NEW 1/144 AIRCRAFT DECALS BY SHELF ODDITY
This wonderfully named company has released new sets of waterslide markings for the P-47, MiG-17 and other types.
Small-scale aircraft may be not everyone’s cup of tea, but for those short on display space they are real boon. One firm that’s making efforts to provide a decent array of aftermarket support is Shelf Oddity, which has recently released the following 1/144 decal sheets:
SO314437 RAF Thunderbolt Mk.IIs 73 OTU (7 €)
This single sheet provides schemes for seven RAF ‘bubbletop’ Thunderbolt Mk.IIs flown by 73 Operational Training Unit, and other operators. Representing camouflaged and bare-metal airframes (and the well-known overall black machine with red ‘lightning bolt’), with and without the dorsal fin fillet, the liveries are:
• P-47D-28-RE, 19628, KJ137/8, 73 OTU, Fayid, Egypt, 1945
• P-47D-28-RE, 44-19650, KJ169/30, 73 OUT, Fayid, Egypt, 1945
• P-47D-30-RE, 44-20508, KJ347, Gp Capt Frank Carey, 73 OUT, Fayid, Egypt, 1945
• P-47D-30-RE, 44-20957, KL328/14, 73 OUT, Fayid, Egypt, 1945
• P-47D-30-RE, 44-20959, KL330/PJ-S, 73 OUT, Fayid, Egypt, 1945
• P-47D-30-RE, 44-20309, KJ299, Heston Aircraft Company, UK, 1944
• P-47D-40-RA, 44-90335, KL887, 51 Maintenance Unit, UK, 1945
SO314446 Força Aérea Portuguesa F-47Ds (4 €)
Post-war, home-based Portuguese Air Force F-47Ds are the focus of attention here, the three aircraft all being in bare metal and having the dorsal fin fillet:
• F-47D-30-RE, 44-20588, 4401, Ota Air Base, 1952
• F-47D-30-RA, 44-90268, 4437, Tancos Air Base, 1955
• F-47D-30-RA, 44-90261, 4447, Aviation Mechanic School, Sintra Air Base, late 1950s
SO314447 RAF Thunderbolts Mk.II SEAC (10 €)
Here we return to RAF Thunderbolts, particularly airframes operated by South East Asia Command, in a mix of bare metal and camouflage. The 12 machines are:
• P-47D-25-RE, 42-26480, HD185/FL-D, 81 Squadron, Java, late 1945
• P-47D27-RE, 42-26908, HD295/NA-F, Sqn Ldr R A C Weir, 146 Squadron, Kumbhirgram, India, October 1944
• P-47D-27-RE, 44-19832/KJ194/GQ-N, 134 Squadron, Burma, late 1945
• P-47D-28-RE, 44-20312, KJ302/AW-P, 42 Squadron (formerly 46 Sqn), Meiktila, Burma, 1945
• P-47D-30-RE, 44-20312/NV-V, 79 Squadron, Burma, 1945
• P-47D-30-RE, 44-20833, KL274/FL-T, 81 Squadron, Batavia, Java, 1945
• P-47-30-RE, 44-20968, KL339/FL-O, 81 Squadron, Kemajoram, Java, 1945
• P-47D-30-RE, 44-20897, KL308/RS-C, WO K Twynam, 30 Squadron, Baigatchi, India, 1945
• P-47D-30-RE, 44-20904, KL315/AW-F, Sqn Ldr M M Souter, 42 Squadron (previously 146 Sqn), Meiktila, Burma, 1945
• P-47D-30-RE, 44-20968, KL841/EG-U, G V Sorrell, 34 Squadron, Zayatkwin, Burma, October 1945
• P-47D30-RE, 44-90093, KL859/MU-T, Flg Off J W Stacey, 60 Squadron, Batavia, Java, October 1946
• P-47D-30-RE, 4490116, KL882/MU-H, 60 Squadron, Don Muang, Thailand, September 1945
SO314451 Fresco over Atlas – Moroccan MiG-17s (6 €)
Five Moroccan Air Force MiG-17s in overall pale grey are represented on this twin-sheet release, although Shelf Oddity does not state a particular sub-type (it was the MiG-17F). The airframes that can be portrayed are: 1FA/01, 1FB/02, 1FF/06, 1FJ/10, 1F/11.
SO314452 Nigerian AF MiG-17s (6 €)
You have the choice of nine Nigerian MiG-17Fs here, in either bare metal or overall dark green, the serial numbers being: NAF 605/608/612/614/616/618/619/625/633.
SO314453 King Julien Frescos – Madagascar MiG-17s (6 €)
Named for the amusing Ring-Tailed Lemur from the DreamWorks Madagascar film franchise, this pack allows the portrayal of three MiG-17Fs in bare metal, with the codes 113, 242 and 933 and the country’s attractive red, white and green national insignia. These airframes were acquired from North Korea and that nation’s insignia were still visible during Madagascan service, although they were faded. Thoughtfully, Shelf Oddity provides the North Korean markings too.
SO314456 P-42 ‘Streak Flanker’ (3 €)
This is a decidedly different subject… the Soviet Sukhoi Flanker airframe, article T-10-15 П-42 (P-42), which set a new time-to-climb record in 1986. The aircraft is in bare metal and zinc chromate primer.
SO314462 USAAF Training P-40M/Ns (4.50 €)
Two of these Curtiss P-40 airframes are dazzlers, as one is almost all in yellow, while another wears the standard Olive Drab over Neutral Gray, but has its empennage in overall yellow. The third option is in OD over NG, but with large white ‘T89’ codes on its nose. The aircraft are:
• P-40M-1-CU, 43-5449/G, Air Fighter Training Center, Gunter Field, Alabama, 1944
• P-40N-20-CU, 43-23736, HQ Flight, 72nd Fighter Wing, 2nd Air Force, Harding Field, Louisiana, 1944-45
• P-40N-25-CU, 43-24685/T89, 3rd Air Commando Group, Dale Mabry Field, Florida, August 1944
SO314463 Bare Metal Kittyhawk Mk.IVs RCAF and RNZAF (5.50 €)
These are smart schemes for Canadian and ‘Kiwi’ airframes, and you can build the following:
• P-40N-5-CU, 42105867, 876/PN, 135(F) Squadron RCAF, Patricia Bay, BC, 1945-46
• P-40N-20-CU, 43-23484, 877/PV, 5 OUT, RCAF, Boundary Bay, BC, 1945
• P-40M-10-CU, 43-5797, NZ3110, the 'Silver Barge', Sqn Ldr H R Wigley, 4 OTU RNZAF, Ohakea, early 1945
• P-40N-25-CU, 43-24311, NZ3283, Sqn Ldr D F St George, 4 OUT RNZAF, Ohakea, early 1945
• P-40M-10-CU, 43-5797, NZ3210, RNZAF, Rukuhia, 1945
All these decals exhibit quality printing and are available direct from: www.shelfoddity.com
