Kit review vol. 19: Focke-Achgelis Fa330

Subject:	Focke--Achgelis Fa330
Scale:	1/72
Manufacturer:	Pavla  models
Price	US$ 17,00
Description	Injected plastic model with photo-etched metal parts and waterslide decals.
Comments	I found this little jewel in a hobby shop in New York last month. I could not resist buying it for US$17,00 even with the box in so bad shape like you can see on the picture above. The model is mostly made of photo-etched metal parts, with a small sprue with 8 parts. I have to say that there is no other way to make this model except by making it out of photo-etched parts. The details are really small but should look very nice once assembled. Markings consist of a set of German national insignia. The suggested painting scheme is overall RLM02, but i found that most references indicate it should be painted in RLM65.

Kit review vol.18: Atlas D ICBM - First US Operational ICBM

Subject:	Atlas D ICBM
Scale:	1/144
Manufacturer:	New Ware models
Price	US$ 24,00 + shipping
Description	Resin casting with decals
Comments	Here you have another great kit from New ware. The resin casting is outstanding. The model came in a sturdy box and very well protected. The Atlas kit is made of two parts main body, nose cone engine bells and some external detail. Decals are provided for one version. There is an A4 intsruction sheet with exploded diagram and painting indications.

Engine walkaroundvol.16: Reaction Motors XLR-11

Subject: Reaction Motors XLR-11
Location: USAF Museum, Dayton, Ohio, USA, 2014

The XLR11, company designation RMI 6000C4, was the first liquid-fuel rocket engine developed in the United States for use in aircraft. It was designed and built by Reaction Motors Inc., and used ethyl alcohol and liquid oxygen as propellants to generate a maximum thrust of 6,000 lbf (27 kN). Each of the four combustion chambers produced 1,500 lbf (6.7 kN) of thrust. The engine was not throttleable but each chamber could be turned on and off individually.The XLR11-RM-5 engine was first used in the Bell X-1. On October 14, 1947, the X-1 became the first aircraft to fly faster than the speed of sound (Mach 1). The XLR11-RM-5 was also used in the X-1A and X-1B, and as a booster engine in the U.S. Navy's D-558-2 Douglas Skyrocket turbojet (where it was designated the XLR8-RM-5). In 1959 and 1960, while development of a more powerful engine was still underway, a pair of XLR11-RM-13's were used as an interim power plant for the initial flights of the X-15 research aircraft. These engines were boosted to 2,000 lbf (8.9 kN) of thrust per chamber for a total of 16,000 lbf (71 kN). In comparison, the idle thrust of the X-15's XLR99 engine was 15,000 lbf (67 kN). After 24 powered flights, the XLR11 engines were replaced by the new XLR99 engine in November 1960.The XLR11-RM-13 was also used in the Dryden lifting bodies, and as a booster engine in the Republic XF-91 Thunderceptor turbojet.

(References: Wikipedia)

Spacecraft vol. 4: Little Joe Apollo Test Rocket

Subject:	Little Joe II - Apollo Program LES Test Launch Vehicle
Scale:	1/144
Manufacturer:	New Ware models
Price	US$ 35,00 + shiping
Description	Resin casting with photo-etched metal parts and decals
Comments	This is another great kit from New Ware models. The Litlle Joe II was a solid fuel rocket design used to test the escape system for the Apollo Moon Vehicle. As you can see from the video below, it proved that this system work perfectly! New Ware´s kit is nicely produced with yellow resin for all the major parts, with photo-etched metal parts for some airframe details and the escape tower. Fit is very nice and construction is simple. There is a fantastic decal sheet with all the tracking markings. The base was scratch built.

The kit´s box and parts:

A few construction pictures:

The finished model:

A video showing a Little Joe II launch:

Engine walkaround vol.15 : Reaction Motors XLR-99

Subject: Reaction Motors XLR-99

Location: USAF Museum, Dayton, Ohio, USA, 2014

Comments: The XLR99 engine was the first large, throttleable, restartable liquid propellant rocket engine. Development began in the 1950s by the Reaction Motors Division of Thiokol Chemical Company to power the X-15 research aircraft. It could deliver up to 57,000 pounds force (254 kN) of thrust with an I_sp of 279 seconds (239 seconds sl). Thrust was variable from 50 to 100 percent, and the restart capability allowed it to be shut down and restarted during flight when necessary.(References: Wikipedia)

Weapons Walkaround vol.4: LGM118 Peacekeeper ICBM

Subject: LGM118 Peacekeeper ICBM

Location: USAF Museum, Dayton, Ohio, USA

Comments: The LGM-118A Peacekeeper, also known as the MX missile (for Missile-eXperimental), was a land-based ICBM deployed by the United States starting in 1986. The Peacekeeper was a MIRV missile; it could carry up to 10 re-entry vehicles, each armed with a 300-kiloton W87 warhead/Mk21 RVs. A total of 50 missiles were deployed starting in 1986, after a long and contentious development program that traced its roots into the 1960s. Under the START II treaty, which never entered into force, the missiles were to be removed from the U.S. nuclear arsenal in 2005, leaving the LGM-30 Minuteman as the only type of land-based ICBM in the U.S. arsenal. Despite the demise of the START II treaty, the last of the LGM-118A "Peacekeeper" ICBMs (but not their warheads) were decommissioned on September 19, 2005. Current plans are to switch 500 decommissioned Peacekeepers' W87/Mk21 warheads to the Minuteman III. Among the reasons cited for decommissioning of the Peacekeeper ICBM was its failure to achieve the program's range objectives. The private launch firm Orbital Sciences Corporation has developed the Minotaur IV, a four-stage civilian expendable launch system, from the Peacekeeper, using old Peacekeeper components(References: Wikipedia)

Military Uniforms Walkaround vol.2: Col. Robin Olds Combat Gear

Subject: Combat gear used by Col. Robin Olds in Vietnam

Location: USAF Museum, Dayton, Ohio, USA, 2014

Comments: Robin Olds (July 14, 1922 – June 14, 2007) was an American fighter pilot and general officer in the U.S. Air Force. He was a "triple ace", with a combined total of 16 victories in World War II and the Vietnam War. He retired in 1973 as a brigadier general. The son of regular Army Maj. Gen. Robert Olds, educated at West Point, and the product of an upbringing in the early years of the U.S. Army Air Corps, Olds epitomized the youthful World War II fighter pilot. He remained in the service as it became the United States Air Force, despite often being at odds with its leadership, and was one of its pioneer jet pilots. Rising to the command of two fighter wings, Olds is regarded among aviation historians, and his peers, as the best wing commander of the Vietnam War, for both his air-fighting skills, and his reputation as a combat leader. Olds was promoted to brigadier general after returning from Vietnam but did not hold another major command. The remainder of his career was spent in non-operational positions, as Commandant of Cadets at the United States Air Force Academy and as an official in the Air Force Inspector General's Office. His inability to rise higher as a general officer is attributed to both his maverick views and his penchant for drinking. Olds had a highly publicized career and life, including marriage to Hollywood actress Ella Raines. As a young man he was also recognized for his athletic prowess in both high school and college, being named an All American for his play as a lineman in American football. Olds expressed his philosophy regarding fighter pilots in the quote: "There are pilots and there are pilots; with the good ones, it is inborn. You can't teach it. If you are a fighter pilot, you have to be willing to take risks. (reference: Wikipedia)