1/72 GWH Boeing F-15E D-Day 75th Anniversary

Gallery Article by Jean-Charles Goddet on Apr 17 2020

 

      

My model is a GWH 1/72 USAFE F-15E from 492nd FS Madhatters 48th FW in 2019 at RAF Lakenheath UK. This plane is a block 61 number 970219 so built in 1997. It shows a particular scheme for D-DAY 75th anniversary with invasion white & black stripes and checkered nose to mimic old time P-47. This plane did commemorative flight with brother squadrons over Normandy in June 2019 (F-15E with yellow vertical tails from 494th FS Panthers and F-15C with blue vertical tails from 493rd Grim Reapers). I'm a french guy so I'm proud of all these young men which came to liberate my country, so it is my little contribution to remember this event and all these sacrifices.

48th Wing also has The Liberty Statue as symbol : Statue de la liberté in french on their patch (given by France to USA in 1886 for the story).

In July/August 2019 this squadron and this plane came from Europe to Nellis AFB NV for Red Flag exercise 19-3.

This particular plane have a victory mark (gree star under cockpit) in June 2017 the pilot shot down an Iranian armed UAV above Syria during a CENTCOM air expedition force AEF between Jordania/Syria/Iraq/UAE.

I follow the instruction regarding color with standard F-15E dark grey GUNZE H305. The chinese GWH kit is very high quality better than Hasegawa, the mounting is strong and clever, the engraving are fabulous, for example your have the tire brand on wheels, decal are accurate and easy to fit. My only negative remark is about the documentation it shown some mistake in numbers and parts choice. I added black juice for weathering panels (from AMMO solution box grey fighters USAF/USN) plus combination gloss/flat varnish AMMO after fixing decals I added sun weathering by lightering with faded spots (white on grey) some wings flaps.

I finished by adding light flaps hydraulic fluids leaking with AMMO products but the plane is really well maintained as a demo plane. Nose has been opened to show the radar (old one in the kit not the last AESA), I deployed airbrake & the canopy too to show the cockpit work.

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I added external tanks under wings plus air to air radar AIM-120 missile under right wing and air to air IR AIM-9X under left wing. You don't have more weaponry in the kit. I added from the kit navigation pod AN/AAQ-13 on left under fuselage and on right the other mistake/missing regarding the kit your have only the AN/AAQ-14 LIGHTNING targeting pod and not the standard new targeting SNIPER pod.

I hope your like my model and pictures with unit and plane patches.

Liberty wing!

Jean-Charles Goddet

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Photos and text © by Jean-Charles Goddet