Category: WW2 Era (1939-45)

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Coming Soon: Kotare’s New Spitfire Mk.Vb (Early) Finally Enters Production

After “excessive delay” related to obtaining the highest possible quality, Kotare has announced that their much anticipated 1/32 Spitfire Mk.Vb (Early) has finally entered production.

The new kit will reportedly feature 141 high-quality injection molded plastic parts, including 38 all new tooled parts such as wings, 20mm cannon barrels, alternate magazine fairings, control column, engine driven undercarriage controls, cockpit sidewalls, starboard engine cowlings, ailerons, and oil cooler fairings. Additional features include windscreen with de-icing, canopy hood with Martin-Baker jettison system, fireproof bulkhead, dual-height rudder pedals, instrument panel with rectangle & curved flying panels, composite pilot’s seat with and without Sutton Type K harness detail, IFF Mk.II, ice/snow guard, port wing fillets with electrical connection door, Supermarine and CBAF undercarriage doors and top engine cowlings, open & closed cockpit doors with optional crow-bar, de Havilland & Rotol propellers and wheels with weighted tyres featuring correct alignment. High quality Cartograf decals will also be provided offering marking options for RAF, Polish, and USAAF aircraft.

The company expects to receive stock and begin shipments in mid January. Click below to check out additional images.

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San Diego Air & Space Museum Offering Ranger L-440 Engine For Sale

Please Note: This is an archived post. The information presented here may not be current and the associated listing may no longer be active.

The San Diego Air and Space Museum is currently offering an Early WWII Ranger L-440-1 engine for sale, complete with stand. The listing states (in part):

The Ranger L-440 series was widely used in WWII-era primary and advanced trainer aircraft, particularly in Fairchild PT-19, PT-23, and PT-26 trainers. These engines were known for their lightweight construction and reliable air-cooling design, making them well-suited for training aircraft. Includes custom made steel metal stand with wheels. This engine has been on display at the San Diego Air and Space Museum. It is in great visual condition. UNTESTED.

The engine is located in San Diego, California and is currently available for US $4,500. Click here to check out the eBay listing, which includes several additional photos.

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Unveiling Okinawa 1945: Dive into the Royal Navy’s Epic Carrier Campaign

Soon to be released from Osprey Publishing and author Angus Konstam is Okinawa 1945: The Royal Navy’s biggest carrier campaign. The title is described as “a fully illustrated study explaining the British Pacific Fleet’s campaign against the Japanese in the Sakishima Islands, and its overlooked role in the battle for Okinawa.”

In this book, naval expert Angus Konstam offers a newly researched account of the Fleet Air Arm’s air campaign in the Sakashimas. By 1945, the carriers and their aircrews were well worked up, and ready to tackle challenging and important targets. He explains the capabilities of the late-war Fleet Air Arm at Okinawa, and analyses their effectiveness against Japan’s still-dangerous airpower. Famously, at Okinawa the Royal Navy’s armoured carriers proved much more resilient to kamikaze strikes than the wooden-topped carriers of the Americans. Packed with spectacular original artwork, photographs, diagrams and maps, this book is a superbly illustrated history of the Royal Navy’s most extensive carrier campaign.

The 96 page paperback book is currently available for pre-order with release slated for January 27.

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Eduard Releases ProfiPACK Edition Spitfire Mk.Vb (Early) Model Kit

Adding to the list of new Eduard releases for December is this ProfiPACK edition Spitfire Mk. Vb (early) model kit in 1/72 scale. As previously reported, Eduard also released a 1/48 ProfiPACK edition Mk.Vb (mid) model kit this month.

The early Mk.Vb typically featured the original “B” type wing, which had one inner cannon bay and the outer machine guns. In contrast, the mid variant usually sported the “universal” wing design, which had two inner cannon bays (though one was often left empty), allowing for a more flexible armament configuration. The outer two .303 machine guns were moved closer together in the mid variant wing compared to the early one.

The early variant kit (70205) includes Eduard plastic parts and decals, pre-painted PE parts and a painting mask. Marking options are included for six aircraft.

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Now Available For Pre-Order: Part 2 of Series on Vickers Wellington

Part 2 of Gregorz Korcz’s series on the Vickers Wellington I & II is now available for pre-order. The series focuses on the aircraft that, along with the Handley Page Hampden and Armstrong Whitworth Whitley, carried the main weight of the RAF’s growing bombing offensive against the Third Reich. It was also being the backbone of all four Polish bomber squadrons as well as the OTU training establishments, where Polish crews gained their combat proficiency..

This volume in the Polish Wings series presents the history of the Vickers Wellington bombers in the Ic and II versions in Polish Air Force service in exile between 1940 and 1942. The first part covers Nos. 300 and 301 Squadrons and 18 OTU, while the second describes the combat operations of Nos. 304 and 305 Squadrons. The book includes: a detailed history of the Polish Wellington crews in action, numerous archival photographs, many previously unpublished, colour profiles by Andrzej M. Olejniczak, comprehensive listings of operational sorties.

The 68 page title is slated for release on March 15. Part 1 of the series is also available for pre-order with release set for January.

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1941 Piper Cub J5A For Sale: “Ground Up Restoration, 7/25 Annual”

Please Note: This is an archived post. The information presented here may not be current and the associated listing may no longer be active.

A 1941 Piper Cub J5A is currently available for sale. The listing states the following:

TTAF-3159h. Engine C-85-12F TSMOH- 669h. Aircraft log since 1944. Ground up restoration 2022. Polyfiber fabric and paint. Becker radio. Electric starter. Hangared. 4 gal per hour! Annual : July 2025

The aircraft is located in San Diego, CA and is currently available for US $45,000, although offers are also being accepted. Click here to check out the eBay listing, which includes additional photos and details.

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See What the New England Air Museum Looked Like in 1992 [Video]

Our YouTube channel DX Modelworks has taken a break from model aircraft build logs to bring you a new video showing what the New England Air Museum looked like in 1992.

The brief video tour provides general views, close-ups of aircraft such as the F6F Hellcat and the Fokker Dr.1, and a look at the models on display. It is a wonderful time capsule that shows how the museum has evolved over the years, and it also evokes nostalgia for those who visited during this period.

Check it out below.

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Double Sunrise: How Qantas Reopened Australia’s Severed Air Route to Britain in WWII

In his new book Double Sunrise, author Geoff Goodall explores Qantas Empire Airways Indian Ocean wartime services between 1943 and 1946.

The Japanese conquest cut Australia off from Britain in early 1942, leaving the country isolated. From June 1943, Qantas revived the Perth-to-Ceylon route—the world’s longest at the time—creating 27-hour, radio-silent flights that witnessed two sunrises, giving birth to the “Double Sunrise” service; five months later, the route extended to Karachi. In mid-1944, faster Qantas Liberators joined, shortening the Ceylon–Exmouth Gulf leg, followed by the introduction of Qantas Lancastrians in 1945. Despite wartime isolation, the service ran accident-free until a Lancastrian vanished on a final Indian Ocean leg in March 1946, after which operations returned to Singapore routes. Sir Hudson Fysh later called the wartime Indian Ocean service the most fascinating and romantic achievement of Qantas.

The 134 page paperback book is currently available for pre-order with release set for December 15.

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Eduard Releases “Weekend Edition” A6M2-N Rufe

Another new release from Eduard this month is an A6M2-N Rufe Weekend Edition model kit in 1/48 scale.

The A6M2-N Rufe is the naval floatplane variant of the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, built by Nakajima for the IJN as a single-seat carrier-based fighter with floats instead of a conventional landing gear. It featured a 14-cylinder radial engine, a 3-blade propeller, and a compact airframe optimized for water takeoffs and landings, typically armed with 7.7 mm machine guns and light cannon in wing roots. Operated mainly in maritime environments, the Rufe was designed to defend sea lanes and airfields near atolls where traditional airstrips were unavailable, and it served in several theaters during World War II.

The kit (84208) includes Eduard plastic parts and decals with marking options for four aircraft.

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Lycoming R-680 Engine For Sale: “Serviceable With Original WW2 Stand”

Please Note: This is an archived post. The information presented here may not be current and the associated listing may no longer be active.

A Lycoming R-680 radial engine has been spotted for sale. The listing states (in part):

…serviceable WWII Lycoming R-680 aircraft 9-cylinder engine. It comes with an original WWII engine stand that has different settings for display or “working on” the engine. It can be flat or at any angle.

The engine is located in Otis Orchards, Washington and is currently available for US $25,000 although offers are also being accepted. Click here to check out the eBay listing, which includes additional photos and details.

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