According to the instructions: " The Bristol/Ferranti Bloodhound was the surface to air defense system selected by the RAF for the defense of the UK. While I doubt it is still in service (though it might be), Fighter Command had control of these weapons and several famous squadron names were tasked with the operation of these missiles. Basically, Bristol did the weapon and Ferranti did all the electronics, including the ground radar. Once the bad guys were detected, the radar system would allocate specific targets to specific missiles.

Once the command to fire was given, the Bloodhound's four solid fuel boosters would accelerate it to supersonic speed, which would allow the ramjets to properly function at full power. The boosters then fell away allowing the missile to continue on.

Like the US Hawk missile, the Bloodhound was in service for many years, constantly being upgraded to newer and newer electronics that would hopefully be somewhat immune to jamming and other electronic deceptions.

At one time, the only way to get a Bloodhound was to buy a C-130 to go along with it. This generally deterred missile fans from springing for the buck (or pounds) for the Herc just to get a missile. Eventually, this kit was available separately, but is one of those kits that is reissued very infrequently, so once it is available, it is generally scarfed up rather quickly.

Molded in grey plastic, this is really four kits in one. You get a missile, launch platform, carrying trailer, and a Land Rover to pull it. You also get some figures, including a guard dog. Oddly, all three of the figures that are the same look like they are getting ready to take a leak after quaffing many brews....

So this isn't new by any means. Any detailing (like car doors) is raised. The parts have some flash, but not much and really are in pretty good condition. Each of the separate parts of the kit are on their own sprue with the missile itself taking bits of another sprue. Some of the tubular bits suffer a bit from mold misalignment, but that only accounts for a few bits. The rest are good to go. You get five figures and a dog. Three of the figures are the same and the other two are posed to be working around the missile. Detail on them is not bad, though some clean up is needed.

The kit does not come with any decals, though I do recall seeing photos of these with small roundels on the missile. Instructions are well drawn, though Airfix continues to offer only Humbrol paint numbers as a color reference. I do wish they'd spend a pence or two and at least put in generic names. Other than that, from the box art it looks like white and yellow for the missile and green for everything else (except the dog).