Last month, as part of our preview of what to expect in 2017, we alluded to the fact that French manufacturer, Solido, was planning on getting back into the military game in a “big” way. By “big”, we weren’t necessarily referring to the fact that they intended to offer a large number of SKUS – rather, by introducing both a 1:72 scale range of military vehicles and aircraft repurposed from the War Master line up, along with larger, reworked 1:43 scale military vehicles originally made by Eaglemoss. In fact, the banner image on their Facebook page even showed several former Eaglemoss vehicles as part of their 2017 vehicle lineup to bolster this claim. However, when we paid a visit to their Facebook page earlier today, their Nuremberg Toy Fair booth didn’t include any Eaglemoss vehicles at all, but rather several 1:43 scale vehicles that we haven’t seen before, including both a German and US tank transporter, King Tiger heavy tank, and what looks like a modern era US AFV sitting atop the US tank transporter.
Currently, we are awaiting further information concerning this intriguing development, which will no doubt help to reignite interest in the 1:43-1:50 scale segment of our hobby.
Despite running into some manufacturing issues which has delayed the released of their first pair of F-14 Tomcats, Calibre Wings used the Nuremberg Toy Fair to show off their next tooling: a Sukhoi Su-24 Fencer all weather attack aircraft. Initially, two planes are being planned for an end-of-year release: one based upon a Ukranian Su-24MR and a second, and likely more popular, Su-24M variant flown by a Russian squadron.
Thus far, neither version is being shown in their markings and insignia, although the prototype was displayed with its ordnance and some of its characteristic features, among them variable geometry swing wings and opening cockpit.
We are just a scant day away from the opening of the Nuremberg Toy Fair, typically the venue most diecast makers use to unveil the bulk of their wares for the coming year. Of course, some smaller companies don’t have the resources to attend the Show, and oftentimes announce new offerings on their web site, social media or in email newsletter blasts to their dealers and audience. In any event, we will start listing the new product we learn about as soon as information comes in, which can some times take several days to accomplish. Items of particular note we will list first and begin accepting pre-orders as soon as we know their landed costs. Obviously, we ask for your patience during this process and refrain from asking us product-related questions until everything has been posted to our site. Thank you and enjoy some of the latest and greatest items coming to market.
Perhaps hoping to one day retake land lost to the Russians in the 2014 invasion of the Crimea and other regions, Ukraine recently announced plans to refurbish a fleet of rusting T-64 main battle tanks with the intention of making them as battle worthy as the Russian T-14 Armata. On January 18th, the Ukranian government charged the Azov engineering group with the modernization of its antiquated fleet of T-64 tanks currently rotting in a depot and turning them into the newly dubbed Tirex (pronounced “T-Rex” like the dinosaur). The Company has also been tasked with the development of infantry fighting vehicles and the “Azovets” combat vehicle. According to reports, the Azovets is really a prototype, and aspects of the vehicle will be implemented in other projects including infantry fighting vehicles.
Little information has thus far been released concerning the surprise announcement, and it will be a dubious task indeed to turn an aging battle tank from the 60s into a fighting vehicle capable of standing toe-to-toe with a more robust, state-of-the-art battle tank in the form of the Armata that the Russians have already begun deploying in limited numbers.
“We lose every battle that we do not take part in. Tomorrow, you do battle for my daughters and I’m in battle with you and we pray and support you and we have faith in you.” – Doctor Samir Pandya, recanting what the conjoined twins’ father said to him hours prior to the second and final phase of the procedure to separate his daughters
So, last month I briefly touched upon why I have no trouble remembering the birthday of my eldest daughter, Linda, largely because it falls on December 7th. Earlier today, her husband, Samir, currently a pediatric surgeon at the Maria Fereri Children’s Hospital, an integral part of the Westchester Medical Center in New York, was profiled by NBC Today. Last week, he completed the second of two phases involved in the separation of conjoined twins, who were attached at the hip and back and shared several common systems. If you’re interested in learning more about the 22-hour procedure as well as the family involved, please visit this link: NBC Today Health and Wellness
Obviously, our entire family is immensely proud of Samir and his accomplishment, and we wish the twins godspeed and a quick recovery as they spend the next few weeks rehabbing before they can return home to the Dominican Republic. I have since been told that their overall prognosis is excellent and even though they shared portions of their lower spine, it appears as if both children will be able to walk and perform full range of motion likely without the need for any medical assistance.
Doctors Samir Pandya and Whitney McBride, co-leads in the separation of 11-month old twins at the Maria Fereri Children’s Hospital, along side anchors Rosanna Scotto and Greg Kelly of Fox 5’s Good Day New York
Post Script: As Samir’s father-in-law, I feel obligated to add one final note to this amazing tale that has thus far not been touched upon by any of the antecedent news reports that have gone viral. When Samir was a teenager growing up in Nairobi, Kenya, he was attacked by a gang of youths and stabbed several times around various spots on his body. His father, an emergency room surgeon in his own right, was notified that evening that he had a patient coming in that needed immediate attention. For some inexplicable reason, he had a premonition that it was his own son that needed to be operated on, one which proved to be correct. That evening, his father repaired his son’s wounds and saved his life, thereby enabling him to go on to become a world famous surgeon. I bring up this point because in the years that followed, it isn’t easy for Samir to stand for hours on end in the operating room, much less spend upwards of 22 hours attending to the needs of his conjoined patients. Sometimes, there is a human interest story that needs to be told that lingers in the background and never comes to the fore, one that requires a little bit of prodding to come out.
Finally, this televised ad ran just minutes after the conclusion of Super Bowl LI (51) on Fox 5.
Its been said that when training for the next military conflict, generals typically do so by fighting the last war, taking lessons learned from the most recent conflict and then attempting to apply them to the battlefield of the future. While its certainly important to dissect why a particular campaign succeeded and how it was carried out, military planners must nevertheless keep a wary eye on what’s to come using the latest technological breakthroughs, thinking outside the box to come up with new ways, platforms and doctrine to take on even the most determined of foes.
For some reason, this very same allegory seems to apply to today’s diecast manufacturers. Rather than modelling many of the latest weapons destined to be used by today’s warfighter, the current crop of modelmakers seem more content to offer an array of replicas tied to former conflicts instead of following today’s headlines. Thus far, there have only been a smattering of replicas aimed at today’s air forces, the most notable coming in the form of the F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter, largely due to their connection to the voracious US/UK markets. However, there are other aircraft types now setting foot on the world stage that are screaming to be modeled too, most notably the Russian PAK-FA as well as the PLAAF’s pair of J-31 and J-20 stealth fighters. Yes, Air Force 1 did a credible job of recreating a prototype PAK-FA several years ago that is no longer available, but with Russia scheduled to deploy upwards of 100 PAK-FAs to its front line aviation units later this year, I would think that collectors would be equally happy to add one or even several updated operational schemes to their collections.
The same holds true for the newest Chinese aircraft nearly ready for operational use, which will likely be sent to defend their interests in the South China Sea. Bear in mind that I’m not advocating for a military conflict to settle geographic disputes, particularly with the change of administration in Washington DC taking place today, however, I do think its important that military enthusiasts, collectors, analysts and even those people that could care less about a regional confrontation have some sort of point of reference to look upon, as we enter, what many believe to be a Second Cold War.
Among the many new items we’ve received over the past month or so, are two Northrop F-5 Freedom fighters operated by the USMC under the guise of the VMFT-401 “Snipers”. These aircraft are used to emulate several Russian adversarial aircraft and help teach pilots how to evade, engage and hopefully destroy an agile enemy aircraft under varying conditions.
Marine Fighter Training Squadron 401 (VMFT-401) was activated on March 18, 1986 at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona. In June 1987 the squadron received a number of IsraeliF-21A Kfirs and during that year logged more than 4,000 hours of flight time during 16 major exercises. In 1989, they transitioned to the F-5E Tiger II which they still use.
The squadron was recognized by the Commandant of the Marine Corps for flying more than 50,000 mishap-free flight hours. They broke the 50,000 hour mark in early July 2010 having not had a mishap since October 1995. At an average of 45 minutes per flight, 50,000 hours equates to nearly 70,000 mishap free sorties.
Shown here are USMC Northrop F-5F Tiger II Fighter – VMFT-401 “Snipers,” 25th Anniversary, Yuma NAS, Arizona, August 2011 (HA3324) and USMC Northrop F-5F Tiger II Fighter – VMFT-401 “Snipers,” Yuma NAS, Arizona, June 2006 (HA3325).
For decades, the US Army’s family of M1 Abrams main battle tanks has been viewed as the king of the battlefield, demonstrating a lethal combination of firepower, mobility and armored protection that have come to symbolize the holy grail of armored warfare. Yet even with its track record and continued upgrade cycle to keep it up-to-date, which now comes in the form of the M1A2 SEP V4 scheduled to be fielded by US armored units in the early 2020s, the Defense Department recognizes that the venerable Abrams tank can only be upgraded to a point before it becomes obsolete and untenable as a fighting platform.
That said, the US Army’s TARDEC (Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center) is currently exploring a multitude of concepts for a new built-from-the-ground-up tank that is not only lighter, but more lethal yet survivable against threats from both the ground as well as the air. We Are the Mighty recently published a report on what just such a system might look like when it is scheduled to hit the battlefield in the 2030s. Integrating an Active Protection System (APS), and updated sensor package, more robust power plant, and latest munitions, the as yet unnamed vehicle will still likely feature tracks as opposed to wheels to get around from point-to-point and could potentially employ a laser weapons system as its primary means of taking on the enemy. More information on what lies ahead can be found here: http://www.wearethemighty.com/articles/the-us-army-next-generation-tank-abrams
Perhaps drawing inspiration from the Beach Boys classic, Waltersons showed off the new and improved packaging for their relaunched 1:700 sale warships series. Besides opening differently, making it far more easier to remove from its outer box, the new design features a wave-like blister in which the warship sits, which will differ markedly from ship-to-ship to signify the changes in wakes formed by each warship as it passes through the surf.
Look for the first squadron of warships to set sail later this winter. We are still awaiting pricing and dates of availability for some of the new toolings announced earlier this month.
In related news, the Company also posted several images of the new display stand being developed for each warship. Each ship will sit atop twin diecast metal pillars, that will be finished in chrome rather than gold, and attached to a wood-like display plinth, thereby making them much more attractive as potential conversation pieces on desks and credenzas.
As a retailer, one of our principal roles is to regularly curate our product portfolio, weighing the pros and cons of carrying every range offered to us. At the end of the day, its easy to list everything produced in the diecast space, however, its quite another thing to turn a profit, move product at an acceptable rate (“turn”) and justify why it is taking up room and precious dollars in our inventory. That said, I was hesitant, at first, about carrying a new line of silver plated aircraft produced by Atlas Editions, wondering how they might be viewed by traditional collectors and military enthusiaists. After taking a closer look at the line and scrutinizing some of the online photos, we decided to take the plunge and stock this sleek commemorative series, which are expected in early February. Each of these beautifully cast aircraft are heavy in the hand and come silver plated, attached to handsome wooden display bases and even silver plated risers, making them highly attractive desktop souvenirs and wonderful conversation pieces for anyone even mildly interested in the history of aviation. Priced at just $29.99 apiece, you can even collect the entire series without busting the budget and potentially hand them out to other curiosity seekers looking to gain a foothold in our hobby.
