W

hen I decided to tackle Tamiya’s

1:32 P-51D/K, the decision was

mostly driven by my desire to

seek shelter in the quality of a

Tamiya kit! The irst step, as with

any new build, was to decide what scheme to

present. Now, I have to admit, I put way more

priority on choosing a subject that captures

my eye and imagination than on subjects

that perhaps have more historical or deeper

signiicance. Also, I always try to steer towards

something from my little corner of the world.

In the past, other Tamiya 1:32 kits I’ve done in a

local scheme have been an RAAF Spitire VIII and

a RNZAF F4U-1A Corsair. The modelling world

doesn’t see too many of these variants so it’s

also nice to build something that isn’t generally

seen. With this in mind, I searched around and

found a decal set for an RAAF P-51K, showing

a mid-blue tail and red propeller framing an

all-over camoulage pattern. Apart from looking

interesting as presented, I also relished the idea

of a Mustang without the typical bare metal and

invasion stripes. Although lacking in some of the

striking nose art of these variants, I saw this one

as something refreshingly diferent, with the

iconic Southern Cross depicted on the tail. The

subject of my build, serial number KH677, which

was original coded CV-P until 11th December

1944. The aircraft was part of the RAAF’s No.3
      Squadron, stationed in Fano, Italy. Unfortunately,
      the aircraft was lost as No.3 Squadron’s last
      fatality of the war, on 11th April 1945.

Mark Casiglia builds the

1:32 Tamiya P-51K Mustang

in RAAF service

Mustang

From Down Under

(^42) NORTH AMERICAN P-51D/K MUSTANG WWW.MODELAIRCRAFTMAG.COM