Arma Hobby 1/48 Hurricane IIb Reconnaissance

As most other air forces, the RAF used to convert a small number of her top single seat fighters into fast reconnaissance machines, usually by adding cameras in various more or less artisanal fashion until a standardized one was devised. They did so with a couple of Buffaloes at Malaya, with Spitfires since the early campaign of France and of course with the Hurricane. They were designated in a somewhat confused manner as PR (usually with armament removed) Tac R and FR (with reduced armament); conversion could involve the addition of external containers or bulges for the cameras or internal fixing (just like the various Spitfire PR versions). To complicate matters, PR were intended for high altitude strategic recce, while Tac R or FR were used for low altitude short range missions.

Former kits

Of course, the Hurricane has been kitted profusely, in every imaginable scale. The best “modern” kits in 1/48 are without doubt the Hasegawa, the Italeri and the later Airfix. The former has been issued in a lot of boxings and multi-version sprues, true to Hasegawa fashion, and suffers from an inexplicably awkward lower wing-to-fuselage join, as well as a poorly detailed wheel well (better replaced by various resin aftermarkets); Italeri has an inevitably undersized Merlin and is also a multiversion kit, while the Airfix, a superb kit, could have been the best of them all but for the decision not to proceed further than a Mk.I or I Trop.

The idea of reconnaissance Hurricanes in model form is not exactly new, there is a Model Alliance decal set that comes with two PR.IIbs, one PR.IIC, all very interesting machines in Bosun Blue. There was one aftermarket set by AIMS with PE and resin parts, and decals for seven very varied and interesting machines, both camouflaged and overall Bosun.

Against this background, Arma Hobby’s Hurricanes are pieces of art, with excellent surface detail, a very complete cockpit and a wonderfully detailed wheel well. The kits issued so far are all Mk.II, with nightfighter, fighter bomber and tropical IIcs, and IIbs. It comprises around 90 grey plastic pieces, 10 clear, 8 3D printed plus masks and decals. PE are missing, but you would need only the seat harness. The 3D printed parts provide the photo-recce special parts, two different bulges and two flush camera lenses, plus some fittings such as control panel, spade grip and fuel valve cover bulges.

First you build the wheel well, from several parts including the piping, then incorporates this to the wing assembly. The cockpit is built on the roof of the wheel well, complete with frames. Everything is a multipart subassembly, which ensures the finesse but adds complexity. Instrument panel is finely engraved, and a decal added. There are decals for the harness, if such is your liking. Radiator is also a multipart subassembly. If you are building the flush camera version, you have to drill the rear fuselage part. This joins the lower wing at the natural join between the metal wing and the fabric covered framed rear fuselage. There is a part for an open canopy and another for a closed one, but the solution to make it fit over the rear bulkhead is somewhat unsatisfactory: the part under the canopy is thinned (the same solution in the Italeri and Airfix kit; the Hase has simply a big step. I usually have filled it in and used a vac canopy hood) to both make the closed and the open hood fit.

Every Arma Hobby Hurricane can be built standard or Trop, and all come with underwing “fixed” tanks and bombs. Neither are used in the airframes depicted in this box.

The special parts are wonderful. The main ones are two different camera bulges, for versions one and two; the third uses two flush cameras, which come in lens only form. I would love to see a picture about how they were serviced. There is also a control panel, two different spade grips with different buttons, and covers over the extra wing fuel tanks (PR versions had extra fuel tanks on the wings’ weapons bay) You must create the “lens” effect by painting the 3D material; in the past, some judicious use of Tamiya Clear Green over a grayish metallic base have worked for me.

Decals are quite correct in color and good technically. The kit brings three different versions, which I scrutinized a bit

1. PR.II, BM969, PRU n° 3, India, 1942. Uses the big bulge; unarmed; in overall Bosun Blue (your standard US Navy Non Specular Sea Blue is a firm candidate) There are at least two pictures I have seen, showing a badly chaffed fuselage and big exhaust fumes. A paradise for weathering lovers. The pictures show the machine flying from a higher altitude, so the bulge is not visible. The MA decal sheet shows this with three flush cameras. In one picture a corner of the bulge might be just visible.

2. FR.IIb, AM538, „H“ of 318 Sqn (Polish) RAF, Western Desert, 1943. Uses the small bulge; 12-gun armament; in Desert Scheme. There is a picture of this very machine showing exactly the attributes in the model.

3. FR.IIb, HV538 “B” of 6th Sqn IAF, Bengal, 1944. Two flush cameras, 8-gun, standard Temperate Scheme with MSG undersurfaces. There is an interesting picture of this very machine with an elefant in the foreground that confirms the configuration. Only that, from what I have seen, the IAF machines retained Day Fighter scheme. The picture is of course B&W, but the contrast between the colours is too great for DE/DG. But, again, DE faded greatly under the Indian sun… Fine. Finally, the MA set and the SAMI book shows invariably three cameras in the “flush” configuration, but that could change.

All in all, a wonderful kit, easily among the Top Ten of the year, original, well researched and interesting examples. A bit expensive, but you spare the equally expensive AIMS set. You can use the spare bulge to cover the awful lower fuselage join in a Hasegawa kit!

• “The Hawker Hurricane”, Richard Franks, Modellers Datafile #02, SAM Publications, 1999

• “Eyes for the Phoenix”, Geoffrey Thomas, Hikoki Publications, 1999

Fernando Rolandelli

January 2025

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