NEW TOOL: Of all the RAF bombers involved in operations over Germany during the Second World War, the Avro Lancaster must rank as the most famous. As the strategic bombing offensive gathered momentum, it was the Lancaster that came to the fore. After entering service with the RAF in 1942 it quickly overshadowed its other four-engine contemporaries, such as the Handley-Page Halifax and the Short Stirling. 
Decal Scheme A - Avro Lancaster B.I(F.E), Tiger Force, No.35 Squadron, Royal Air Force Graveley, Cambridgeshire, England, 1945
Decal Scheme B - Avro Lancaster B.III, 'Frederick II', flown by Wing Commander Frederick Campbell Hopcroft, Commanding Officer, No.57 Squadron, Royal Air Force Scampton, Lincolnshire, England, August 1943
NEW TOOL: The Hurricane was developed as a replacement for the RAF's pre-war bi-plane fighters, such as the Hawker Fury and Gloster Gauntlet. Considered revolutionary when it was unveiled in 1935, by the start of WWII the earliest versions with fabric covered wings and two bladed propellers had fallen behind the performance of the best German fighters.
Nevertheless, once fitted with 3-blade propellers these early Hurricanes were very successful during the Battle of Britain in 1940.
Decal Scheme A - Hawker Hurricane Mk.1, No.85 Squadron, Royal Air Force, Advanced Air Striking Force, Lille-Seclin, France, May 1940
Classed as one of the best fighters of the war, the Bf109 served from 1938 to 1945 and beyond. After successful campaigns across Poland, France and the Low Countries, this ‘E’ variant was the Spitfire’s main adversary across England in 1940. While hampered by its short range, the Messerschmitt acquitted itself well, as it did over the whole Western Front.
Decal Scheme A - Messerschmitt Bf109E-4, flown by Unteroffizier Ernst Poschenrieder, 7./JG53, based at Le Touquest-Etaples. Aircraft was shot down and crash-landed at Broom Hill, Kent on 30th September, 1940
Decal Scheme B - Messerschmitt Bf109E-1, flown by Oberleutnant Hannes Trautloft, 2./JG77, Germany, August 1939
Developed from earlier Bf109E variants, the Bf109E-4/N Tropical was modified for use in the arid and dusty conditions of the North African desert. The large tropical filter covering the engine’s air intake being the most obvious difference between this and the standard E-4.
Upon introduction to the desert war the tropical Bf109s were more than a match for the RAF’s Hurricanes and Tomahawks and it was not until the introduction of the Spitfire Mk.V that the balance was redressed.
Decal Scheme A - Messerschmitt Bf109E-4/N TROP, flown by Maj. Eduard Neumann, 1./JG27, North Africa, 1941-42
Decal Scheme B - Messerschmitt Bf109E-7, (reportedly) flown by Lt. Peter-Paul Steindl, Stab II./JG54, Arad, Romania, March 1941
NEW TOOL: Airfix Starter Sets are ideal for beginners. Each Small Starter Set includes glue, a brush and four acrylic paints - all that is needed to complete a fabulous first kit.
Paint Scheme - No.615 Squadron, RAF Kenley, England, August 1940
NEW TOOL: The de Havilland Tiger Moth first flew in late October 1931 and, after being accepted into RAF service as a trainer the following year, has enjoyed widespread use and universal popularity ever since. Surviving into the jet age, the diminutive biplane was finally retired from RAF service in 1959. Over 7,000 were produced, with an estimated number of over 250 still flying today.
Paint Scheme - No.10 Elementary Reserve & Flying Training School, Royal Air Force Yatesbury, Wiltshire, England, 1940
Airfix Starter Sets are ideal for beginners. Each Small Starter Set includes glue, a brush and four acrylic paints - all that is needed to complete a fabulous first kit.