Victory Productions 1/48 USAF & NASA Starfighters Decal First Look
By Michael Benolkin
| Date of Review | November 2004 | Manufacturer | Victory Productions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subject | USAF & NASA Starfighters | Scale | 1/48 |
| Set Number | VPD48005 | Pros | Markings for 34 Starfighters |
| Cons | Skill Level | Basic | |
| MSRP (USD) | $24.95 |
First Look
As many of you know, Victory Productions has released a number of decal sheets that provide a wide range of options of a given subject, such as the F4U Corsair, A-4 Skyhawk and International F-104 Starfighters. Well they're back with another Starfighter sheet and this one blows away all previous offerings!
This set covers the F-104 Starfighters operated by the USAF and NASA. In all, there are thirty four (34!!!) different aircraft to choose from. These decal options are presented on a full-color set of profiles (two pages) and a data sheet for specific airframe reference data. Three sheets of decals are provided, two of which are 9" x 12" while the third sheet is 6" x 9". As you can see in the images, the first large sheet contains most of the unique aircraft markings, the second large sheet has the NASA fuselage and tail bands as well as an ample supply of letters and numbers to handle any version not outright covered by this wide selection of markings. The final sheet contains national markings and maintenance stencils for at least three aircraft.
The aircraft covered in this set include:
- F-104A, 538 FIS, 1958
- F-104B, 337 FIS, 1960
- F-104A, 4760 CCTW, 1967
- F-104C, 436 TFS/479 TFW, 1960
- F-104C, 435 TFS/6252 TFW, 1965
- F-104D, 479 TFW, 1963
- F-104C, 435 TFS, 8 TFW, 1966
- F-104D, 198 TFS, PRANG, 1974
- F-104A, AFFTC, 1959
- NF-104A, Aerospace Research Pilot School, 1964
- QF-104A, AFFTC, 1961
- QF-104A, 3205 Drone Sqn, ADTC, 1970
- F-104A, NOTS China Lake, 1960
- F-104D, USAF Special Weapons Center, 1965
- F-104N, NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, 1966
- YF-104A, NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, 1971
- F-104A, 56 FIS, 1958
- F-104A, 83 FIS, 1959
- F-104A, 337 FIS, 1959
- F-104A, 319 FIS, 1964
- F-104A, 331 FIS, 1964
- F-104B, 538 FIS, 1958
- F-104A, 151 FIS, TN ANG, 1960
- F-104A, 4750 Test Sqn, 1959
- F-104A, 157 FIS, SC ANG, 1961
- F-104A, 151 FIS, TN ANG, 1961
- F-104A, 157 FIS, SC ANG, 1963
- F-104B, 197 FIS, AZ ANG, 1960
- F-104B, Sacramento ALC, 1970
- F-104C, 434 TFS/479 TFW, 1959
- F-104C, 435 TFS/479 TFW, 1959
- F-104C, 476 TFS/479 TFW, 1959
- F-104C, 476 TFS/479 TFW, 1960
- F-104D, AFFTC, 1959
This set is beautifully printed and my examples are in perfect register. This is definitely a set to get your hands on and dust off that Hasegawa Starfighter!.
Victory Productions Decals are available from Stevens International, Sentai Distributors, Skygrid, Hannants, Beaver Corporation (Japan), Airdoc (Germany), Snowy Mountain Models (Australia), and of course directly from Victory Productions (www.victorymodels.com).
My sincere thanks to Victory Productions for this review sample!