Talk to a British aircraft enthusiast about the coolest British jet ever built and he may very well tell you it was the Lightning. Though built in very small numbers with many of the later versions just reworked earlier aircraft, the Lightning was the basically the smallest airframe that could be wrapped around two engines. mounting them one atop the other is pretty well unique in the annals of single-seat fighters and I'm sure the plane was a maintenance nightmare. Nonetheless, it was way cool and made a beautiful noise in full reheat during take-off. Though the plane has been withdrawn from service for over 10 years, there are still a few around that make high-speed ground runs from time to time just so fans can hear that superb sound!

Back in the late 1960's and early 70's, Tamiya produced a series of just over a half dozen aircraft in 1/100 scale. Most of them were very nice little kits with engraved detailing and a pretty clean mold. For some reason, the scale never took off, though Takara later produced an even nicer group of aircraft to this scale. Though never reissued by Tamiya (except for the B-52), the molds have been making the rounds over the years. Revell and Ben have reissued a number of these kits in their own boxes with their own decals, so they are not difficult to find.

The kits themselves are pretty basic as things go. Sometimes you get an interior, but usually, just a seat. The canopies do not open and attachment points are quite large. On the Lightning, the little-used overwing fuel tanks have HUGE slots in the upper wing for their fitment. There are also some sink marks on the forward fuselage that will probably need filled. From my lone experience with the Tamiya 1/100 F-4K kit, I'd say that you'll have to proceed carefully with construction and test fit everything. Few parts does not necessarily equate to good fit.

With so few parts, the instructions are quite basic. Generic colors are given, though most of us will know which RAF colors to use. The decal sheet with this kit is for a 5 Sq aircraft in dark green and ocean grey over light aircraft grey. The sheet itself is well printed, though the carrier is starting to yellow. Typical of Revell Germany decals, it is very matte. Finding aftermarket decals for this kit is a lesson in futility unless you can find some 1/72 versions that may work.

For those who don't have the space for larger kits and find 1/144 too small will find these 1/100 kits to be just the right size. They don't take up much space and unlike many 1/144 kits, look like what they are supposed to be.

Review kit courtesy of my kit collection.

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