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Kit: Revell (1:72)
I'm posting this model as my first on my page because it was the first WWI kit I put together as a kid. That one disappeared many years ago. Much later in life I found another kit and tried it again- with some changes. This model is finished as DH 2 5998 of Captain John O. Andrews of No. 24 Squadron RFC in July of 1916. Outlines have been changed to match Datafile drawings. Additions include a four-bladed prop, new rudder, different wheels, compass housing, new gravity tank and resin Lewis gun. Rigging is colored "invisible" thread and stretched sprue. The nacelle marking is made with white trim film. I left the lower wing and tail surfaces unpainted because I liked the translucent effect of the plastic.
Kit: Olimp (1:72)
Vernon Castle and his wife, Irene, were a famous dance team before the war. In 1915, Mr. Castle, a native of Canada, volunteered for the Royal Flying Corps, serving on the Western front and receiving credit for two combat victories. In 1917, Captain Castle was made a flight instructor and sent back to Canada, serving with Number 84 Squadron, Canadian Training Squadron. He was killed in a flying accident at Camp Taliaferro in Fort Worth, Texas, not far from where I am living now, on February 15, 1918. In honor of the 100th anniversary of Castle's death, I decided to build a model of one of his aircraft, C696, which had his personal marking on the tail. The Canadian-built JN-4s were much different from those built in the U.S.A. Wing tips were reshaped and wings lengthened, and ailerons added to the lower wings. The stabilizer was re-shaped and a new rudder and fin made. Wheels were made using P.E. spokes. The nose on Canadian Jennies was straight, not angled down, so that needed to be modified. Many other details were changed or added. Rigging is colored "invisible" thread. Decals are modified Blue Rider. The number was changed from C663 to C696, and the rook emblem on the rudder was cut from trim film.
Kit: Aeroclub (1:72)
The incident that saw Lieutenant Louis Strange hanging from a stuck Lewis gun cartridge drum while his Martinsyde flew upside down is one of the most famous stories of the Great War. It really thrilled me when I was young, and I hoped to build a model of Strange's plane one day. It took about 40 years to finally add this one to the collection, though! 2449 was an early configuration S.1 with the original small cockpit opening, the rounded tailplane and four-wheel undercarriage. The Aeroclub kit depicts a later-version plane, so it needed quite a bit of modification to make it correct for the Martinsyde attached to No. 6 Squadron in May of 1915. Lieutenant Strange mounted the Lewis gun to it himself. According to "WWI British Aeroplane Colours and Markings" by Bruce Robertson, 2449 sported a roundel on the fuselage decking for awhile before it was refinished in camouflage, so I decided to include that.
One of the options offered for the old Revell kit was "Peggy", an otherwise anonymous Triplane from No.1 Squadron, RNAS. I decided to represent Peggy as she would appear prior to February, 1917, before squadron markings and the smaller tailplane were added. Her blue fin signifies that she was allotted to 'C' Flight. The kit is built out-of-the-box except for the propeller, spreader bar and some cockpit additions. Rigging is colored "invisible" thread and stretched sprue.
Kit: Scaleplanes (Libramodels) (1:72)
A 5236 was a Vickers F.B. 19 operated by No.1 Squadron, Australian Flying Corps. No.1 Squadron AFC was based in Egypt during October, 1917 when this plane was photographed. The story behind this model is that out of gratitude for reference photos supplied by Shane Weier in 2005 (for a yet-to-be-built Albatros C.III), I decided to build this one as an AFC example and dedicate it to him. Thank-you, Shane! I found only one decent photo of this plane, and another poor one which looks to be the same aircraft. The kit is mostly unmodified, although the engine, propeller, struts and gun are from the spares box. Rigging is colored "invisible" thread and markings are Americal/Gryphon. My main reference was "British Aviation Squadron Markings" by Rogers.