Canopy Work

The fuselage is now glued together and the rounded tail tip. Also have glued the fuselage and wing together. So progress is being made.

Now starting on the canopy for the TA-4J.  Compared the Monogram OA-4M canopy, the crystal clear and delicate canopy Hasegawa offers is awesome.  Masking off the clear areas in preparation for detailing and painting.

I would use the Missing Link vacu-form TA-4J canopy on the TA-4H except it has been in the bag for so long there is now a long white streak along one of the curves.  So have to make do with the OA-4M canopy.  So I have to reshape the back of the OA-4M canopy to fit the Missing Link resin TA-4J fairing.

Off Topic Rant Pt 2

I finally got around to emailing that seller on eBay who is selling pre-built A-4N Ayits.  Their sample aircraft is 322 of the Flying Dragon Squadron.  The one with both the Colt 20mm cannons and the DEFA 30mm cannons installed.

Luckily I have a reference photo to base my questions on.  In Shlomo Aloni's book Israeli A-4 Skyhawk Units in Combat, Osprey Combat Aircraft 81.  On page 33 is a nice color picture of the right side of the plane.  Showing only DEFA cannons plus other inconsistencies as seen on the pre-built model.  So I asked the sellers a few questions.  I wonder what reply I will get.

Red 01

Here is A-4E Red 01 in standard TPS scheme except for the Soviet style red 01 on nose and red advesary star on the tail.  It was built clean except for the avionics hump.   Since this the Monogram A-4E kit, I cut apart and made the bent refueling probe.

This model is presently on display at Orange Grove Hobb Shop in Orange Grove, MS.  Joe and Nancy run a great model store jam-packed with goodies.  They can be contacted at (228)832-0100.

Rear Cockpit Standby Compass

I think I have finally figured out how to scratchbuild the stand-by compass in the back cockpit for the TA-4H.  I have tried to build the bracket that holds the assembly repeatedly but it's sheer delicacy, without photo-etch, is beyond my skills.  So I always managed to destroy it before finishing it.

Well the Hasegawa TA-4J kit has given me an idea.  Parts E23 and V23 are the stand-by compasses for the front and back cockpits and mounted in the canopy frame.  Hasegawa just molds little square blocks of plastic with raised dial detail.  I plan to sand at a 45 degree angle the back portion of V23 to simiulate the bracket profile.

For the TA-4H I will just take a similar block and do the same 45 degree sanding.  Then paint on the instrument dial and white details.  Then attach to canopy.  And finished with this one vexing problem.

Hasegawa TA-4J VT-22

Not bad since I started this model only last Friday.  Only things I have added have been the Classic Airframe wheels from the spares box.  Substituted the Classic Airframe nosegear door since I liked it better.  And the only scratchbuilt items is the oxygen hoses in each cockpit.  Nose weight is two 1/8oz sinkers glued in with whtie glue.  Building the kit with speedbrakes and flaps closed.  Canopy will be in the up position so still need to scratchbuild the white instrument hood for the rear cockpit.

VT-22 TA-4J 158085

It's offical, I am burned out on the major conversion project of turning that OA-4M into a TA-4H.  Which is why I have not been doing anything on this blog for so long.

To break the logjam I have moved onto another Skyhawk.  This time the Hasegawa 1/48th scaled TA-4J Skyhawk kit.  I am building it in the 75th Anniversary markings of TA-4J Bu No 158085 when assigned to VT-22 and painted in bright blue and gold paint scheme.

I am trying to build this kit as straight out of the box as possible.  So using the four piece ejection seats that are kit supplied, will add oxygen hose.  Stole from the spares box a set of painted main wheels from a Classic Airframes TA-4J since they are very similar to the Hasegawa wheels.  I am pre-painting as much as possible.

Got a few gripes.  There are about a billion little plastic tabs that need to be cut off even the most delicate of plastic parts.  There are details in the landing gear wells I have never seen in photos.  And the instrument panel decals and probably the whole decal sheet are incredily thick, I am using a lot of Micro-Set and Micro-Sol on them to make them sit.

Practice Bomb Dispenser

What can be done with Evergreen plastic stock.  Cut apart thick 1/16th sheets and form box with hollow area for the parctice bombs.  Then strip styrene where the bomb racks go.

 With lots and lots of sanding while watching TV I am making progress.

What do you know, it now looks like an aerodynamic shape that belongs on an airplane.

Before I had done any sanding on the front end I used a pin-vise and a drill bit to drill out openings seen in the unit.  As I sanded the nose round, the openings became elongated ovals.

Franken-hawk

I got frustrated with the model and took a break.  Now resuming work on it.  From now on if I want to build any TA-4 the Hasegawa kit will be the way to go.

First I gave up on the wing and trying to reshape the leading edge slat areas.  So now building another wing.  This time I used a razor-saw to cut out the slat areas.  Glued the wing halves together.  Added sheet plastic to the cut slats.  Now awaiting the glue to dry.  Will resume work on the other wing later on and this time get it right.

As for the fuselage above, progress and title of this post.  Squared tail-tip from Hasegawa TA-4J.  The dark gray tail fairing came from the parts box, a Monogram of Germany OA-4M.  Engine intakes came from the Monogram A-4E.  Rear fairing resin part for the cockpit came from Missing Links.

Plus used sheet plastic to fill in hole where the spine of the airplane should be.  Let me say I screwed up when I did this originally.  The hole was a bit irregular in shape.  The sheet plastic I had originally made and installed the vent, started to twist around as I sanded it to fit.  So started again with just blank sheet plastic.   Soon will drill out and re-add the vent.  Then scribe panel lines that got sanded off.

July 4th Scooters

Four A-4 Skyhawks painted up as Blue Angles in diamond formation before a 50 star US flag.  Suspended from the ceiling of the US Naval Musuem at Pensacola NAS, Pensacola FL.  Taken in 2010.

Diorama Idea

Singapore Air Force A-4SUs undergoing maintenance.  On the engine trolley center bottom is a non-afterburning F-404 engine.  Also look at the tail sections and how they can be moved around on wheels.

TA-4H Progress Pictures

Got some work still to do to blend in the square tail-tip with rest of tail. 

Added square strip styrene along edges of the gap and cross-members for support.  I left a gap for the vent in the sheet plastic spine.

TA-4H Progress

1. Well fuselage halves are glued together.
2. Square rudder tip glued on.
3. Started trimming down the sheet plastic to fill in the spine hole.
4. Working on canopy gasket and latches.
5. Also finishing the two stand-by compasses that mount inside the canopy frame.
6. And remember after cutting out the stock ejection seats to build new floors.  I did not, so scrambling to fix since I have glued the fuselage together.

Six Day War

In 1967, the state of Israel was faced with a multi-front war of survival.  The country was being attacked from Syria, Jordan, and Egypt.  By the end of it, Israel had vanquished all the attackers and in fact took portions of Jerusalem from Jordan.

During this time, the first of 48 A-4H Ayits were under construction back in the United States as part of the US named Operation Rugby which was in answer to Israel's Plan Samuel to modernize the air force.  Israeli pilots and ground crew were also Stateside training for the new planes.  The pilots would return to Israel and fly combat missions during the Six Day War.  Once the fighting had stopped, the pilots returned to their conversion course at NAS Cecil Field.

As a result of losing 30 aircraft during the Six Day War, Israel ordered a further 42 A-4Hs to be built.  The first two squadrons of A-4Hs were 109 Sqn at Ramat David air base and the brand new 102 Sqn at Hatzor air base.  The first A-4Hs arrived on the Haifa docks on 29 December, 1967.  First combat by A-4Hs happened on 15 February 1968 when four 109 Sqn A-4Hs attacked PLO terrorist training camps in Jordan.

Externally there was little to differentiate an A-4H from an A-4F.  Squared off rudder, braking parachute housing under tail-pipe, and lack of ECM antennas being the only noticeable changes.  Marking note - the initial 48 A-4Hs left the Douglas plant in an asymmetric camouflage pattern that became standard after the Six Day War, full color US national insignia, and the last three digits of its Bureau Number painted in solid block letters just in front of the tailplane.

The first of all A-4H Ayits, Bu No 155242, was assigned to 109 Sqn at Ramat David.  The number 01 was painted on both sides of the nose.  The aircraft was lost in combat on 13 October 1973 during the Yom Kippur War.  The aircraft was carrying out an attack against Syria when lost.  The pilot made it back alive.

Bridle Hooks

One thing about a major conversion project like building TA-4H 544 is its a constant journey of discovery.  While things dry and set, I go back to look again at the pictures.  And I usually find a new little wrinkle, something that I thought standard on all Skyhawks is not standard on Israeli Skyhawks.

The latest little twist is one most won't even notice as they build an Ayit.  All Skyhawks that fly off carriers have what are called launch bridle hooks, one in each main wheel well.  When a Scooter is prepared for launch off a catapult, a steel bridle is attached to each hook.  The cables are attached to the catapult shuttle.  When the A-4 is launched and the plane hurtles over the bow, the bridle cable falls into the ocean and is lost.

So where am I going with this?  Israeli Skyhawks appear not have the the bridle hooks in the main wheel wells.  So one less thing to install on this model.

TA-4J 158500

Looking down the right side of 723 assigned to VT-7 CTW-1 USS Lexington at the 1991 Keesler AFB open house.  Notice the various stains down the side.  One of the launch bridle hooks can be seen hanging down from the main gear well.  And the reds are different shades.  Look at the leading edge of the verticle tail, it has been re-painted in a lighter shade of red. In the background is the Collins Foundation B-17G Nine-Oh-Nine.

Left hand detail shot of TA-4J 158500 723.  Notice the wear from the moving tail surfaces.  And the dirty look of the rudder.  Bu. No 158500 was one of a 75 plane production run of new build TA-4Js.

Here is a close up picture of TA-4J 158500 723's nose gear.  The details pictured here are common for all Skyhawks built with nose gear steering from the first A-4F to the last off the production line in 1979.

TA-4J 723 Left Side

Left side picture of 723.  Notice the bare metal on the front of the canopy.  The wires and white cover that is rolled up in the back cockpit is for student pilots to practise instrument training.  Can also see scuffing on the side of the fuselage. 

TA-4J 723

Taken at a Keesler AFB open house.  Close up shot.  Notice the canopy is not all the way up, barely cracked open in fact.  Can see two of the canopy latches and angle of mirrors.  Through the windscreen can be seen the gun sight.  Notice how close the 3 is to the anti-glare panel demarcation.

Reference Books

A-4 Skyhawk in Action, Aircraft #11, Squadron-Signal Publications, 1973.
A-4 Skyhawk Walk Around, Number 41, Squadron-Signal Publications, 2006.
A-4 Skyhawk in Detail & Scale, D&S Vol. 32, TAB Books, 1989.
Colorful U.S. Navy A-4 Skyhawks, C&M Vol. 18, TAB Books, 1990.
Douglas A-4E/F Skyhawk in Marine Service, Naval Fighters #52, Ginter&Albright, 2001.
USN/USMC Two-Seat Skyhawks, Naval Fighters #82, Ginter, 2008.
- covers TA-4F, EA-4F, TA-4J, OA-4M, TA-4G, TA-4H, TA-4AR, TA-4S/SU, TA-4PTM, TA-4KU, AF-1A, and TA-4K.
A-4 Skyhawk, #346, Model Art Co. Japan, 1990.
Douglas A-4 Skyhawk Variants, Wings of Fame Vol. 4, Aerospace Publishing Ltd, 1996.
Topped Gun:Requiem for the Skyhawk, OSP, Ross Ewing, 2002.
Douglas A-4 Skyhawk Attack & Close-Support Fighter Bomber, Pen and Sword Aviation, Jim Winchester, 2005.
The A-4 Skyhawk Ayit, IAF Aircraft Series #2, AD Graphics, Amos Dor, 1999.
Israeli A-4 Skyhawk Units in Combat, Osprey Combat Aircraft 81, Shlomo Aloni, 2009.

Progress Pic

Its starting to look like I am making progress.  Cockpits glued in.  Weight in nose, 1/8oz sinker held with white glue.  Ejection seats done.  Wheels done.  Canopy halfway done, still need to add stand-by compasses and the 14 latches.  Big white rectangle is going to become the practice bomb dispenser.  And top center the newly arrived Flying Tigers Sqn patch from Israel.

Two Scooters

Playing with the camera again.  TA-4H mocked up.  OA-4M.  And finally picture of the real TA-4H 544.  All on the work area.

OA-4M 305

Experimenting with camera angles and taking pictures of models.  So here is a close-up of my OA-4M.  I replaced the thick plastic canopy actuator with wire.  Also added tie-down lugs and brake lines from thin wire.  And added a scratchbuilt antenna on the nose gear door.  Plus wire ejection handle on seat.  Yes, I am a fan of wire for things, beats trying to stretch out sprue.

Rear Cockpit

Here is the assembled rear cockpit for the TA-4H.  I scratchbuilt the pistons that raise the canopy, it was made from some small plastic I-beam and plastic tubing.  Ejection handles were made from thin wire painted yellow&black.  The oxygen hose is a bit big but I made it from tightly wrapping thin wire around an armature.

Off-Topic Rant

I guess I should email this person on the errors of the model they are showing on eBay.  If they want to generate some sales that is.  I have never seen an Israeli A-4 armed with both the Colt 20mm cannons and the DEFA 30mm cannons.

TA-4H Tail with Extension

You can see how far I had to cut back on the sugar-scoop to fit the tailpipe extension.  This extension was installed as a way of protecting the Ayit from SA-7 missile strikes hitting the hot tailpipe and knocking out the tail surfaces.  Bitter lessons from the Yom Kippur War and was applied to all single-seat and two-seat Ayits.  The extension is from QuickBoost.

Can also see how far I have come with the squared off tail-tip.  I used sheet plastic to shim up the Hasegawa tail-tip.  Once the fuselage halves are glued together, will do the fine fitting the tail-tip and add the small antenna at the top.

Wing work Pt 3

Well here are close-up pictures of the left and right wings.  Still not very happy with how it came out.  Thinking of dragging another wing out and start building it.  Razor cut the leading edge slat areas and shim them up.  Cut out the wing-tip lights.  Luckily Israeli Skyhawks do not have the leading edge landing light so don't have to cut that out.  Nor the radomes.

Practice Bomb Dispenser

Right now I am leaning towards the 2008 Xnir photo of 544 landing.  Which means weathering on the aircraft.  No fuel tanks or weapons on the wing pylons. 

But I am a bit stumped for the centerline.  As far as I know, no one has the practice bomb dispenser as an aftermarket part.  Judging from this picture of 542, the dispenser carries six 25lb practice bombs and perhaps a foot longer than the centerline pylon.  Some of the dispensers have four 'tubes' in the nose and tail, not sure what that means.

Since I have started working on the cockpit area, still got time for research.  If anyone has any ideas, pictures, dimensions, or plans for this dispenser; please let me know.  The same dispensers are still used on the F-16I Sufa judging from several pictures in the Isra Decal book on the Sufa. Thanks.

Renewing Posting

OK, sorry for the hiatus.  Life has intervened, but will be posting pics of latest progress soon.  Thanks.

The ejection seats have been sorted out.  Finally got where the leading-edge slats retract to be correct; easier to cut out the leading-edge slat area and shim it up with sheet plastic - trust me.  And cut off the sugar-scoop to install the tailpipe extension.  QuickBoost does a very nice resin tailpipe extension - kit QB 48 247.  Bought two through Sprue Brothers since want to also build an A-4N.

Ejection Seats

Here are the ejection seats I had all ready for the TA-4H posed in front of my OA-4M kit.  New information shows the seats to be a color almost like dark ghost gray.  So the second seat of seats will be built up for the TA-4H while these two seats go into reserve for the Hasegawa TA-4J.

I apologize for the quality of the picture, still learning how to shoot small items with digital camera.

TA-4H spine

To fill in the gap caused by cutting out the avionics hump, started with some 0.1 sheet styrene.  Then I marked where the panel lines would be.  Snagged the extra vent from the Hasegawa TA-4J.  Cut out and trimmed a hole for the vent.  Then glued the vent in.  The small hole I drilled is to mark where the anti-collision light will go.  Once the fuselage is all together will finish up trimming and gluing the new spine.  Add the light.  Then will get to add the MissingLink resin canopy fairing.

Adding Chaff/Flare Dispensers

Used a pin vise fitted with a drill bit to rough out where I would be opening the plastic.  Then I used an X-Acto knife and file to square up the holes.  Followed by test fitting and more sanding.  Eventually both excess chaff/flare dispensers from the Hasegawa TA-4J fit snugly and I glued them in place.

Cockpit Mystery Solved

All right, I do have an answer to the question if the TA-4s received the RADA upgrade.  I emailed Ra'anan Weiss at IsraDecal Studios my question.

The answer is - No.  It looks like the general cockpit layout is standard TA-4F with a few twists.  Front cockpit had something else in place of the radar scope.  Rear cockpit had the video monitor where the radar scope should be and offset to the right leaving a blank space between it and the eight-ball - look on pg 38 of Steve Ginter's book on two-seat Skyhawks for what this monitor looks like.

Once I finish up the cockpits I will post pictures of them.  Stay tuned.

Wing work Pt 2

Well I am still trying to reshape the leading edge slats area on the wing.  Sheet plastic laid down with sanding and painting, still find goofs.  Just read over on ARC of actually sawing out the whole area, shimming with sheet plastic, and re-gluing so the step vanishes as you attach the back flush with the rest of the wing.  I also cut out the navigation lights on each wing tip.

While I await been working on other parts.  Making progress on four Escapac seats.  Might use up the KMC wheels on this kit.  The Classic AirFrame ones are the same as the KMC ones except far smaller in diameter.

Cockpit Questions

A-4N with wide-angle HUD and MFD installed were a blank plate was on Crystal A-4Ns.  This is possibly the RADA modification.

Doing a bit more digging to see if the RADA upgrades were done to any of the Israeli TA-4s, especially the one I am building - 544.  So far I have found zero pictures of a two-seat Ayit with the big HUD display, only the original gunsght.  Here is a close-up of the front cockpit circa 2008 of an unidentified TA-4.  This is a head-on view of 544, again 2008, and we see the original gunsight.  This is TA-4H 542 landing in 2008, still no large HUD.  Here is A-4N 302 in 2008 and notice how the windshield is filled from the side by the large HUD and warning lights.  So it appears no two-seat Skyhawk had the RADA modifications.  If new information pops-up, I will post it.

And it looks like the answers to my camoflage questions for 544 have been answered with this picture of 545 landing.  Xnir is the bomb when it comes to awesome pictures.

TA-4J Rear Instrument Panel

Cockpit TA-4J 158500.  Taken w/Canon AE-1 35mm SLR and 400ASA film.

While various things dry with the TA-4H, thought I might post a picture from my scrapbooks.  This picture was taken during the Keesler AFB Open House in 1991.  Can see the color of the padding at the bottom of the instrument panel, stick, and an extra instrument surrounded by placards where the radar screen would be in a TA-4F.  Will post more pictures of this TA-4J soon.

Wing work Pt 1

So far all that has been done is clean up the pieces and glue them together.  Then I added small strips of styrene to try and remove the infamous step in the slats.  Which I will find out after sanding the strips down.  Next will cut out the navigation lights on the wing-tips.

For Kurnass77, thought I would add a patch he might recognize.  Maybe in the future for a 'what-if' build, build an Italian A-4.

TA-4H 544 Pt. 2

Taken Sept 27, 2008 by Xnir.  All Rights Reserved by Xnir.

Here is a very nice picture of 544 taken in 2008 by Xnir.  The Ayit is basically clean except for the centerline practice bomb dispenser.  Notice how the moving tail is angled down and the flaps are down, but the leading edge slats have not slid down.  Plus how long legged the Scooter is.  Xnir's site is on Flickr and has awesome pictures of Israel, civil aviation, Ra'am, Netz, Sufa, US-60, AH-64D, and other very neat subjects.

The Stash

While I am doing an assembly line production of late model Escapac ejection seats in 1/48 scale, thought I might list the Skyhawk kits in the stash.

In 1/32d scale I have all three Hasegawa kits - A-4E, TA-4J, and Hi-Grade OA-4M.  One of each.

In 1/48th scale is where things have certainly gotten a bit out of hand.
1 Monogram Pro-Modeller A-4F
4 Monogram A-4E original production run kits.
3 Monogram A-4E Hi-Tech kits.
2 Monogram A-4F Blue Angels re-issues.
1 Monogram OA-4M
2 Monogram-Revell of Germany OA-4M kits.
1 Hasegawa A-4M
1 Hasegawa TA-4J
1 Hasegawa A-4SU.

Nothing in 1/72d or smaller scales.  Intervention anyone? LOL

Israeli Decal Sheets

There are two companies who are currently producing aftermarket decal sheets for Israeli A-4 Ayits.

IsraDecal has identical sheets in 1/32d and 1/48th scale, IAF-57 and IAF-60.  Both decal sheets have the Flying Tiger outline for the tail though the IsraDecal pictures do not show it for the 1/48th scale sheet.  Price direct from IsraDecal is $25US and $26US respectively.  Or can be ordered via places like Sprue Brothers or Earl's Hobby Hanger.

Sky Decals also offers decal sheets in 1/32d and 1/48th scale for Israeli Ayits.  Like the IsraDecal sheets can model aircraft from any squadron that flew Ayits including the Flying Tigers, Smashing Parrots, and Flying School.

So it looks like I won't have to create any custom decals for my project.  My scanner, Adobe, and spare time rejoice they won't be used for custom decals.

KMC Upgrade Kit

KMC Resin Upgrade Kit for the Monogram A-4E/F Skyhawk

Part of the stash I have accumulated is a complete upgrade kit from KMC.  Thank you eBay.  It comes with a complete cockpit tub with the area behind the bulkhead that is missing from the Monogram kit.  The ejection seat is a very nice resin piece except for the excess resin at the top of the ejection seat that needs to be removed.  A control column comes in two pieces.  The wheels are the same diameter as the Monogram wheels but detail wise they resemble the Classic AirFrames and Hasegawa wheels.  Like the Hasegawa, Classic AirFrames, and Pro-Modeller kits we get the front of the J-52 jet engine.  Get the five underwing pylons, four rocket pods, and enough sway braces for all pylons.  For the A-4F Super Fox, the ALR-45 antenna hot-dog is included.  KMC also includes the hatch on the bottom of the fuselage between the flaps where Remove Before Flight tags are stored, sometimes called the Hellhole; instructions tell the modeller to put plastic to close up the hole when you drop this hatch - for the super detail freaks who don't want to close up the hole, will need to add the aft fuselage attachment bulkhead, wiring, hydraulics, and bottom of the J-52.  There is one more part in this kit not pictured on the box and that is a nice resin instrument panel.

Trivia Answer

Here is the answer to why one of the OA-4M model kits is dark gray and the other is light gray.

The original OA-4M Skyhawk model kit, Kit # 5436 from 1985, is molded in dark gray.  The light gray kit is the Monogram of Germany re-issue, Kit # 74020 from 1994, by Revell AG.

Kit #5436 has decals for one OA-4M.  Bu No 154307, tailcode YU, side number 06, assigned to H&MS-12 'Outlaws' assigned to MCAS Iwakuni, Japan.

Kit #74020 has decals for two aircraft.  Bu No 154651, tailcode WA, side number 07, assigned to H&MS-12 'Outlaws.'  Second aircraft is Bu No 152874, tailcode SD, side number 305, assigned to Naval Air Test Center, Patuxent River NAS.

Tale of Tails - TA-4H

Close-up of the TA-4H tail.  Can see how far down I removed the ALR-45 and fairing.  I built up from sheet plastic the new tail tip and sanded it down to roughly what it should look like.  Once the fuselage is put together I will attach the tip and do final shaping.  Can also see where I removed one of the ECM fairings that had been on the jet-deflector or sugar-scoop.

Tale of Tails - OA-4M

Here is the rudder of my built OA-4M showing the ALR-45 antenna and the fairing that was used to merge it with the rest of the tail.  And yes I know I need to dust the model.

The Model Kit

The model kit I chose is the Monogram OA-4M Skyhawk.  To build a TA from this kit, the avionics hump must be removed.  I used a razor saw to remove it.  Also removed was the ALR-45 antenna on top of the fuselage along with the ECM bulges on the sugar-scoop and the nose along with the oil cooler just in front of the reinforcing strip under the tail-pipe.  I have not added the chaff/flare dispensers yet.  Above picture shows how much modification has already been done by comparing with an unmodified OA-4M fuselage.

Conversion kit is the old Missing Link Models one.  When I removed the ALR-45 fairing, I cut down to the panel line just above the pitot tube.  The tail tip from the conversion kit is the rounded type found on TA-4F/J aircraft so can't be used to build a TA-4H.

Trivia question, why is one kit molded in light gray while the other is dark gray?  Stay tuned for the answer.

TA-4H 544

First Skyhawk I will tackle is a conversion.  I will be converting the Monogram OA-4M Skyhawk into TA-4H 544 of the Flying School Advanced Sqn.  Side view of 544 is found on page 27 of Amos Dor's The A-4 Skyhawk Ayit.  The above image shows 544 later in its life, June 28, 2010 when it was assigned to the Flying Tiger Sqn.

Please note the extra blade antenna in front of the windshield.  It has all five hardpoints which only TA-4Fs and TA-4Hs had.  It is also armed with 20mm cannons and not the locally installed DEFA 30mm cannons.  Aircraft will also have the tailpipe extension which became standard after the Yom Kippur War.  Also note 544 has the bent refueling probe.

Markings for 544.  In Flying School service the nose radome is painted orange along with the entire rudder.  Except for that, camoflage pattern is standard IAF.  For Flying Tiger service, remove the orange markings.  Add the Hebrew script behind the Star of David on both sides.  And a flying tiger outline on the tail with squadron patch above.

The version I plan to build is 544 in earlier service with the Flying School.  Or when 544 served with Flying Tiger Sqn.  Either way I have to create some custom decals.

Project Skyhawk

Lets see if this experiment works.  Please follow along as I build the Douglas/McDonnell-Douglas/Boeing A-4 Skyhawk.  For a plane first flown in 1952, it is still serving in the front lines of several foreign operators.  Which says something about the basic soundness of the design.

I like aircraft in 1/48 scale so Skyhawk kits in that scale will be the focus.  The model kits of choice are: Pro-Modeller Monogram A-4F Skyhawk, Monogram A-4E Skyhawk, Monogram OA-4M Skyhawk, Hasegawa A-4M Skyhawk, Hasegawa A-4SU Super Skyhawk, and the Hasegawa TA-4J Skyhawk.

So shall we get started?