1/48 Hasegawa F/A-18A

Gallery Article by Mark Barnes on Jan 17 2011

20th Anniversary of "Operation Desert Storm"

 

To commemorate the 20th anniversary of "Operation Desert Storm" I would like to share with you my model of a US Marine Corps F/A-18A Hornet of VMFA-451.  The "Warlords" of VMFA-451 have a squadron lineage that dates back to WWII when they were flying F4U-1D Corsairs off the USS Bunker Hill in 1945. My model depicts an F/A-18A Hornet flown by the "Warlords" during their deployment to Sheikh Isa Airbase, Bahrain in support of Operation Desert Storm during 1991.  They arrived in Bahrain on the 24th of August 1990 and on the night of January 17th 1991 at 0300 the Warlords became the first US Marine squadron to engage Iraqi forces. By the time the Gulf War ended VMFA-451 had flown 1,400 combat hours for a total of 770 combat sorties without the loss of a single pilot or aircraft. Returning to Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina after the conflict. They were deactivated on 31 January 1997. On April 1, 2010, VMFA-451 was reactivated and redesignated VMFAT-501.

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For this project I used the 1/48 Hasegawa F/A-18 kit with the addition of the Legend cockpit set. I can't really say that I could recommend this particular Legend set. While the fit was alright the detail was soft and in my opinion not a really significant improvement over the kit supplied parts. MAW intake and exhaust covers were added and did the trick nicely. The decals are from Flying Leatherneck Decals, the "Lords and Angles" sheet and I can't say enough good things about these decals. Certainly one of the most comprehensive sheets out there and a great value for the money. They come highly recommended.

This model was finished with Model Master enamels and weathered with a combination of pastel dust and airbrush work. I thoroughly enjoyed building this Hasegawa F/A-18A and it looks great in my display case. I look forward to adding more of these Hornet kits to my display in the future.

Mark Barnes

Photos and text © by Mark Barnes