AML 1/72 B5M1 'Mabel'

The Mitsubishi B5M was an Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) land-based attack aircraft, originally intended for carrier use. The B5M was also given the long formal designation 九七式二号艦上攻撃機 - Navy Type 97 No.2 Carrier Attack Bomber and Allied reporting name of Mabel.

The B5M was designed in response to a 1935 specification for a new bomber for use on the IJNAS aircraft carriers (Mitsubishi Navy Experimental 10-Shi Carrier Torpedo Attacker). The machine was to have a crew of three, folding wings for flight deck storage, a speed of not less than 322 km/h (200 mph), a flight endurance of not less than seven hours, and the ability to carry at least 800 kg (1,760 lb) of bombs - a tall order for a single-engine aircraft of the mid-1930s. It was intended as a backup for the Nakajima B5N "Kate" torpedo bomber. Although designed as a carrier-based aircraft, it was relegated to land-based torpedo bomber duties in World War II.

The aircraft that Mitsubishi produced first flew in 1937 and was an all-metal, low-wing cantilever monoplane with fixed undercarriage with large wheel spats. The crew of three sat in a long canopy that had a smooth transition to the fuselage. The B5M1s began equipping Japanese Naval units in late 1937, but their performance was never as satisfactory as was that of other Japanese aircraft carrier-based bombers. The B5M1's performance was considered marginal and only 125 were manufactured. While they had originally been intended for aircraft carrier use, the majority were employed during the early months of World War II from land bases in Southeast Asia and in China, where they were confronted by weak or no enemy fighter opposition. These machines ended their careers as trainers, target tugs, and kamikazes.

This was AML's second kit. Typically, you have very nice engraved surface detail that is not very deep so any sanding will require rescribing lost detail. The large pieces have ejector towers that you may need to remove to get parts to fit. I noticed no sink areas, which was a nice surprise. Nor was there any flash. The kit provides two vacuformed canopies.

The interior is fairly well appointed with seats control sticks and bulkheads. There are what appear to be paper instruments to install should you wish to use them. The fuselage haves have no interior detail. A fairly nice engine is supplied with the pushrods molded in place, unlike their initial He-46 offering.

There are three weapons options for this one. You get a torpedo, a very large bomb, and inner wing racks for three smaller bombs. Though it was to operate as a torpedo bomber, I'm not sure how often this actually happened so I'd go with one of the bomb options. Instructions then have you assemble the main landing gear and the wing. The wing is the usual single lower piece with two upper halves.

Once the engine assembly and interior are installed in the fuselage halves, the tailplanes, wing, roll over assemblly, gun and canopy are attached. Then construction turns to the underside with the aileron hinges, landing gear, oil cooler intake, exhaust and tail hook assembly glued on. Since this plane never operated from a carrier, I'm not sure if they would have left the tail hook in place as it would have been unneeded weight.

Instructions are adequate and you are provided markings for one option as shown on the box art. It is a dark green over light grey plane from the 33 Kokutai in China during 1942. Decals should work just fine.

If you like fairly esoteric kits like this, then you pretty much have to go the short run route. AML kits are a bit of a challenge, but those with the skills and experience with these sorts of offering should have little real issue building them.

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