RC Model World 09/2013

This is the second PA model I have had the pleasure of reviewing. The Addiction X is still one of my favourite models for light-wind 3-D flying, and I was very close to ordering one of the Extra MX models for the more usual breezy conditions here in the UK. It's larger, with the obvious added power offered from a 6S LiPo set-up. The big bonus with PA is they designed their 6S models from the outset to use two 3S packs in series, knowing that just about every electric flyer would have some 2200 mAh 3S packs in their battery collection. I also had a few 2700 6S packs from the popular 500-size helicopters that I hoped to use, in addition to a huge number of 3S 2200 packs. Dual use of packs is a real bonus to me for justification of new models. I keep a regular eye on the Precision Aerobatics website as I have really rated the company since doing the Addiction X review and researching the company, their products and policies. I had seen the announcement of the soon to be released Katana MX and it appealed more than the Extra MX. The power set-up was the same, so this ensured I could also try the Extra MX at a later date if I wanted to. I contacted the UK importer MacGregor Industries for a delivery time scale and then placed an order and waited for the brown box delivery!

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Flypast Special - Mosquito

PERHAPS one of the most famous Mosquitos of all time, MM4I7 T-for-Tommie of 487 Squadron RNZAF did not chalk up an extensive range of operations. In fact, it only flew two and stayed with the unit for just over a month. If a certain degree of popularity has surrounded MM4I7, this seems solely due to the availability and frequent use of a set of air-to-air photographs taken in 1944 and the later selection of model kits based on these. But the lesser-known story of what it did - or rather had done to it - is the stuff of legends. Formed at Feltwell, Norfolk, in September 1942,487 Squadron absorbed a number of New Zealanders from the Commonwealth Air Training Programme.Then flying Lockheed Venturas, they will always be remembered for the tragic Amsterdam raid of May 3, 1943, when they lost ten machines in the space of ten minutes. In an operation control and timing blunder, 40 crewmembers were killed or taken prisoner.

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Flypast Special - Hurricane

EVERYONE thought that Hawker chief designer Sydney Camm had surpassed himself with the Fury single-seat fighter. This beautiful craft caught the imagination of public and pilots alike. But by 1933, the biplane had had its day. There were some die-hards at the Air Ministry who thought that the inevitable could be held off. Thankfully, there were other minds ready to move on. Sydney was one of these. So was Major John Buchanan at the Directorate of Technical Development. In August 1933 the pair got together and Sydney and his team started to draw up a shapely monoplane version of the Fury. Powerplant was to be the Rolls-Royce Goshawk, there would be four machine-guns, and a fixed and spatted undercarriage finished off a design that was very pleasing to the eye. By early 1934, the Goshawk was out of favour, so the new PV. 12 from Rolls-Royce was substituted, and a retractable undercarriage was introduced. (The PV. 12 entered production as the Merlin.)

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Great Fighters of The World

Of all the numerous types of flying machines produced since the first days of powered flight, it is the fighter aircraft that capture peoples' imagination more than any other. Great Fighters of the World: From the Red Barons Triplane to the Raptor tells the stories of the most famous of these awe-inspiring machines; highlighting their influence on the conflicts they fought in. From the first true dogfighters through to the cutting edge machines of today this title recalls the technology, triumph and tragedy of aerial warfare. However, every aircraft is only as good as its operator, so we also pay homage to some of the greatest airmen of their day. From the iconic Manfred von Richthofen: the so-called Red Baron and highest-scoring ace of the First World War, through to British Harrier Jump-Jet pilots of the 1982 Falklands conflict, we recall gripping combat stories that capture the sacrifice and spirit of generations of fighter 'jocks' from many different nations.

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Military Illustrated Modeller 09/2013

The Hispano Aviaciôn HA-1109 and HA-1112 were license built versions of the Messerschmitt Bf 109 G, developed in Spain during and after the Second World War. Germany supplied 25 partial Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-2 airframes and some technical drawings to Spain in 1942, but they could not provide Daimler-Benz DB 605 engines, propellers, instruments or weapons due to their own dire needs. As a result, this Spanish version was fitted with the 1,300 hp Hispano-Suiza 12Z-89 engine, which first flew at Barcelona in 1944. The first HA-1109-J1L fitted with a German VDM propeller made its maiden flight on 2 March 1945 at Seville. The other twenty-four airframes were flown during 1947-9 with Escher-Wyss propellers, but never became operational. A further version with an improved installation for the Hispano-Suiza 12Z-17 engine appeared in May 1951 as the HA-1112-K1L. Fitted with a three bladed DH Hydromatic propeller, it was nicknamed Tripala ("three blades"). Its armament consisted of one or two 12.7mm Breda machine guns and Pilatus 80mm rocket eight-pack.

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