Hasegawa 1/72 F-117A Nighthawk

[Stuart]

I thought I'd better post up some photos of this before I get so far along there's no point.

On Sunday, having stuck some bits on the Bird dog and slapped some future on the Sabre (and having had a heart attack at the thought of sanding the Tornado ), I had a dig in the stash-ette to find another modern jet to join the F-16A on the shelf. I didn't fancy getting stuck into the new CJ before I'd finished the Sabre, so I picked this up as, at below 50 pieces, it's pretty simple...



It's been a lot of fun thus far - this is about two hours work.



The cockpit was pretty simple, just decals for the controls and IP. I added the pilot from my previous CJ as I haven't got any wine bottle foil left to make belts - I need to drink some more!





All I need to do before I fit the canopy is add the HUD.

One of the interesting things about this kit is the weapons bay door being separate - it seemed a bit strange seeing as how there isn't a option of having them open. I think the intention was to have an optional bay, and maybe there is in another boxing, as there are some positioning lugs on the inside - butt for whatever reason it's not an option in this kit.



Not much more to do and it's onto painting. I've ordered a pot of Tamiya NATO black as I hear it's a good match.

Cheers!

[keavdog]

Wow, lot's of progress there.

[Stikpusher]

Nice subject choice Stuart! The 117 was kept in shelters when not on sorties and maintained pretty rigorously so the black RAM coating was frequently redone. Use any black that you like.

[Medicman71]

Very nice! I still need to add this a Nighthawk to the stash!

[Stikpusher]

And I need to finish the one that I have sidelined.

[jeaton01]

The first time I saw one up close was in a hangar at Nellis. It sure looked like it was covered in sheetrock.

[Stuart]

Very nice! I still need to add this a Nighthawk to the stash!

And I need to finish the one that I have sidelined.

The first time I saw one up close was in a hangar at Nellis. It sure looked like it was covered in sheetrock.

I can imagine.

Thanks Gents! The F-117A is a pretty interesting subject, and it's certainly got to be one of the most unusual aircraft flying around out there.

What surprises me though is just how big it is; I always thought it was Viper sized but its actually a lot more substantial. That's one of the things I love about modelling a themed collection in the same scale - it gives you all these insights.

[Stikpusher]

Yes, the 117 is in the same size range as a F-15. But then you think, all internally, the airframe carries two FLIR turrets, a weapons bay capable of carrying up to two 2000 lb bombs, and it is powered by two non afterburning turbofans of the same type used on the F-18 Hornet and F-20 Tigershark. So that needs a lot of fuselage to conceal all that internally with stealth properties. I’ve seen them at a few air shows. On ground display at MCAS ElToro where I saw how large it was, and then in flight display at Edwards AFB. I was surprised at how agile it was while performing in flight maneuvers. Certainly not the plodding machine one gets the impression of from released footage.

[Bish]

Nice work there, looks good.

[Stuart]

Thanks Bish!

Yes, the 117 is in the same size range as a F-15. But then you think, all internally, the airframe carries two FLIR turrets, a weapons bay capable of carrying up to two 2000 lb bombs, and it is powered by two non afterburning turbofans of the same type used on the F-18 Hornet and F-20 Tigershark. So that needs a lot of fuselage to conceal all that internally with stealth properties. I’ve seen them at a few air shows. On ground display at MCAS ElToro where I saw how large it was, and then in flight display at Edwards AFB. I was surprised at how agile it was while performing in flight maneuvers. Certainly not the plodding machine one gets the impression of from released footage.

Very true - and having help manufacture convoluted ducts etc. for aircraft in the past, I bet it had pretty sizable intakes and exhausts, especially if you consider all the stuff to hep reduce the IR... Actually I'm not sure why I thought it would be small

I never thought it would be a plodder though, even with all the straight edges I always thought it was quite sleek. I know it's not supersonic but I would imagine it's pretty blooming quick when it wants to be.