engine in the nose and very narrow tail. The propeller had variable pitch; the landing gear had to be long and strong to resist the weight of hevy aircraft while landing.

Though AD-1 failed to take part in WWII, it was used for the first time during Korean War in 1950s. Skyraiders were used against North Korean forces in both Koreas, launched from USS "Valley Forge" aircraft carrier. Its main advantage over jet aircraft was its greater operational range and flight duration time (10 hours), which allowed it to fly deep into enemy territory or to support its troops for longer time. Besides, its lower speed ment it had more time over their target, so it was more accurate (important during close air support mission). Skyraiders from VA-55 performed the only torpedo attack of Korean War, striking the Hwacheon Dam, controlled by North Korean forces and used to disrupt American and South Korean movements down the dam (by releasing water North Koreans could flood their opponents).

However it wasn't until American involvement in Vietnam War when Skyraider became an icon of American ground attack aviation. Though USAAF wanted to shift to jet powered aircraft like A-6 Intruder or A4D Skyhawk by that time, Skyraider again proved its usefulness. They were one of the first American aircrafts to attack North Vietnamese forces after the Gulf of Tonkin Incident, when alegadly U.S. ships were engaged by North Vietnamese torpedo boats (currently it is assumed that no such incident had place), which was the official reason for U.S. forces to enter the war. Both USAF and U.S. Navy used their Skyraiders, but the former were covered with camouflage, while the latter had grey and white painting scheme. South Vietnamese Air Force used US-supplied Skyraiders as well.

In October 1965, to celebrate the drop of six-millionth pound of ordnance, crew of A-1H designated "572" and nicknamed "Paper Tiger II" decided to add an unusual payload to their standard set of bombs. It was... a toilet. While onboard USS Midway aircraft carrier, one of the pilots saved a damaged toilet seat which was to be replaced and thrown into ocean. The carrier crew made makeshift racks, tailfins and fuse and attached the bizzare "bomb" to the rightmost pylon of "Paper Tiger II's" right wing. Because the crew was going against the rules, which forbade attaching any unauthorised payload to the aircraft, they blocked the view to the last moment when the aircraft was in launch position. As soon as it cleared the deck, a message could be heard: "What the hell was on 572's right wing?" The "bomb" was dropped on Vietnamese positions, almost striking the aircraft's wing due to the wind forces, and allegadly whistled all the way down to Vietnamese soil. The incident became a legend of Vietnam War, to the point of some scale model producers adding the tiny "toilet-bomb" to their kits

Even tough last U.S. Skyraiders were transfered to South Vietnamese Air Force (Gabonese AF was the last to retire it, in 1985), A-1's legacy lives to this day. It's straight wings proved and excellent choice for ground attack aircraft, and was incorporated in now famous A-10 Thunderbolt II assault airplane. First introduced in 1977, A-10 is still used as primary ground attack aircraft and will remain so at least until 2028, when they will possibly be replaced by F-35 Lightning II.

The kit
I always wanted to have Skyraider in my collection, but I never had luck in finding one I could afford (and even if I was lucky in finding one I've never won any auction). Then one day in April I visited model shop on Pó%u0142wiejska street in Pozna%u0144 and there, standing right next to the entrance, I noticed a box with picture of Skyraider taking off from carrier. I bought it right upon seeing it and happily started assembly once I reached home.

The kit is old, and it can be seen in several details. Panel lines are rised, and rivets are way too big, making the plane look more like an Interbellum tank rather than post-WWII aircraft I considered sanding the whole structure, but gave up, because it probably would look flat and uninteresting, because I'm not sure if I would be able to recreate the lines.

The original kit gives us 12 unguided rockets (probably Tiny Tim, but I'm not sure), two bombs (with hardpoint just for one ) and two external fuel tanks (or so I think they are EFTs, because I've found photos of very similar-looking bombs, and the instruction does not give painting specifications for this part). The kit I bought also had a bonus - two underwing triple Bazooka rocket launchers. I had to seal the right- and left-most slits for unguided rockets and replace them with Bazooka pods. I've seen similar ones in Revell's P-51B Mustang and I liked the concept, though the accuracy of these rockets is disputable.

I chose the US Navy camouflage: grey top with white belly and steering surfaces. I also painted black anti-reflection strip in front of canopy. I used green tips for the rockets, though in some places the masking tape was not placed tightly enough and I had to cover the spots by hand. For weathering, I used acrylic paint solved in alcohol, applied with brush.

Airfix' decals are thick and the bigger ones may be difficult to apply. I had trouble attaching the green belts on the cockpit's sides. NOTE: the stars at the side of the aircraft ARE separated on two parts and they ARE ment to be so, because they are partially placed on the air brake.

Model: Airfix
Paints: grey, black, green: Pactra; white: Humbrol
Scale: 1/72