Hasegawa 1/72 B-24 Liberator by Roman Schilhart
Finished Model Photographs by Wolfgang RabelT
o my eyes, the Liberator
isn’t the most elegant
design of the American
aircraft industry; it rather
reminds me of a train wagon
with wings! Despite its aesthetic
shortcomings, however, the
Liberator was one of the most
numerous USAF bombers in
WWII service, with over 18.
examples built. It saw action
over Europe, as well as in the
Pacific, and some saw service with
the Royal Air Force in Europe,
and in the Far East as well.
In 2007, Hasegawa released a
new-mould Liberator, in a number
of versions and boxings, which
was a welcome replacement for
the venerable Airfix and Academy
kits. The Hasegawa kit of the
B-24J is the most expensive model
I have ever purchased, with a
price tag of 54 euros. Given its
wingspan, it is also my most
ambitious build to date (for now).
Prior to starting, I amassed
numerous aftermarketsets from Eduard, CMK, and
True Details, as well as a metal
undercarriage from Scale Aircraft
Conversions, and decals from
Sky Models of Italy. However, not
all of the add-on parts proved
useful, as we shall see later.
Initially, I wanted to represent
one of the Liberators from the
15th Air Force that saw action
over my home country, Austria,
in the closing months of the war.
However, I was unable to source
decals and detailed information
within the time I had for this
build. So instead, I settled for a
rather attractively painted B-24J,
named “The Shack”, of 458th
Bomb Group, 754th Squadron,
based in England in 1944-45.WINGS
Wa g o n wi t h
ITEMS USED
KIT: HASEGAWA CONSOLIDATED
LIBERATOR B-24J (E 29)AFTERMARKET ITEMS USED:- EDUARD BIG ED SET, 7247
- TRUE DETAILS WHEELS, 7216
- CMK BOMB BAY, 7235
- CMK CONTROL SURFACES, 7232
- SCALE AIRCRAFT CONVERSIONS, 72009
- SKY MODELS DECAL SHEET ,72-
16 • JANUARY 2018 • SCALE AVIATION MODELLER INTERNATIONAL
BY SACCO DE VRIES
B-24 LIBERATOR
BY ROMAN SCHILHART
1/016-21-FEAT-Liberator-0118.indd 16 08/12/2017 16: