Airfix

1/72 BAE Hawk T.2/120

Kit Number: A03073

Reviewed by  Paul Bradley, IPMS #35554

MSRP: ~$15.00 Website: www.airfix.com The British Aerospace (BAE) Hawk is perhaps the world's best modern jet trainer, used by many air forces including the US Navy. Not surprisingly, there have been quite a few kits released of the type in the past, but this is only the second 1/72 kit of the latest 100-series with the extended nose, now entering service with the RAF as the Hawk T.2. This is a new tool kit, but the parts breakdown is so similar to their 1/48 version that it seems to be a scaled-down version, which is no bad thing as that is a nice little kit. There is no relation to the old Airfix molds, which is still a nice kit, but is based on the prototype. The parts of this new kit come in Airfix's new-style packaging - a sturdy top-opening box with some of the best box art I have seen for many years. All in all, it's a very striking piece of packaging and I like it a lot. The parts are spread across 5 sprues molded in light grey plastic, plus a small clear sprue with an excellent canopy. Finish of the parts is very good, with no evidence of the slightly pebbly finish that has featured in some recent releases. Panel lines are engraved, perhaps a little too deeply, but certainly not trench-like. The decal sheet looks very nice and takes up the whole of the bottom of the box. Markings are provided for three aircraft: 1. Hawk 120D demonstrator aircraft, ZJ951, 2008 2. Hawk T.2 (Hawk 128), ZK010, RAF, 2008 3. Hawk 132, A3488, Indian Air Force, 2009 The instruction booklet is accompanied by a fine full-color painting and marking guide; this appears to be the new Airfix standard and is very welcome indeed. Construction begins with the interior, and Airfix have provided a very simple representation of the cockpits, along the lines of Hasegawa or Hobbyboss; there's plenty of scope here for super-detailing or for some enterprising aftermarket company. Decals are provided for the instrument panels, which are somewhat over-sized, and the ejection seats are very simple with no belt detail. Overall, it's adequate. Airframe construction is easy, aided by the very good fit of the parts. I needed small amounts of filler at the wing roots and around part of the spine insert, but the intakes were a good tight fit. The fin is molded with the port fuselage half. The nose landing light is not provided and would benefit from the addition of an MV Lens. The wings feature all the characteristics of the 100-Series Hawk, including the new wingtips. Airfix give you two options here: Sidewinder carriage or a non-weaponed fit. Under-wing stores are limited to drop tanks and Sidewinder pylons. An Aden cannon pod can be fitted to the fuselage centerline. The undercarriage is, once again, adequately detailed and fits well. The doors are a little thick, as are the aerials, but this takes mere moments to correct with a sanding stick. The canopy is very finely molded and has the MDC (Micro-Detonation Cord) etched into it. This is a great feature, and I ran some thinned white acrylic paint into it - the effect is most realistic. While the demonstrator aircraft is very striking, it appears that everyone who has bought this kit is finishing it in that colour scheme. I prefer service aircraft anyway, so I opted to go with the RAF Hawk T.2 option. These aircraft are just now entering service, so they have minimal individual markings. A recent photo in Air International magazine showed a T.2 with dummy Sidewinder acquisition rounds on the wingtips, so I chose to fit those parts and stripped the fins from two of the bodies provided in the kit. The first squadron to be equipped with the T.2 is 19(R) Sqn, but I haven't yet seen any photos of their aircraft with squadron badges. The aircraft is overall glossy black and I used Xtracrylix for this, with a further two coats of Future overall for the decals to sit on. The decals themselves look very nice, but I found that old Airfix bugbear – they are out of register! This is particularly noticeable on the national markings, which have a narrow white surround. I ended up using both sets of roundels doubled up and at 180 degrees to each other so that the surround appears even. This issue will not affect the demonstrator option, but may affect the Indian one. Another issue with these was that some of the stencilling, which is very comprehensive, looks to be grossly oversized when compared to photos – more like 1/48 in some cases! Not much can be done about this, except to leave them off, which I did. Xtradecals have released a comprehensive set of decals for RAF Hawks and this does provide some stencilling if you wish to go with that option. It seems that Airfix have concentrated on providing a good, basic kit; one that has good outline and fit with an adequate amount of detail. The result is a nice model at a very reasonable price. It would seem that Airfix have noted the rise of Hobbyboss, with their range of inexpensive, part-built models, and they appear to be aiming this kit (and other new releases) at the large market of casual modellers – this is not a bad thing, as the dedicated modeller is a small fraction of the market. The uberdetailer can rest assured that the aftermarket companies will provide the super-detailing sets they require. This kit is recommended. My sincere thanks to Hornby/Airfix for the review sample; Airfix kits can be found at their website and also at all leading hobby retailers.