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About me I've been making models
since I was 8 (that was 1968!), my first being the Airfix
Folland Gnat soon followed by the usual variety of aircraft,
tanks and ships. My dad used to take me to the local annual
air show at RAF Finningley and I think it was that more than
anything which turned military aviation into a life long
passion. It was at one of these air shows that the Royal Air
Force souvenir year book contained an article on the USAFE
3rd Air Force in Britain – I was hooked and from then on my
modelling became exclusively US Air Force. One of my sisters
had meantime moved to Norfolk and on a first visit to her I
was taken past RAF Lakenheath. What a fantastic place that
was. I had never seen so many Phantoms before ! I also got
involved with a bunch of lads at school who had a similar
interest in things US Air Force. A couple were older than me
and they introduced me to the British Aviation Research
Group. Essentially a highly motivated group of aircraft
spotters they published a monthly magazine that reported
movements on military airfields around the world and
‘flagged’ up pending deployments and exercises.
By the time I was 17 we had moved house and were living
next door to RAF Finningley, actually overlooking the
airfield – fantastic ! I also paid my first visit to Air
Fete at RAF Mildenhall in 1977. What a show ! Not only an
incredible array of aircraft but the chance to mingle with
Americans and get a closer look at their vehicles and ground
equipment. Did I mention the burgers and the beer ? I never
missed an Air Fete after that! Early in the eighties a lad I
had got talking to while he had been photographing aircraft
at Finningley introduced me to the world of IPMS. From then
on I learned an awful lot more about models, modelling and
the real thing; and got to make a whole new bunch of mates –
thanks Tim Laming!
Today I am pretty much settled into a favourite USAF era
(1970 to 1990), a single scale (1/72) and a few pet subjects
(Nellis AFB, MiGs, Stealth, ‘Black projects’, Tactical Air
Command, the SR-71, operations in Korea) but I do get easily
distracted !
My workbench
I am very lucky to have a dedicated workshop in my garage
where I do all my work and store completed models. I am
slightly worried that I may have affected my children
psychologically as they have grown up believing that
‘Nellis’ is in fact the correct name for ‘garage’. But hey!
Right now (14th Feb 2008) I’m varnishing 3 YF-110Bs (the
Revell Mig-21F , a lovely kit) ready for decals. Some way
behind them is a batch of 31 Hasegawa Phantoms – these are a
mix of F-4Cs, RF-4Cs, F-4Ds, F-4Es and F-4Gs. The simple
plan is to have them all ready for the 50th Anniversary
Phantom display being putting on by the F-4 SIG at Scale
Modelworld 2008. Alongside those I am also working on a
Rescue boat and a number of Soviet Anti-aircraft systems for
my Nellis range and Threat Training Facility collection. Oh
and an M60 EOD tank. There is also a number (some might say
large number) of other started kits which I well get back
onto as soon as I can [hmmm.... some might say a VERY LARGE
number - Ed!]
My models
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