F-4F Phantom II “Anniversary”

[Paul A H]

F-4F Phantom II “Anniversary”

1:72 Revell

A true cold war icon, the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II was conceived as an all-weather, long-range fighter bomber for the US Navy. It has been in service for over fifty years and is still serving with distinction with air forces around the world. More than five thousand Phantoms have been built.

The F-4F is a simplified, lightweight version of the US Air Force’s highly capable F-4E, built specifically for the Luftwaffe. Delivered in 1973, the Luftwaffe’s F-4Fs were upgraded under the Improved Combat Efficiency (ICE) programme in the late eighties to early nineties, and continue to serve today.

This is a re-issue of Revell’s popular and well-regarded F-4F. Inside the usual Revell end-opening box, there are three large sprues of silver plastic, one separately bagged clear sprue and a large, colourful decal sheet. Usually, this type of silver plastic sets the alarm bells ringing, but happily the quality of the mouldings is good. Detail is comprised of fine, crisp panel lines and delicate, recessed rivets that help to capture the rough, tough character of the Phantom II. There is a little flash present here and there, but that should only take a few minutes to clean up.

Construction begins with the ejection seats. Each seat is made up of five parts and looks really nicely detailed; resin replacements are not really necessary for this kit. The rest of the cockpit is similarly well detailed, and should look excellent once completed. This is just as well, because the canopy is designed to be posed open if desired. Optional decals are provided for the cockpit instrument panels and side consoles.

The fuselage is split into four parts; left and right halves, with a front/rear split just aft of the cockpit. The font undercarriage bay must be fitted into the front fuselage section before the two halves can be joined together. In common with other kits of the Phantom II, the lower wing is moulded in one piece. Before the upper wings can be fixed in place, holes must be drilled in the lower wing to form locating points for the fuel tanks and missile pylons. The slatted outer wings of the F-4F are moulded separately, presumably to allow other variants to be built from these moulds.

The intakes and splitter plates are fitted next, and then all the dangly bits can be fixed in place. The undercarriage is very nicely detailed, and the tyres have nice, subtle bulges. Ordnance comprises of a full loadout of AIM-9Ls and AIM-120 AMRAAMs, as well as three fuel tanks and an optional ALQ 119 ECM pod. The transparent parts look fine, and are bagged separately for protection. As mentioned earlier, the canopy is divided into four parts so it can be posed open.

Only one colour option is provided; the special scheme depicted on the box art, designed to mark the fiftieth anniversary of JG-71 “Richthofen” in 2009. Printed in Italy, the large decal sheet looks very well executed. The colours are good, and the decals have a nice, glossy sheen. Several of the decals are very large, so they will need to settle down well once in place.

Conclusion

This is a really nice kit of the F-4F; the level of detail is very good indeed and it will look very eye-catching in the colour scheme provided. What better way to start off a collection of commemorative schemes?!

Review sample courtesy of

[434nut]

I have recently built this, and it looks really good, very eye catching.