Classic Airframes 1/48 Hudson Decal Series By Michael Benolkin

At the IPMS/USA 2001 National Convention in Chicago, Classic Airframes was proudly displaying their wide variety of kits including the two recent Grumman J2F Duck versions. A day or two into the convention and much to everyones delight, the first copies of their new Lockheed Model 14/Hudson Mk.I kits arrived. But there was something different at the Classic Airframes booth - decals! Aftermarket decals for the Hudson!

There are five different sheets released for the Hudson, with two-to-three aircraft featured on each sheet. The color and registry on these sheets are quite nice, and closer inspection reveals why - these are printed by Microscale. As many of you know, Microscale split up a number of years ago with Microscale continuing on with its model railroad and custom work while Superscale was created to continue with its aircraft decal lines. Microscale continues its fine reputation with decal printing with these releases!

According to CA, aftermarket decals for major new kit subjects like the Hudson are now entering the market 6-12 months after kit release (if at all). The days of seeing decals released ahead of a previously unknown major kit subject are gone (for now). In order to enhance the interest in the variety of subjects that each of the Hudson kit releases will offer, CA decided to take matters into their own hands and offer decals concurrent with a new kit subject. Good show!

Here is a look at each of the five decal releases that CA has commissioned for their Hudsons:

Set 48-001 Lockheed Hudson Mk.III & A-29

This set contains markings for two aircraft:

• Hudson Mk.III, UA-N, 269 Sqn, RAF Coastal Command

• A-29 of the Chinese Air Force

Set 48-002 Lockheed Hudson Mk.I/III/A-28A

This set contains markings for three aircraft:

• A-28A, T-226 of the USAAF

• Hudson Mk.III, 152, RAF Coastal Command

• Hudson Mk.I, P5164 of the South African Air Force

Set 48-003 Lockheed Hudson Mk.III/VI

This set contains markings for two aircraft:

• Hudson Mk.III Air Ambulance, RAAF

• Hudson Mk.VI, LO-Q, RAF

Set 48-004 Lockheed Hudson Mk.I/III/IV

This set contains markings for three aircraft:

• Hudson Mk.I/III, RAAF

• Hudson Mk.I/IV, FX-F, RAAF

• Hudson Mk.I/IV, P, RAAF

Set 48-005 Lockheed Hudson Mk.I/III

This set contains markings for two aircraft:

• Hudson Mk.III, SJ-F, RNZAF

• Hudson Mk.I, OY-G, 11 Sqn, RCAF

These are great looking decals and I feel a few Hudsons will be getting acquired for my scale flightline so I can build a few of these cool variants!

My sincere thanks to Classic Airframes for these review samples!