Airfix 2025 Range Announcement 14 January 2025

[Rhino]

Airfix new 2025 reveal is next Tuseday. The riddle is what exciting new model kit will be included in 2025. The clue is a picture of Wilbur Wright's statue at Le mans.
I think a 1/24 Curtiss Kittyhawk Mk I/Hawk 81a is in the offing. RAF and AVG markings? 1/72 and 1/48 kits have been done, so the CAD is in place.

After 50+ years of model-making it is not easy to get excited about another Me-109, Mustang, Zero or Spitfire kit. Those have all been done to death. Airfix release of their new tool 1/72 Consolidated B-24H Liberator kit caused me almost no excitement. Academy's 1/72 B-24 series are readily available and have fine detail.

Here's my riddle for all y'all. What model subject would fire your Model Mojo?

I'll go first.
1/72 New tool Grumman F7F/F7F-3N Tigercat.
I love me some Monogram, but their 1966 Tigercat kit has remained unchanged for almost half a century.

Grumman F7F Tigercat, Aoshima 501-400 (197a)

Aoshima model kit in scale 1:72, 501-400 is a rebox released in 197a | Contents, Previews, Reviews, History + Marketplace | Grumman F7F Tigercat

www.scalemates.com

Aoshima's 1970 dual kit issue is right up my alley but is a scarce as dinosaur testicles.

I want day and night fighter options, detailed cockpits, engines and landing gear bays. Torpedoes, external fuel tanks and rockets. US navy and USMC decal marking options.

Grumman F7F-2 & F7F-2N Tigercat, Fly 72065 (2025)

Fly model kit in scale 1:72, 72065 is a NEW tool released in 2025 | Contents, Previews, Reviews, History + Marketplace | Grumman F7F Tigercat

www.scalemates.com

Fly Models of the Czech Republic list 4 new 1/72 Tigercat kits including a Point Mugu F7F-2D JB-2 Loon missile test aircraft.
Color me skeptical.

Next;
1/72 Consolidated B-32 Dominator.
Released in resin and vac-form kits, it's high time we had a mainstream, injection molded Dominator kit with all the goodies!
I want detailed cockpit and bombardier stations, engines, bomb and landing gear bays! Metal B-29 landing gear legs would be a plus.
Creates some excitement!

1/72 scale Consolidated B-32 Dominator - Insurance for the Boeing B-29 Superfortress

Anigrand still has their resin Dominator available, but she doesn't even come with Hobo Queen II nose art. Come on, guys!!

My recent Moonbat experiences convince me that Anigrand resin kits are but a blank canvas for a modeler to monkey around with to his heart's content.
My $59.00 Anigrand 1/72 Moonbat took another $75.00 in extra parts and decals to get her to where she is today. (Most of that is my own responsibility.)
I don't care for their porous, cream-colored resin.

1/72 MiG-31 Firefox!?! Oooooh!!

Next.
1/700 US Navy Casablanca class Escort Carrier. I've been begging Hasegawa to release a 1/700 waterline version of their excellent 1/350 USS Gambier Bay. No soap. The Chinese Communists make a 1/700 kit of this vessel, but $110.00 USD + $20.00 USD shipping is absolutely ridiculous for this model kit.

With do you Men think? What subject would inspire you?

Come on Model manufacturers!! Drop a cinder block in the pond of commonplace model kits! Let's see something fresh!

 

[moon puppy]

Can't speculate what they will do. Another wildcat maybe?

A Connie maybe?

 

[Sharkmouth]

Airfix new 2025 reveal is next Tuseday. The riddle is what exciting new model kit will be included in 2025. The clue is a picture of Wilbur Wright's statue at Le mans.
I think a 1/24 Curtiss Kittyhawk Mk I/Hawk 81a is in the offing. RAF and AVG markings?

I'll go first.
1/72 New tool Grumman F7F/F7F-3N Tigercat.

Next;
1/72 Consolidated B-32 Dominator.

1/72 MiG-31 Firefox!?! Oooooh!!

Ahhh, a toothy subject in 1/24th! Too bad I have no room.

As for the Tigercat...

MiG-31 Firefox? Clint Eastwood, or the MiG-31 Foxhound?

 

[Rhino]

Clint Eastwood Firefox Movie jet in 3 scales

1/72 scale MiG-31 Firefox - Stolen interceptor with stealth capability

 

[moon puppy]

stealth capability

Where, I can't see it.

 

[Sharkmouth]

Clint Eastwood Firefox Movie jet in 3 scales

1/72 scale MiG-31 Firefox - Stolen interceptor with stealth capability

Мне нужно думать по-русски! Иначе самолет не взлетит, и меня найдут охранники...

 

[moon puppy]

you must think in Russian...

 

[RichB]

The range has been announced. New for this year 1:144 SLS Artemis, 1:72 Wessex HC.2, 1:48 Spitfire IXE and TR.9, Jaguar GR.1/1A, Gannet COD.4 and 1:35 Ferret Mk.1 and Stalwart Mk.2.

Several reintroductions, most with new schemes. More details are on the Airfix site as they update it. The announcement can be seen on YouTube as well.

Cheers,
RichB

 

[Sharkmouth]

The range has been announced. New for this year 1:144 SLS Artemis,

1:72 Wessex HC.2,

1:48 Spitfire IXE

and TR.9,

Jaguar GR.1/1A

Gannet COD.4

and 1:35 Ferret Mk.1

and Stalwart Mk.2.

Several reintroductions, most with new schemes. More details are on the Airfix site as they update it.

Click to see the updated website... Thanks @RichB!

 

[moon puppy]

That Jag with the top mounted rails is just weird looking. Always thought it looked cartoonish, something you'd see on animation stuff.

 

[Rhino]

Well, not much for me to get excited about then. You expect more Spitfires from a UK manufacturer. The TR.9 in Irish markings is kinda neat. Is a Stalwart Amphibious? Another 1/72 B-17G issue? Another B-24D? Lookee! Another new 1/72 FW-190!!
Ho-Hum.

 

[Sharkmouth]

Is a Stalwart Amphibious?

 

[Rhino]

OK. Maybe a 1/35 Stollie is cooler than I thought. The 1/35 Ferret Mk.I seemed predictable.
I was WAY wrong about the 1/24 Curtiss Kittyhawk/Hawk 81a kit. Sorry Saul.
I hope someone here builds a 1/48 Grandby Jag. 1/48 really isn't my scale of choice.

 

[RichB]

There are always the one or two "surprise" announcements they make during the year so there is still hope. There was nothing linked to the Le Mans/Wilbur Wright hint that was mentioned in the blog either.

By the box art, the Ferret is a Mk 1/2 with the fixed turret armed with a pintle mount Bren or later a GPMG. They are showing schemes for the uparmoured Mk 1/1 that had the open top with a canvas cover for inclement weather armed with either a Bren or 30 cal Browning MG. The original boxing had no interior requiring scratch buliding or the resin conversion kit to make a Mk 1 or 1/1. Hopefully the "new parts" include at least the major interior details. The Canadian Army used the Mk 1 from 1954-81.

Cheers,
RichB

 

[Rhino]

I bought a 1/35 Ferret MK.2 when it came out. Every hatch can be posed open. It's surprising that rather rudimentary interior details are included. I expect the Mk.1 is similar.

 

[Rhino]

I may have gotten one of my model wishes!
The price is reasonable, and this kit orders through Canada using Canadian currency. Similar models were priced over USD $100.00.
This tooling has been around for a couple of years now, but I considered the price exorbitant. This one is priced at USD $46.96 plus shipping from Shanghai. I wonder if the seller will figure out the exchange rate and jack up the price accordingly.

USS Casablanca's air group is an amalgam of existing 1/700 US Navy aircraft, including Wildcats, Hellcats, Helldivers, Avengers and Dauntless airplane models. Some of the 50 Casablanca class CVE's served in a support capacity, providing replacement aircraft and crews to front line task groups, so all of these WWII US Navy aircraft could have theoretically have operated from CVE's during WWII.
I would prefer FM-2 Wildcats and TBM Avengers, only. If these were Skywave or Hasegawa 1/700 scale model kits I would buy 10 more of them.

Whether this kit actually exists or not is yet to be seen. The Men at Squadron have commented that some overseas model makers attach ridiculous shipping arrival times to new releases, and when they get enough orders to pay the bills, they then produce the kit and ship their orders. Here's an example.

U.S.Navy A-12 Avenger II

U.S.Navy A-12 Avenger II The A-12 Avenger II was a carrier-based stealth attack aircraft developed for the United States Navy, designed to replace the A-6 Intruder as the primary all-weather, deep-…

modelcollect.com

If enough orders are not received, your paid order may never actually be produced and in some cases your PayPal or credit card dispute period has expired, so they keep your $$ and no new Model kit arrives. Nefarious, indeed!

If this model kit actually arrives, I will have blatantly violated my "Buy No Communist Models" rule.

Now, who do I badger about the coveted, injection molded 1/72 Consolidated B-32 Dominator model kit?