1:144 Curtiss H-75A 'Ilmavoimat' Curtiss Hawk 75A ‘Ilmavoimat’ (Finnish AF)

The real subject

The Curtiss Hawk 75A is the export form of the American fighter that the US Army Air Corps adopted under the designation P-36. It is an all-metal low-wing monoplane with a radial engine, an enclosed cockpit and retractable landing gear, that is, a machine that at the turn of the 1930s and 1940s represents the transition from biplanes to the modern fighter generation. The Finnish Air Force, the Ilmavoimat, operated these aircraft during the Second World War, and they were among the types with good combat results in its service.

What the kit contains

The model is supplied unassembled and unpainted. The real Hawk 75A had a span of roughly eleven and a half meters, so in 1:144 scale the finished aircraft works out at just under eight centimeters. It takes up little room in a display case and fits well into a collection of fighters of the same size.

Building and painting tips

Clean the excess material off the parts and sand the marks from manufacture smooth before you start gluing. With the radial engine it pays to spray the cylinders and the cowling separately and join them only at the end, otherwise the detail is lost under the paint. Mask the cockpit before spraying, not after the paint has dried. The Finnish machines wore a conspicuous camouflage scheme that is worth some time; lay the paint on in thin coats so that the surface relief does not disappear at the small scale. If you are going to apply decals, level the surface with a gloss coat.

Who it suits

For collectors of 1:144 scale, for those interested in the Finnish Air Force and for modelers who want to have the prewar fighter generation next to later types. Paints and glue are not included in the package, unless stated otherwise.