1:72 A-10A Thunderbolt II cockpit (Basic edition 3D decals included) for GWH kit

The original pilot's station of the A-10A

The first production Thunderbolt IIs entered service with the US Air Force in 1977, and their cockpit still belonged entirely to the analog era. The pilot had dozens of round dials in front of him, a head-up sight and consoles fitted with rows of switches; none of that can be confused with the later upgraded form. This set therefore belongs on a model of a machine of the 1980s and 1990s, including aircraft used in Operation Desert Storm.

Depth that a flat surface cannot replace

The cockpit is the one place on a model that the viewer looks into through a clear cover, which is why flat substitutes give themselves away there fastest. The seat has armrests with real thickness, the side walls have raised details and you can see inside the tub. The panels in relief that the set adds stand exactly on the boundary between the two techniques: they carry printing like a sheet, but they have raised controls like a casting. It is from that combination that the impression of a fitted-out cockpit comes, even though it measures barely a centimeter.

Before you start gluing

Try the fit in the fuselage before painting; on 1:72 models the space under the cover tends to be tight. Wash the castings so that no mold release agent is left on them, and apply a thin coat of primer; a heavy coat would swallow the fine structure. Apply the panels in relief only as the last step, once the surrounding paint has dried. The package is intended for the kit from Great Wall Hobby, and the aircraft model is not sold with it. It is sensible to try the painted tub once more before finally gluing the fuselage halves together.