1:48 B-17G Flying Fortress

One bomber in two eras

The whole sheet belongs to a single Boeing B-17G aircraft and shows it in two finishes, with more than half a century between them. The wartime appearance matches 1944, when the Flying Fortress served with a bombardment group stationed in England and completed twenty-four operational flights over occupied Europe. After it was damaged the crew headed for neutral Sweden, where the machine and the men were interned. The second variant captures the same aircraft as it looks today in the display of an American aviation museum.

A finish that reads like a biography

The difference between the two versions is not only in shade. The combat machine carries the recognition markings of the group, a faded surface and traces of operation from a field airfield, whereas the museum appearance is polished aluminum with carefully outlined lettering. The choice between them decides the whole painting procedure: either you age the model, or you tune the shine of the metal to a mirror.

How to apply the sheet

• Even the base out with gloss varnish; a matte surface lets air under the film.
• Divide long fuselage lettering into parts; it settles better across riveted strips.
• Dose the decal softener sparingly; a thin membrane ripples easily.
• Finally cover everything with varnish of the sheen matching the version chosen.

A plastic kit, paints and varnish are not in the package. The set allows for an ordinary model of the four engine bomber in the scale given, and a modeler who wants a pair in a display case will value it too: the same fuselage in wartime condition and beside it in the form of a carefully restored exhibit. A pair tells a story that one model usually cannot carry.