HMS Illustrious

Now you're talking ;-)

Pictures please sir!!!!

The model is in the shop.

I've also got the Raven Vol. 1 book.

Boy what I don't know about British ship camouflage.

It would seem that our "Lusty" Lady was in "Alexandria Type" camouflage in late 1940, acc'd to Mr. Raven.

But as all of you who follow fleet orders can attest, an order to paint the ships in a particular scheme in "late 1940" does not mean a ship in a battle on November 11, 1940 would be so.

Yet it seems to be the more generally accepted thought. And I like it, so there!

I'm also researching the 1st wave aircraft. 815 Squadron certainly, but also others. I want to put the first twelve on the deck (one in the lift).

1/400 Stringbags are neat little models. It was a big aircraft, so doing each up right seems like a good goal. Call signs correct, probably not.

Black underside vs. white, sure.

Shadow effect on the lower wing, Hmmm.

Now just need that care packet from WEM, but meanwhile putting the hull together. The only mod so far, replace the bilge keels.

Heller once released the same kit as HMS Colossus. Anyway, I agree with John. The Royal Navy's WWII carriers are sadly ignored and would be welcome additions to the 1/350 and 1/700 ranges of available kits.

Bill

Good point J the equivalent of USN CVL carriers.

One even made it as far as the Falkland/ Malvinas war.

Argentine...

Maybe you guys already know this, but here goes : 

with the Heller kit Arromanches you can easily build the HMS Colossus (in 1/400 scale)

I watched 'Sink the Bismark' again recently. It still really holds up. The model ships seemed to be pretty accurate. There were a few inaccuracies, from what I know of the true story, but still..

I can't keep up with the travels of ship model molds - or which kits are reissues of old ones and which are genuinely new.  I can remember a 1/700 Aoshima WWII Illustrious and, I believe, a sister ship; they were pretty crude, as most of the early Aoshima Waterline Series kits were.  And I know Fujimi did a 1/700 postwar Eagle and Ark Royal.  As I recall, they came with Seafires, Fireflies, and Wessexes - but I don't trust my memory.

Anyway, British WWII carriers form a big gap in the currently available ranges - in all scales.

Aoshima  Fijumi makes a Post war HMS Ark Royal and HMS Eagle. They are in 1950s trim with a 1950s air wing. The Revell HMS Ark Royal of WW2 is in 1/720. Its very old but can detailed with some effort.

Here is my attempt to kitbash the Aoshima Fijumi HMS Eagle in to the HMS Ark Royal of the 1970s I made a lot of mistakes but it was my first attempt to seriously kitbash a model (I would probably botch it again if I tried):

There is also a third plastic kit by Airfix in 1/1200. By the way, WEM also produces a resin conversion to build the Heller kit as HMS Victorious as built.

Bill

I am looking forward to this project of yours... Illustrious was, in my mind, the Royal Navy's equivelant of the Big E for that war. Quite the battle history.

It seems to me that British aircraft carriers form one of the most conspicuous gaps in the range of 1/700 and 1/350 plastic kits available.  All sorts of ships would be worth doing, but I'd suggest that the Ark Royal would be the one to start with.  To my knowledge she's only been the subject of two plastic kits:  the workable but very old Revell 1/720 version and the even older Airfix one in 1/600. (The postwar period is served a bit better - but not much.

Imagine an up-to-date Ark Royal, with photo-etched parts and Swordfish and Fulmers and Skuas.

Trumpeter, Dragon, et al, are you listening? Dragon - you've already got molds for 1/700 Swordfish.  How about a ship to carry them?