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Atlantic

Set 102

Air Force

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All figures are supplied unpainted    (Numbers of each pose in brackets)
Stats
Date Released 1971
Contents Varying number of figures
Poses 2 poses
Material Plastic (Medium Consistency)
Colours Blue
Average Height 21 mm (= 1.51 m)

Review

The title of 'Air Force' is rather grand but also rather vague. Without knowing the contents of this set it would be easy to imagine a long list of possibilities. However the actual contents would probably not feature anywhere on that list.

Basically there are two components. First is a helicopter, or perhaps a gyro-copter, an extremely light one-man machine where much has been left to the imagination. The cockpit is of course without its glass/Perspex shell, and the pilot has no instruments apart from the joystick. The instructions on the box indicate a rear rotor blade - essential for stopping the helicopter from spinning, yet that part has been lost before final production (although it seems there are versions of this model that do have a rear rotor), and the end result is a much simplified model. The machine stands with the blades approximately at head height, and when the pilot is seated in it his head is alarmingly close to those blades. One possible inspiration could be the Dornier Do 32, but much more likely is that this represents the Bell 47 D, which was built under licence in Italy by Agusta and entered service with the Italian Air Force in the early 1950s, serving until 1992. In addition, it looks a lot like the Goodyear GA-400R, but this machine never actually went into production for the Italian Air Force or anyone else, so would not be a valid model, but it could have been the somewhat random inspiration for the designers perhaps? As with the rest of the range however, it would be wrong to suggest this is a model of anything specific as it is massively simplified, and is really just a toy, whatever the inspiration.

The other piece could well be described as the exact opposite of 'Air Force' as it is a surface-to-air missile. This is also very much simplified, and does not much resemble any existing weapon of the time, being more a generic representation of the type. A device at the front allows some variation in elevation, but at full height it is well over twice the height of a man. Sadly it comes with no crew at all.

On the sample we considered, this set had a great deal of flash and took a lot of trimming. In some cases the holes were too small for the pegs, so again some careful filing was necessary to make the models fit together, though better too small than too large. Each sprue comes with two of the pilot figure, though only one would find space on the helicopter. The other man is waving his paddles about but seems to have no particular relevance to this set. The style of sculpting on the figures is not one of our favourites, and detail is shallow and poor with mould marks making matters worse.

It is hard to see what interest this set would generate today. As a toy, which it was created to be, it is fine, but modellers would be looking for much more accuracy than this set offers.


Ratings

Historical Accuracy 1
Pose Quality 1
Pose Number 1
Sculpting 5
Mould 3

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