1:48 Air Wing All-Stars Phantoms Part Three

The Phantoms of carrier air wing commanders

The third part of a collector's selection devoted to the most striking machines of the American carrier air wings revolves around the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II. The two-seat twin-engine fighter-bomber with its cranked outer wing and anhedral tailplane was the backbone of Navy and Marine Corps squadrons in the 1960s and 1970s.

The period the selection aims at was a golden one for modelers. Before the dull low-visibility grays arrived, Phantoms flew in a combination of a gray upper surface and a white underside, and against that background the squadrons vied with one another in decoration. Brilliant fins, stripes along the fuselage, colorful engine nacelle covers. The wing commander's machine usually brought the colors of all the subordinate squadrons together at once, so it tends to be the most striking aircraft on the whole deck.

What the selection is suited to

• the ceremonial finishes of carrier air wing commanders' machines
• it follows on from two earlier parts of the same collector's series
• prepared for F-4 Phantom II kits in 1:48 scale
• thin printing that leaves no noticeable step on the surface of a model

Before applying them it pays to even the surface out with a gloss varnish, so that no air is trapped under the carrier film and the edges do not go matte. Settle large colored areas on the fin in one go rather than in parts, otherwise the join always gives itself away by a faint break. Once it is completely dry, seal the whole thing with a varnish that matches the nature of the subject, that is rather a semi-gloss on a carefully kept ceremonial machine and a matte on an aircraft worn by service.