1:72 F-105 F/G Thunderchief - Undercarriage Bay masks for Hasegawa and Monogram

The two-seat Thunderchief in 1:72

The set deals with the edges of the landing gear openings on an F-105F and F-105G Thunderchief model with two seats one behind the other. It allows for the Hasegawa and Monogram kits, whose parts have dimensions of their own.

Wild Weasel and the suppression of air defenses

The two-seat form came about first as a trainer, but combat assigned it a far harder task. An officer operating electronic equipment that could pick up the transmissions of guidance radars took the rear cockpit. The crew then had to lure the enemy out, locate him and hit him before he managed to launch a missile of his own. The lengthened fuselage called for a larger vertical tail as well and the machine weighed noticeably more than the single-seat variant. These aircraft precisely opened the way for the strike forces.

Advice on spraying and shades

The model is assembled from a larger number of parts around the cockpit, so it pays to finish the underside before the canopy comes in turn. Lay the stencil on a dry and degreased surface, press it down with a wooden stick all around the perimeter and only then spray. Remove any sanding dust beforehand with a brush. Lay the paint on from the edge toward the center of the opening.

Who it makes sense for

• builders with an interest in electronic warfare in the air
• modelers who collect the two-seat forms of combat types
• those who combine older and newer molds in one display case
• those interested in the American deployment over Southeast Asia
• those who build a pair of the single-seat and the two-seat machine