1:48 AN/ALQ-71(V)-3 ECM pod (1pcs)

The AN/ALQ-71(V)-3 jamming pod, 1:48

A single casting captures the electronic warfare pod of the kind American machines carried over North Vietnam. The manufacturer distinguishes a sub-variant as well, so a rendition matching a particular period can be chosen.

What the container was for

As soon as surface-to-air missiles appeared over the north of Vietnam, American formations needed a device that would fog the picture on the screens of the guidance radars. The answer was jamming pods hung directly under an aircraft. Noise jamming did not blind the enemy completely, but it worsened accuracy so much that a formation flying at the prescribed spacings created a continuous screen. The pods were carried mainly by F-105 and F-4 machines, that is by the types bearing the main weight of the strike tasks. A pod on a pylon, though, took up a place that would otherwise have belonged to bombs, so every sortie meant a choice between self-protection and load.

Detail that is easily drowned in paint

The surface of the pod is covered with small cooling fins and antennas. Apply the finish in really thin coats, therefore, and rather in several passes. One heavy coat will fill the fins and the casting loses the very thing it is bought for. Before gluing, check the mating surface against the pylon and level it lightly if needed.

Which models it belongs on

• Builders of aircraft from the Vietnam conflict
• Modelers with an interest in electronic warfare equipment
• Those who are adding stores to larger kits
• Collectors of aircraft pods in 1:48

Inside is the pod itself; no further parts belong with it.