1/72 Academy Korean Mustang

flown by  Ray Trebilco’s

by David Thompson

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  Australia Day 2005 

 

This is the Academy 1/72 P51-D Mustang, built as A68-737, flown by Ray Trebilco, RAAF 77 Squadron out of Iwakuni , Japan during the Korean War.  You can read about Ray’s exploits at http://www.kmike.com/oz/kr/chapter29.htm.

My mode of modeling these days is to find cheap kits to improve, hence the Academy offering which was $AUD10.  During my research I then find an interesting individual aircraft or pilot and build around that.  Ray was of interest to me because I think I was at boarding school in Canberra with his son Andrew.

Click on images below to see larger images

I generally don’t spend much on after-market accessories, preferring to scratch build added detail.  This included: 

  • Scratch built gun-sight, missile pylons, formation lights, drop tank sway braces, brake lines, fuel lines, radiator grill;
  • Drilled out camera port and shortened inboard gun barrel
  • Filled some wing panel seams as per the pinned post on ARC on this

Decals are spares from a modeling colleague and A-codes from Snowy Mountains Models in Melbourne .

Cockpit detail on this kit is very good.  Some wing root filling was required.  Tamiya AS-12 was used for the BMF, beautiful stuff to use straight from spray can.  Exhaust & gun stains using pastel dust.

David

Photos and text © by David Thompson