Overview
The Sea Harrier was the naval version of the V/STOL Harrier that was developed from the RAF's Harrier GR.3. The main visual differences between the RAF's Harrier and the Royal Navy's Sea Harrier were the raised cockpit and longer nose housing the Blue Fox radar system on the FRS1. The Sea Harrier first flew in 1978 and became operational in 1981. A year later, the Sea Harrier saw its combat debut in the Falklands conflict, where it was the only fixed wing fighter aircraft fielded by the British forces. The Sea Harrier also was exported to India, where it remains in service today.
The Kit
The Hasegawa 1/72 Sea Harrier kit goes way back, with its first release hitting the shelves in 1986. Despite its age, it remains a fairly decent representation of the Sea Harrier FRS.1, molded in gray plastic with recessed panel lines. While the original kit came with a variety of markings, this new Limited Edition focuses on the Sea Harriers of the Falklands War, providing three marking options in the box. Even better, you'll get to use two of those, as this kit is a two in one, with two complete kits in the box.
Jumping into the build, this is a typical 1980s Hasegawa kit, with the cockpit interior detail being provided from decals. The cockpit tub has the ejection seat molded in place, while the control stick and instrument panel is separate. A pilot figure is provided, and he has a separate arm that allows for a bit of custom posing. The completed cockpit fits between the forward fuselage halves, and it's here that one begins to see that there will be some fit challenges, as the fuselage is split into four pieces. As a side note, in checking references the nose of the Hasegawa Sea Harrier is about a scale foot too short, but the proportions are scaled down so it is not readily apparent (unless one places the kit next to the ESCI/Italeri kit, which has the correct nose shape).
Undoubtedly Hasegawa chose this route to allow for the addition of the large engine face and intake trunking. This is a separate piece that fits onto the back end of the completed nose section, and that assembly then fits up against the completed rear fuselage assembly. The engineering is about as good as could be, with the seams being limited to just a small section top and bottom. This is possible because the air intakes cover the rest of the separation area, but this also means that getting everything aligned right will take some time. Definitely take time here to ensure everything is lined up right.
For rear fuselage details, this has four separate exhaust pieces and separate blast deflectors for the rear exhausts. As noted earlier, the intakes are separate, and feature a bit of droop to the upper auxiliary intake doors. The tailplanes are solid right and left pieces, and they are keyed on their locating pegs so they will be adjustable when attached. The wings are split into upper and lower halves, and have a simple tab attachment. This is another area to pay attention to, as ensuring the wings have the right anhedral is essential to getting everything lined up right with regards to the landing gear.
Speaking of which, the landing gear is fairly simple. The nose gear is molded as one piece, with the wheel integrally cast with the strut. The main gear strut has separate main wheels, while the outrigger struts are like the nose gear strut: molded as one piece. I would recommend attaching the nose gear strut and the outriggers first, and then adjust the main gear strut accordingly until all five wheels are touching the ground. While on the underside, the lower fuselage air brake is separate, and features a separate actuator strut.
The armament provided in this kit is quite good, with the model coming with bombs, Sidewinders, fuel tanks, and Sea Eagle missiles. The bombs are some of the better representations of British iron bombs, while the Sea Eagle definitely gives the Harrier a distinctive look. For the Falklands Harriers, though, the most common fitting will be the drop tanks and Sidewinders. The final details include a refueling probe and an access ladder.
The markings in this Limited Edition Falklands War special provide decals for three Sea Harriers, one each from 800NAS, 809NAS, and 899NAS. The two aircraft from 800 and 899 Squadrons were finished in Extra Dark Sea Grey over White, and had their white undersides painted over in Extra Dark Sea Grey on the way to the Falklands. This resulted in a slight color change along that demarcation, but overall made for a dark Sea Harrier. The 809 NAS Sea Harriers were painted in Medium Sea Grey, and were the only Sea Harriers finished in that color.
The aircraft covered on the decals are XZ457 "14" off the HMS Hermes with 899NAS, XZ458 "007" off the HMS Invincible with 809NAS, and XZ496 "27" off the HMS Hermes with 800NAS. The markings for 007 are the low-vis pale blue and red roundels with the numbers in pale blue, while the other two aircraft have regular dark blue/red roundels with the numbers in black. The decal sheet also includes a complete set of stenciling for each aircraft.
Conclusion
This is a nice re-release of a classic Hasegawa kit, and the value is readily apparent with two kits in one box. That, coupled with the excellent decals, makes this a good set to pick up, despite the basic interior and short nose. My thanks to Hasegawa USA for the review sample.