Hasegawa 1/72 A-24 Dauntless 'US Army'

 The Douglas SBD Dauntless is a World War II American naval scout plane and dive bomber that was manufactured by Douglas Aircraft from 1940 through 1944. The SBD ("Scout Bomber Douglas") was the United States Navy's main carrier-based scout/dive bomber from mid-1940 through mid-1944. The SBD was also flown by the United States Marine Corps, both from land air bases and aircraft carriers. The SBD is best remembered as the bomber that delivered the fatal blows to the Japanese carriers at the Battle of Midway in June 1942. The type earned its nickname "Slow But Deadly" (from its SBD initials) during this period. Even though the SBD was ostensibly replaced by the Curtiss SB2C Helldiver in 1944, experience showed the earlier plane performed better, and both models fought side-by-side until the end of the war.

During its combat service, the SBD proved to be an effective naval scout plane and dive bomber. It possessed long range, good handling characteristics, maneuverability, potent bomb load, and great diving characteristics from the perforated dive brakes. A land-based variant of the SBD – omitting the arrestor hook — was purpose-built for the U.S. Army Air Forces, as the A-24 Banshee. It saw combat in Australia flying missions over the NEI and later in New Guinea with the 27th Bomb Group. However, due to lack of skills, the Army's experience wasn't as successful and by the middle months of 1943 the A-24 was considered by pilots to be too vulnerable for service owing to its armament and slow speed, and was relegated to non-combat roles. Over 1,000 A-24A/B aircraft were built.

As expected from a Hasegawa limited editon, this one is basically an SBD with an extra part to make an A-24. Parts are up to standard for the time and even today, looks good. Hasegawa 1/72 kits of this era have always somewhat minimal interiors and this is no exception. The interior consists of a floor, seats, control sticks (yes, there is one in the back seat), and a bulkhead between the pilot and rear gunner. There is no cockpit sidewall detail.

The wings are upper half wings with a full lower section. There is a double machine gun to fit into the rear seat. A one piece engine fits into a three piece cowling with an additional insert for the area in front of the cockpit. The instructions would have you fill in the mounting hole for the gun sight.

A four piece main bomb fits into the center recess along with the cradle. The only separate dive brake piece is a center section that covers up a fuselage seam. Landing gear are nicely done and the kit also includes small bombs to fit onto the molded in pylons on the lower wing. The plane doesn't use the tail hook, but it does keep the mount so some cutting is required. This also includes a larger tail wheel as used on later SBDs. An oddity is the canopy. There is a separate windscreen, a separate forward canopy with the rest being a single piece. This means that the rear guns can only be modeled in the stowed position.

Instructions are standard Hasegawa fare with Gunze paint references. Two options are provided. Both are basically insignia and serial numbers with the box art being one and the other using the earlier insignia with the red centers. Decals are probably still viable as I doubt you'll find any laternatives, though many of us have aftermarket insignia and serial decals that we could use.

The Hasegawa SBD series has been superceded by a more modern kit with more detail and a lot more small parts by one from Flyhawk. Despite its age, it makes into a very nice model and can be found for a considerably less than the newer kit. A mask set is highly recommended.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_SBD_Dauntless

September 2025

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