July 2014

Air Force 1 Drones On

AF100115

As they await licensing rights to both the Reaper and Predator unmanned aerial systems, Air Force 1 officially took the wraps off of their first government-sanctioned replica drone, the Northrop Grumman X-47B (#AF100115). Unlike the former systems, The Northrop Grumman X-47B is intended to fly off of an aircraft carrier, making it a more robust combat platform for the US Navy well into the 21st century.

AF100115b

Unlike the Italeri rendition offered earlier this year, the Air Force 1 replica will come in 1:72 scale and feature, among other things. folding wingtips and a fully-realized internal weapons compartment just like the real aircraft. Look for the drone to loiter over their competition some time in September.

 

 

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Top Gun 2: Cruise vs. Drones

Top Gun

In an April report on The Verge that was gleaned from a HuffPost interview, Jerry Bruckheimer is apparently spilling some of the beans concerning the upcoming feature film, Top Gun 2. Lead actor, Tom Cruise, will once again reprise his role as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, the dapper F-14 ace who rose to the occasion despite his misgivings to rescue his fellow airmen and serve his country in magnificent fashion. This time around, however, Cruise will reportedly square off against a bevy of unmanned combat aerial vehicles, although the reason for the high-speed dogfight and locale are still a mystery. Since the movie has yet to go into production, we are probably looking at a Christmas 2016 airing at the earliest, with replicas likely following.

More information concerning the upcoming film can be found here: http://www.theverge.com/2014/4/1/5570710/top-gun-2-will-feature-tom-cruise-versus-drones-says-jerry-bruckheimer

 

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Air Force 1 Peers Into the Night

AF10013c

Aviation enthusiasts have been lamenting the fact that no die cast manufacturer has made a credible attempt at modeling the venerable P-61 Black Widow Night Interceptor. Apparently, their pleas haven’t fallen on deaf ears after all, now that Air Force 1 Model Company has confirmed plans to replicate the Northrop aircraft in 1:72 scale (#AF10013A and B). Two versions of Major Lee Kendall‘s “Lady in the Dark” are proposed, one featuring the pilot’s signature adorning the display stand. Both versions are now listed on our web site, which is expected some time in September.

AF10013B

On the night of August 14th, 1945, “Lady in the Dark” was reportedly the last Allied plane to down an enemy aircraft in WWII.

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The Race to Near Space

SR72

With the retirement of the SR-71 several years ago, and growing speculation regarding what has come to be known as Aurora soaring high over the American southwest, it was perhaps just a matter of time before the USAF finally lifted the veil of secrecy concerning their hugh-hush secret projects. Back In November, the Air Force confirmed that they were developing a new fleet of stealthy, high-speed reconnaissance aircraft that could fly at Mach 6 using Scramjet technology. Dubbed simply as the SR-72, the new midnight black aircraft may even field strike capabilities, utilizing Lockheed Martin’s High Speed Strike Weapon (HSSW), which is essentially a hypersonic missile concept.

SR72a

From a collector’s standpoint, it seems logical that the SR-72 will become one of the next highly coveted replicas enthusiasts will be yearning for, perhaps one day supplanting the SR-71 as their centerpiece reconnaissance plane. For now, proof-of-concept images will have to be revealed first beyond the handful of artist’s renderings now being distributed.

For more information on the SR-72, please visit this site: http://www.airforce-technology.com/features/feature-lockheed-martin-unveils-sr-72-successor-sr-71-spy-plane/

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Exploring the Dora

MT35001

Ordinarily, we tend to bypass the model kit category since most of our clientele would rather purchase a pre-assembled replica, ready-to-display right out of the box. However, when we received the sales literature concerning Merit International’s upcoming release, we had to sit up and take notice. Expected in September, this manufacturer plans to offer a 1:35 scale model kit of the legendary German Heavy railway gun, Dora (#MT35001). Huge by any measure, the 1:35 scale kit will cover 4-1/2 feet of desktop space, to say nothing of its height, weight or wow factor.

The manufacturer is offering drop shipping to the lower 48 contiguous states, so orders will be shipped out of their California warehouse once it arrives. Unfortunately, due to its overall dimensions, we cannot sell this item to overseas customers, so you’ll just have to make do with the images provided.

MT35001 Compilation

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