1:144 B-17's MkIII's

A jammer with secret equipment and two Icelandic patrols

The first machine of the set is KJ177 with the code BU-E and the inscription Take It Easy. According to the supplier, its serial number is followed by the letter G, and that was no accident: aircraft marked in this way had to be under continuous guard, because they carried equipment that was not talked about. This was the jamming of German radar and radio communications, work that takes up less space in the chronicles than bombing but reduced losses measurably.

The remaining two items belong to No. 251 Squadron and came about in Iceland. Borganes Bess with the code AD-B refers to a small town on the western coast of the island, and Hekla Hettie with the code AD-H to the best-known volcano there. The crews chose both names from the local surroundings, in which they spent whole months between long flights over an empty ocean.

The Icelandic base had its own particular regime for the crews. The weather changed within an hour, the runways lay among lava fields and the nearest alternate airfield was far across the sea. That is exactly why machines with long range and experienced crews were sent here, crews who did not mind that their work cannot be told as a heroic story.

Building and markings

The difference between the jamming machine and the patrol aircraft is visible above all in the equipment and the finish, so two completely different models can be built from the same sheet. The code letters are printed at a uniform height, which helps keep the line straight when they are stuck onto a curved area; they are seated on a wet gloss surface and the water is pressed out from under the decal with a soft brush.

The set is prepared for four-engine models of 1:144 size and consists of a printed sheet alone. Everything else, from plastic to clear coats, is dealt with separately.