Douglas C-54 and DC-4

Dutch Decal, 1/72 scale

Reviewed by Brad Fallen

Iliad Decals' 1/48 scale ANG Mustangs is available online from Squadron.com

Timed to coincide with Revell’s new-tool 1/72 Douglas C-54 Skymaster kit, this 2015 release from Dutch Decal features three C-54s and three DC-4s in Netherlands service immediately after World War II.  These are all attractive subjects with large, colourful markings on a natural metal finish.

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The C-54s are Netherlands Government Air Transport machines that flew out of Schiphol, Amsterdam, in late 1945.  Decals are included for NL-302/PH-TAD, NL-311/PH-TAM, and NL-300/PH-TAB.  Liveries are more or less identical, with orange-and-black triangles in six positions, red white and blue rudders, orange noses and ‘Netherlands Government Air Transport’ in blue on both sides of the fuselage.

The first two DC-4s were also based at Schiphol in the late 1940s and operated by Royal Dutch Airlines (KLM).  The featured aircraft are PH-TAP/‘Paramarobo’ and PH-TAT/‘Twenthe’.  Both will make eye-catching models with ‘Royal Dutch Airlines’ in blue on each fuselage side, tri-colour rudders, civil codes on upper and lower wing surfaces (the former black, the latter black or orange), and ‘KLM – Holland’ in black on the undersurface of the fuselage.

The final DC-4 was more subdued but is in some ways my favourite.  Based in the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia) in 1946 and flown by Royal Netherlands Indies Airways (KNILM), it wore ‘Neth. Indies Government Air Transport’ on the fuselage sides above a double cheat-line that was repeated on the nose and vertical tail.  The civil registration ‘PK-DSB’ was in black or blue on both sides of the rear fuselage (you get a choice of either colour), while the rest of the markings were blue.

Even in 1/72 the DC-4/C-54 is a big model and so it’s not surprising the decal sheet for this release is also large, consisting of a closely printed A4 sheet.  There is a wide variety of markings, from small crests and insignia to large codes and long cheatlines.  All are perfectly printed with crisp registration and no sign of bleeding.  The only potential drawback I can see is that the large size of some of the decals, along with the (necessary) carrier film between code letters, means they’ll need to be applied to a very smooth and glossy surface to avoid silvering.  However, the natural metal finish of all of the subjects here means you’ll be aiming for such a surface anyway.

The instructions also recommend careful handling of the long cheatline decals to avoid breakage or misalignment.  They suggest you either strengthen the decals with an airbrushed layer of clear varnish before application, or cut them into several pieces during application.

Speaking of which, the instructions are printed in full colour on a fold out A3 sheet and include:

• Port or starboard profiles of each subject;

• Generic overhead and undersurface views of the C-54s and KLM DC-4s;

• Head-on views of the C-54s showing decal placement locations on the extreme front nose;

• Useful details about each subject; and

• A black-and-white period photo of Netherlands Government Air Transport C-54 on the tarmac at Schiphol.

This is an impressive release that combines high quality decals and instructions with some interesting alternative markings for the 1/72 Revell or Mach 2 Skymaster kit.

Highly recommended

Text and Images Copyright © 2016 by Brad Fallen
This Page Created on 31 August, 2016
Last updated 31 August, 2016

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