AIM-9E Sidewinder

Eduard, 1/48 scale

Reviewed by Mick Drover

Eduard's 1/48 scale Remove Before Flight set is available online from Squadron.com

The AIM-9E was a development of the AIM-9B that the US Air Force developed after the poor performance of the B version against fighter type targets during the Vietnam conflict. Externally the biggest difference was the change in the seeker head profile and the increase in size of the forward canards. Other improvements over the B version included a thermoelectric cooling system, thermoelectric cooling system, improved tracking rate, and improved wiring harness. The problem of firing the missile within the rear quarter of the target remained.

Arriving in Eduard’s standard blister pack, the standard grey resin is well supported in the soft foam packing. Each missile is comprised of seven parts. The missile body is a single piece of cast resin that includes the rear guidance fins. Four forward canards are cast separately that need to be attached with the final resin component being a choice of either a clear resin seeker head or a protective cover should you choose to model your subject with covers and RBF flags etc in place. The single etch piece for each missile is used at the rear to define the rocket motor exhaust.

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Thumbnail panels:

Casting blocks for the each of the pour blocks is minimal which should allow a quick and easy clean up.

The instructions are plain and simple and integrate the assembly and painting guide while the rear of the assembly sheet shows the placement of the decals.

This latest addition to the air-to-air arsenal from Eduard will have you next Vietnam era US Air Force jet looking the business. A quick scoot around the net and it appears that these missiles were used successfully by F-4C/D/E and F-105D aircraft. On any of these subjects they will look great. For their simplicity and ease of assembly I’d recommend these over any equivalent in 1/48 scale.

References

• http://www.ausairpower.net/TE-Sidewinder-94.html

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIM-9_Sidewinder#US_Air_Force_develops_AIM-9E.2FJ.2FN.2FP

Thanks to Eduard for the samples and images.

Review Text Copyright © 2015 by Mick Drover
Page Created 2 July, 2015
Last updated 30 July, 2015

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