Croco 1/72 Cessna T-37

The T-37 was developed in response to the launch of the "Trainer Experimental (TX)" program for the United States Air Force (USAF) in early 1952. On 12 October 1954, the prototype XT-37 performed its maiden flight. While the first prototype was lost during spin tests, features to improve handling were installed upon subsequent prototypes, such as nose-mounted strakes and a heavily redesigned large tail unit, after which the USAF chose to order the aircraft into production as the T-37A. The service received the first production aircraft during June 1956.

In response to the T-37A being underpowered, the USAF ordered an improved version, the T-37B, that was powered by uprated J-69-T-25 engines and was also equipped with improved avionics. A total of 552 new-built T-37Bs were constructed through 1973; all surviving T-37As were eventually upgraded to the T-37B standard as well. The T-37 served as the USAF's primary pilot training vehicle for over 50 years after its first flight. After completing initial training in the T-37, students progressed on to other advanced Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps or Allied trainers. A total of 1,269 T-37s were constructed prior to production ending in 1975. In 2009, the USAF withdrew its final T-37, having replaced the type with the newer turboprop-powered Beechcraft T-6 Texan II.

It is nice to see one of these being produced. Now I'm sure several of you will chime in and say that this aircraft has already been kitted. Well not exactly. Both Hasegawa and Academy have produced the A-37 attack version. However, there are differences between the airframes such that one cannot really build a T-37 from the A-37 kit. The biggest differences are in the thrust reversers, seats, size of the engine housing, the lack of engine FOD screens on the T-37 and several smaller features. Prior to this the only other kit approaching an accurate T-37 was the old Aurora kit, which was a larger scale.

This is a short run resin kit, hence the vac canopies (of which you get two). The kit's fuselage is split with the front section divided horizontally and the rear section divided vertically. The cockpit is very nicely done with a resin tub into which the seats, sticks, instrument panels are installed. There is a brace for the upper canopy as well. Engine intake and exhaust pieces are provided along with a separate piece for the thrust directors.

The landing gear are wire reinforced so no worries about resin sag. The front has the nose wheel molded in place. There are separate oleo scissors for the main gear. The gear doors all have small hinges to allow easy attachment. There is plenty of room in the nose for weight. One will have to be somewhat careful gluing the forward fuselage halves so that there is no gap underneath the nose strakes that are molded into the upper half. Wings and tailplanes are single castings with the fin molded into one of the rear fuselage sections.

Instructions are two exploded drawings, one showing the upper side and the other showing the lower. This is more than adequate for this type of kit. No color information is provided, but there are a lot of images on the 'net to help out with interior colors, which is mostly dark gull grey. While no decals were supplied, Croco did provide a scan of what will be included. It shows several serial and code numbers with US and Cambodian insignia. The codes are for very early production aircraft. There are no aftermarket decals for a standard T-37 so you'll have to go with what is provided or make your own.

It is nice to see a proper T-37 finally kitted in this scale. It is not a kit for beginners, but appears to be well engineered so anyone who has built a resin kit should have no issues with this one.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cessna_T-37_Tweet

April 2024

Review kit courtesy of Croco. Croco kits can be found on the net. Just do a web search to locate a seller.

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