FLYING THE FAIREY GANNET

Here’s a pair of videos to give you some interesting weekend viewing. They’re definitely ‘of the era’, clipped accents and all, but these just add to the historical atmosphere.

For model makers, there’s nothing like actually seeing a subject in the metal to catch some of those elusive details and perhaps just as important, the ‘sit’ of an aircraft in the air, and on the ground.

Sadly, there are no Gannets in flyable condition today, but there are well-maintained examples on display at air museums in the countries that flew them - the AS4 we show here at top is at the Luftwaffe Museum, Berlin-Gatow airfield, Germany. As you can see, the Gannet had a complex folding-wing system, and a tubby fuselage that sat low on the ground - arming her up with torpedoes and sonobuoys must have been a back-breaking exercise for the ground crew!

Visit the Luftwaffe Museum here.

The Revell Fairey Gannet is available from model stores and online suppliers, including Amazon here.