A-4E/F/G Skyhawk

Italeri, 1/48 scale

Reviewed by Andy King

Released last year and completely forgotten about by me until now (it found its way into the stash before I even reviewed it), this is the Italeri A-4E/F/G Skyhawk.

This kit was first released by Esci back in 1979 and has appeared in various manufacturers catalogues since then including ERTL, AMT, Revell/Esci, Polistil and ending up with Italeri in 2008.

This latest outing is still the same kit from all those years ago but with a rather nice decal sheet printed by Cartograf, also in the box you get three sprues moulded in grey plastic and one clear sprue for the canopy and windscreen.

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Thumbnail panels:

Considering the age of the kit, moulding quality is pretty good although there is a bit of flash here and there and  some visible mould-pin marks especially on the main gear legs and undercarriage doors. There is a seam line in each air intake that will be tricky to remove, the airbrakes on the rear fuselage are moulded shut but the biggest thing is the mix of recessed and raised panel lines on the model which is rather strange.

The fuselage features the engraved panel lines but the wings have raised panel lines which is unfortunate as the tops of the wings have oval inspection plates that will require a template should you wish to rescribe the model.

There is a cockpit but it is just a basic tub with an even more basic ejection seat with instruments supplied as decals along with the seat belts. The good news is that the wings feature slats that can be depicted opened or closed.

The weapons supplied in the kit comprise six MK.82 ’slick’ bombs mounted on a central pylon, two rocket pods and two underwing fuel tanks.plus two cannon barrels depending on which version you are modelling. As two of the painting options are for US Navy ’Agressor’ aircraft it would have been good to see ACMI pods included however these are available as aftermarket items should you feel the need to put them on your model.

Marking Options

The highlight of the kit for me is the decal sheet with no less than six marking options.

These include a US Navy A-4E from VA- 46 as flown by LCDR John McCain (later on Senator McCain), USS Forrestal, July 1969, two very attractive US Navy ’Aggressor’ aircraft from VF-126 ’Bandits‘, both based at MCAS Miramar during 1992, A USMC A-4F from VFMA-124, NAS Memphis, Tennessee during 1970, an Israeli Air Force  A-4F based at Hatzor AB, 1970 and lastly an A-4G of the Royal Australian Navy from 805 squadron onboard HMAS Melbourne during 1980 and this also features a very attractive colour scheme of light blue and dark ghost grey.

Colour call outs on the instructions are from Italeri’s own range but I’m sure you’ll have your own favourite colours in the paint stash.

This may not be the most accurate 1/48 A-4 ’Scooter’ available, the cockpit is basic and the mix of engraved and raised panel lines is odd and may put off people but I do have fond memories of building this kit when it was in an Esci box, finishing it as a USMC machine and making a pretty decent job of it during the early 80s. The kit is still worth getting for the decal sheet alone especially if you have more 1/48 scale A-4E’s in the stash.

An oldie but still buildable especially with aftermarket goodies.

Many thanks to The Hobby Company for the review sample, I’m just sorry it’staken me twelve months!

Review Text and Images Copyright © 2024 by Andy King
Page Created 3 April, 2024
Last updated 3 April, 2024

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