KIT #:	92216
PRICE:	$40.00
DECALS:	Two options
REVIEWER:	Mark Rossmann
NOTES:

The 352nd Fighter Group was a unit of the Eighth Air Force that was located in the European Theater of Operations (ETO) during World War II. The unit served as bomber escort, counter-air patrols, and attacking ground targets. It initially flew P-47 Thunderbolt aircraft before converting to P-51B Mustang in April 1944. The group was located at RAF Bodney England, for the majority of its service.

The group was assigned to the 67th Fighter Wing in October 1943, attached to the 1st Bombardment Division in September 1944 and further attached to IX Tactical Air Command in December 1944.

There were no group markings in the P-47 era. On the Olive Drab P-51’s, a bright blue was painted on the spinner and nose, later across the anti-glare panel. Dark Blue was on non O.D. P-51, with unit color on the rudder. Blue for 487th, yellow for 486th, red for 328th. Because of this distinctive blue nose, they earned the nick-name the “Blue-Nosed Bastards of Bodney”.

Group scored 519 kills with the loss of 118. It also had the two highest scoring Mustang aces in the theater: George Preddy 23.83 Mustang kills out of his 26.83, John Meyer 21 Mustang kills out of his 24. John England was 5th at 17.5 kills. The 352nd shipped back to the U.S. in November 1945.

This is a Tamiya P-51B, the kit is the best on the market. As of this writing Eduard has just released their “B” version, so I don’t have a comparison. The engine detail is non-existent but aftermarket products can be found if you choose to display it with open engine cover. The flaps are positionable in the up or lowered position, control surfaces are all molded in place. The cockpit is well done and it can be displayed with an open or closed canopy. Kit comes with a positionable pilot figure and standing officer.

Tamiya provides two options:1) Framework canopy, full D-Day stripes, striped antenna June 1944, 2) Malcolm Hood and under-fuselage D-Day strips August 1944. There are also some smaller decal changes, be mindful on the version you are building. You can lay the antenna flat and wrap the stripe around it, then attach it to the plane.

COLORS & MARKINGS

D-Day stripes

I don’t like to use the full D-Day stripe decal, what I do is:1) Complete the painting of the silver on the model. 2) Tape off the exterior white boundary area of the wings and fuselage. 3) Spray Tamiya AS-20 Insignia White. Let dry 2 hours or more, then spray TS-26 Pure White. 4) Let dry for 24 hours, then completely mask over the white areas. Finish spraying the rest of the model. 5) Decal the plane. I take a sharp-edged knife; new blade is best. Using a straight edge, I cut out the black stripes. Then lay them down on the white areas and adjust. I like this best as it prevents my klutziness of taping the black stripes and painting. I invariably don’t get the stripes in the right spacing and size.

For an OD aircraft I do the opposite paint the white first, mask it off, then paint the OD over Grey color and rest of model. Boundary lines demarked much better and no bleed through of the primary color.  n addition, Tamiya provides the frame masks and mask for the blue nose outline.

Overall, this makes a remarkably nice D-Day striped Blue Noser and recommend this kit. I also used the jeep from the Tamiya P-47 kit, it is also in a P-51 kit, makes a nice supporting piece for the model.

REFERENCES

Decal Sheet

Fine Scale Modeler Books - American Fighters over Europe

Osprey Aircraft of the Aces - #1 “Mustang Aces of the Eight Air Force” (1994)

Website: https://valor.militarytimes.com/hero/27885

In memory of Frank Cuden; December 1942 – June 2024 - TCAH

Mark Rossmann