Scale aviation modeller international

T

he Kawasaki T-4 Dolphin

first flew in 1985 with the

first production aircraft

being delivered in 1988. Serving

mainly in the training role, it also

acts as a liaison aircraft for fighter

units as well as being the current

mount of the Japanese aerobatic

display team, Blue Impulse who

have flown it since 1995 when

it replaced the Mitsubishi T-2.

This boxing contains two kits

with markings for the 2017 team.

Whilst the overall scheme has

remained consistent since the

team started flying it, the main

difference is the decals supply the

correct crew names for 2017. The

decals also look to be cleaner and

brighter than the original issue

kit where the white decals had

a distinct cream tone to them.

The Instructions are in the usual

Hasegawa layout with colours

called out in Mr Color paint codes.

THE BUILD

First, as almost always, we start

with the cockpit. This is a uniform

grey, which makes life easy.

However, there are a few small

errors on the instructions here.

The rubber boot at the base of the

control columns should also be

black and the overall seat cushions

both back and bottom should be

an orangey red. A mix is given

for this colour, but I went with

Xtracrylic Red Arrows Red as a

suitable alternative. I also, perhaps

foolishly, elected to add seat

straps from lead foil using pictures

from the internet as a guide. This

probably trebled the cockpit build

time, as the strap arrangement is

actually quite complex. The straps

themselves appear to be a silver

grey - I used a simple light grey.

Once assembled, fiddly as it was,

it did look a lot better than just

the basic seat. Instrument panels

KIT DETAILS

MANUFACTURER: HASEGAWA

SCALE: 1/72

TYPE: INJECTION PLASTIC

STATUS: REFRESHED MARKINGS

NO. OF PARTS: 67 PER AIRCRAFT

DECAL OPTIONS: 1

IMPULSE

A Blue

Hasegawa 1/72 T-4 Blue Impulse 2017

Markings by Jonathan Davies

Aerobatic Wings sponsored

by Hobbylink Japan

22 • OCTOBER 2018 • SCALE AVIATION MODELLER INTERNATIONAL

BY SACCO DE VRIES

T-4 BLUE IMPULSE

BY JONATHAN DAVIES

1/72

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