The Motor Pool – Blog – Page 161 – Pureveyors of Fine Diecast Collectibles

Lockheed’s Skunkworks: The Future is Now

According to a recent article that appears in the June issue of Popular Science, the folks at the legendary Lockheed Skunkworks are at it again.

“With regional threats growing and portable surface-to-air missiles evolving, engineers have once again set out to build the fastest military jet on the planet.

This time, it will take the form of a 4,000-mile-per-hour reconnaissance drone with strike capability. Known as the SR-72, the aircraft will evade assault, take spy photos, and attack targets at speeds of up to Mach 6. That’s twice as fast as its predecessor.

Aeronautical engineers at Lockheed Martin and Aerojet Rocketdyne have been designing the SR-72 at their Skunk Works black site in California for the past several years. It will require a hybrid propulsion system: a conventional, off-the-shelf turbo jet that can take the plane from runway to Mach 3, and a hypersonic ramjet/scramjet that will push it the rest of the way. Its body will have to withstand the extreme heat of hypersonic flight, when air friction alone could melt steel. Its bombs will have to hit targets from possibly 80,000 feet. Lockheed says the craft could be deployed by 2030. Once it is, the plane’s ability to cover one mile per second means it could reach any location on any continent in an hour—not that you’ll see it coming.”

Several on-board systems will need to be redeveloped for such a reconnaissance and weapons platform to work at a speed of Mach 6, chief among them targeting, high altitude bombing, piloting, and stability at a high friction rate of speed. Frankly, if anyone can do it, its the boys at Lockheed, who are responsible for creating some of the most sophisticated aircraft ever to take to the sky.

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Hobby Master Super Sizes the Hornet

Ever since Hobby Master came out with their first F/A-18 Hornet, it was long speculated but never confirmed that they would eventually up the ante by producing its larger successor, the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. Earlier today, the Company finally fessed up by indicating that a Super Hornet is indeed in the works and expected some time in early 2016. Their first bird is a US Navy McDonnell Douglas F/A-18E Super Hornet Strike Fighter that was attached to VFA-14 “Tophatters”, and bears their 90th Anniversary commemorative scheme (HA5101). Frankly, if you like modern US warbirds, then this is a no brainer, simply because its the inaugural release. While an operational scheme always seems to do better at retail, its going to be hard to pass this one up.

As an aside, we hope they also decide to produce the Advanced Super Hornet, which is designed to maintain fleet requirements well into the 2030s. More information can be found here

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Star Wars: There is a Great Disturbance in the Force

Apparently, Disney has deemed that September 4th is when a great many licensees of its Star Wars brand will be able to reveal their merchandising plans to the public at-large. In the meantime, we’ve learned a couple of interesting tidbits that should get the party started a wee bit early. First off, our distributor has confirmed that the large majority of the legacy-based DeAgostini Star Wars vehicles and ships come with their coveted magazine, which offers loads of information and full color illustrations concerning each replica portrayed.

At the other end of the spectrum, Mattel has posted pix of three of their upcoming 1:18 scale ships that have appeared prominently in previous Star Wars films. Heavy in the hand, and bearing all of the detail you’ve come to expect from this long time toy maker, these limited edition replicas will certainly help to get the ball rolling ahead of the debut of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which is scheduled to hit theatres on December 18th. May the force be with them.

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Star Trek Continues

Some times I think we’re completely out-of-the-loop when we stumble upon information that could have knocked us over with a feather. While perusing the web, we discovered a brand new web-based film series based upon the original, Gene Roddenberry-created Star Trek television series. Named, aptly enough, Star Trek Continues, these “webisodes” feature all of the familiar characters, sets, costumes, and hokey special effects first witnessed in the 1960s series, going so far as to even include the same dated introduction, sound effects and animations. To view the five uploaded webisodes and see what’s in store for Trekkies, visit: http://www.startrekcontinues.com/

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The DoD Breathes New Life into the Abrams

Back in 2014, long before the Russian T-14 Armata main battle tank was unveiled to the public, the US Department of Defense awarded General Dynamics with a contract to build 12 advanced main battle tanks with digital vetronics. Dubbed the M1A2 SEP Version 2, the tank, according to Military and Aerospace Electronics, “is considered to be one of the most technologically advanced and most survivable digital tank available worldwide. The networked tank has an electronic backbone, improved processors, high-resolution color displays, increased memory capacity, a day and night forward-looking infrared (FLIR) sighting system, auxiliary power, a tank-infantry phone, and an open architecture designed to accommodate future upgrades without redesigns.”

Its not clear how the upgraded M1A2 SEP V2 will fair against Russia’s new battle tank in a one-on-one slugfest, or whether the Abrams has the ability to defeat other armed threats on the battlefield, particularly from air-launched heliborne assets. This electronics-based upgrade could serve as a short-term solution before the Armata gets fielded en masse, further extending the life-cycle of several thousand battle tanks that have seen service throughout the world with a number of armies.

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Signature Goes on Parade

One of the reasons we love Signature Models is that they aren’t afraid to tackle a subject at any scale. Take, for example, their 1:18 scale 1938 Mercedes G4 limousine, which has been a hit amongst the largesse community for several years running. Now, miniaturize it down to 1:43 scale. and you’ve got the same crowd pleaser rumbling down the pre-WWII streets of Berlin for an entirely different audience. Priced at just $59.99, the G4 comes in three flavors: a white and black convertible, as well as a deep blue portrayal with its top up. Look for these in May.

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Should Japan Rename Its Armed Forces?

On Thursday, the Japanese cabinet approved a set of bills bolstering the role and scope of its military, as the pacifist country redefines its position in the increasingly roiled Asia-Pacific region. Since the end of the Second World War, Japan had focused solely on the defense of its home islands, going so far as to name its army the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Now, in light of recent hostile moves by North Korea, territorial disputes with both mainland China and Russia over several islands, and terrorism, Japan, at the prodding of several allied nations, looks to protect its interests by expanding its zone of control and mandate for its military. According to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, “In the past two years, Japanese nationals have fallen victim to terrorism in Algeria, Syria and Tunisia; Japan is within range of hundreds of North Korea’s ballistic missiles and the number of (fighter jet) scrambles has risen seven-fold in a decade. This is the reality. We should not try to ignore it.”

Revisions include removing geographical constraints on logistical support for friendly forces in “situations that would significantly affect Japan’s security.”

They also say Japan can defend allies “in situations where there is a clear risk that Japan’s existence is threatened and its people’s rights…are compromised through an attack on a country which has a close relationship with Japan.”

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Erecting a New Wall

In the early 1960s, Russia decided to construct a wall across their section of East Berlin that was designed to keep the city’s inhabitants “within” its borders. Now, fifty years later, Ukraine has decided to build a similar barrier, this time around aimed at keeping Russia out.

According to Russia Today, “Kiev authorities have approved a major new program to isolate the country from Russia by constructing an enormous barrier, equipped with anti-tank ditches and remote controlled weapons stations. They intend to spend $200 million on the grand plan.

On April 14, the Ukrainian cabinet approved a plan for technical arrangements on the Russian-Ukrainian border for 2015-2018.

The plan includes a project initially called ‘The Wall’ or ‘European bulwark’. It’s estimated to be worth 4 billion hryvnias (about $US200 million) and involves the construction of a barbed-wire fence with 17-meter high steelwork turrets. There will also be four-meter wide, two-meter deep antitank ditches, a lateral route and a drag road, remote combat modules, fortified sectors, observation posts, CCTV cameras, communication towers and alarm systems.

The plan is to complete construction within three years, yet previous intentions to erect a barrier on the Russian border floundered due to Ukraine’s lack of cash.

Initially, the idea of digging a ditch on the Russian-Ukrainian border was voiced by the former governor of Dnepropetrovsk region, Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolomoysky. He even funded a military field engineering vehicle that created a ditch on the border with Russia.”

Barriers have been used with varying results over the course of the past hundred years. The most notable include France’s Maginot Line, Finland’s Mannerheim line, Germany’s West Wall, Israel’s West Bank Barrier, the US-Mexican Border-Enforcement Wall, and the South Korean defensive belt straddling the 38th Parallel. Considering the cost, length of its border with Russia, and much weaker military position with its neighbor to the east, its highly dubious if such a barrier could work in the 21st Century, particularly when Ukraine is already faced with mounting debt to certain international monetary agencies.

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Hobby Master Spirits Us Away this October

As is customary for Hobby Master, the Company has just announced their lineup for the October time frame. There’s a smattering of aircraft and vehicles that cover virtually every epoch and conflict, which is cause for celebration for a great many folks. We’re still in the process of listing all of these goodies on our site and hope to have everything up for sale by the close of business today. Enjoy!

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Can Air Force 1 Drop the Bomb in Time?

To further flesh out their 1:144 scale catalog, Air Force 1 today announced plans to build a replica of “Enola Gay”, the B-29 Superfortress piloted by Paul Tibbets when it dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan (#AF10112). Thus far, only a line art drawing has been added to their corporate web site, even though they claim the model will be released at the end of May. Still, this comes as welcome news, since there are a great many post WWII-era bombers that could be integrated into their 1:144 scale range that collectors have been requesting for as long as we’ve been around.

Keep in mind that August 6th represents the seventieth anniversary of the dropping of the A-Bomb on Hiroshima, so it will be interesting to see if this manufacturer can get this bird up and flying in time for the event.

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