Euro Decals 1/72 N.A. Mustang Mk.III Collection
By Chris Banyai-Riepl
Overview
The North American P-51 Mustang has seen something of a renaissance lately, with new-tool kits from Arma and Eduard in recent years. The Arma P-51B has been released a few times, with some nice marking options in the box, but there is plenty of room for aftermarket decal companies to add to that list of options.
The Decals
This sheet from Euro Decals focuses solely on the British version of the P-51B/C, the Mustang Mk.III, with eleven options that cover a wide range of camouflage schemes and markings.
- Mustang Mk.III, KH427, GN-V, 249 Squadron RAF based at Bifernoi, Italy, 1944, camouflaged in Du Pont Dark Earth & Dark Green over Azure Blue.
- Mustang Mk.III, FB2??, HS-H, 260 Squadron RAF based in Italy, 1944, camouflaged in Dark Green and Ocean Grey over Medium Sea Grey.
- Mustang Mk.III, LD-Y, 250 Squadron RAAF based at Lavariano, Italy, 1946, camouflaged in Dark Green and Ocean Grey over Medium Sea Grey.
- Mustang Mk.III, FZ152, SS, 130 Polish Wing RAF based at Coolham,UK, 1944, camouflaged in Dark Green and Ocean Grey over Medium Sea Grey with full invasion stripes.
- Mustang Mk.III, LD-B, 250 Squadron RAAF based in Italy, 1946, camouflaged in Olive Drab and Neutral Grey.
- Mustang Mk.III, HB832, QV-Q, 19 Squadron RAF based in Peterhead, UK, April 1944, camouflaged in Dark Green and Ocean Grey over Medium Sea Grey with yellow and black striped spinner.
- Mustang Mk.III, FZ120, YT-J, 65 Squadron RAF based in Funtingdon, UK, May 1944, camouflaged in Dark Green and Ocean Grey over Medium Sea Grey.
- Mustang Mk.III, KH528, SZ-L, 316 (Warszawski) Polish Squadron RAF based at RAF Coltishall, UK, December 1944, camouflaged in Dark Green and Ocean Grey over Medium Sea Grey.
- Mustang Mk.III, FX985, PK-V, 315 (Deblinski) Polish Squadron RAF, 1944, finished in overall natural metal and silver lacquer.
- Mustang Mk.III, KH616, CV-Q, 3 Squadron RAAF based Italy, 1944-45, camouflaged in Dark Green and Ocean Grey over Medium Sea Grey with white theater bands.
- F-6C Mustang, FX855, 541 Squadron RAF based at RAF Benson, UK, July 1944, camouflaged in overall PRU Blue with full invasion stripes.
The decals are very nicely printed with perfect register and color density, with the center dots of the three- and four-color roundels separate to ensure perfect alignment for those more challenging decals. The sheet includes full roundels for all eleven options, too, so you will not have to rely on kit decals should you choose to build every option on this sheet. Having used Euro Decals in the past, these will be easy to apply.
Conclusion
This sheet adds some colorful options for the excellent Arma 1/72 P-51B kit. Having built one of those in Swedish markings, I can say that more marking options is a good thing, as that is a beautiful kit to put together. My thanks to Fantasy Printshop for the review sample. Visit their website for this and other great decal releases.