Introduction

In what I am thinking of as the big is beautiful 1/32nd scale aircraft range from Revell of Germany is the BAe Hawk T.1A in its training guise. The hawk is 40 years old this and is still doing sterling service with the RAF and is most likely best known in its role with the Royal Air Force Red Arrows display team.

Contents

This model from Revell of Germany is supplied in a smallish end opening box. Inside the box you will find;

• 12 light grey sprues
• 1 clear sprue
• A decal sheet
• 1 instruction booklet
• 1 warning/advice sheet

Review

When this model arrived from Revell of Germany I could not help but think that the box is too small for the model as the box was bulging top and bottom, however upon opening no issues were encountered due to this. The model parts arrive in four plastic bags with the clear sprue being bagged separately for protection. I have not found any obvious issues with the mouldings and no parts broken free of the sprue. This model is dateable to 2010 as it is embossed on the inside face of the wings. The gates that attach the parts to the sprue are a little larger than I expected in some areas but they are not excessive in number and access for removal is also good for the most part. The parts for the various areas of the model are laid out reasonably well in that you should not have to do too much searching to find the parts you are looking for.

Cockpit
The cockpit layout looks reasonably accurate overall. The instrument panels look to be a very good representation of the reference I checked. I am guessing that the front and rear controls are identical with this being a trainer aircraft. The side consoles are questionable to a degree as the closest match I could find was on a flight simulator and I could not find that area duplicated on the real aircraft; yes I know that sounds odd but that is the case. If you want to make these areas easy to deal with Eduard make self adhesive photo etched sets for them. The ejector seats are fair representations and Revell of Germany has supplied decals for the seat harnesses which is a nice touch, however Eduard again make a set of seat harnesses in photo etch if you prefer.

The cockpit canopy is a very good moulding being of a reasonable thickness, no seams to clean up and good clarity. The internal structures of the fuselage are minimal in number but look to be well thought out as they have included the intakes and jet exhaust to a reasonable degree. There is no engine in the kit but I am not bothered as Revell of Germany provides kits for those on a budget and the low cost allows you to decide what you want to add from the after market manufacturers.

Undercarriage
The undercarriage matches my reference well and has been tackled very well. The wheel bays look fair with the addition of various parts to build the frame work of the bay in the wings and nose. There are of course a lot of hydraulic and brake lines which are not replicated in fill and so those that like to add detail have plenty of room to add these details to make this area of the kit as accurate as possible. The undercarriage legs and wheels do look to have captured the look of the real thing well but again the addition of some hydraulic lines will further enhance this area. One aspect of the undercarriage legs that Revell of Germany keep repeating is spliting them which makes clean up and so hiding the seam difficult.

Aircraft exterior
The exterior of the model is quite good with very nicely reproduced recessed panel lines. The Hawk does have a lot of rivet detail and these rivets are very small and slightly proud, this rivet detail is not replicated on the model. The recessed panel lines do match my reference very well and this is a high point of the model. The rudder and ailerons on the model are workable which may appeal to some but I would always recommend that these areas are secured. The airbrake is supplied as a separate assembly and so can be depicted open or closed.

Weapons
Supplied with this model are;
A centreline 30mm ADEN cannon
Two drop tanks
Two SNEB rocket pods.

Instruction
The instruction are supplied loose leafed and guides you through construction using black and white line drawings. A plus mark for Revell of Germany is that they call out painting details as you go. After taking a good look at the instructions I did not see any obvious areas of concern, with none of the stages being overly complicated. The decals supplied with the kit are as expected of a reasonable quality with the explosive strips for the cockpit canopy being the only area where I will be interested to see how well I can hide the carrier film. The finishing options are;

• BAe Systems Hawk T1 XX226 of 74 Squadron, Royal Air Force, RAF Valley participating in the 1997 Tigermeet, RAF Wattisham 1997
• BAe Systems Hawk T1 XX284 of 151 (R) Squadron 2 tactical weapons unit, Royal Air Force, RAF Chivenor 1992

Conclusion

The more of these 1/32nd scale aircraft I see from Revell of Germany the more enamoured I become with them. I am fully aware that that due to Revell of Germany not supplying photo etched parts or utilising slide moulding technology on a regular basis does effect some aspects of their products, however they are by far the best when price is factored in to the equation. The low prices that Revell of Germany charge for their products and the generally good overall detail means they will meet the needs of those on a budget and are a good starting point for those who like to add further details themselves or from the after market company. I very highly recommend this model to anyone who would like a large scale model of the hawk and which is also available in the livery of the Red Arrows.

Related links

BAe Hawk T.1A - Red Arrows review by Rowan Baylis Live links

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