Tamiya - 1/:48 - 61053 - Bristol Beaufighter Mk.VI

The Bristol Beaufighter Mk.VI Night Fighter In the late 1930's, the RAF, faced with a shortage of modern fighter planes, used the wings & tail of the Beaufort bomber to speed up construction of the twin-engined Bristol Beaufighter. After its maiden flight in 1939, the Beaufighter was used in various roles including interception, bombing and anti-ship warfare. However, the first operational Beaufighters, equipped with Airborne Interception (AI) radar, proved their true worth as night fighters. During the Battle of Britain, the thwarted Luftwaffe switched its focus from day bombing to night bombing of London and other British cities. In response to that threat, the RAF first deployed Blenheim twin-engined night fighters, but they proved unable to effectively intercept the German bombers. It was then, that the faster, more agile, radar equipped and very heavily armed Bristol Beaufigher Night Fighter became Britain's new hope in the skies. To enhance stability in later models, the tailplane was modified to have twelve degrees of dihedral - resulting in a sleek, angular look. In November of 1940, in addition to its role in shooting down Heinkel III, Dornier and Junkers Ju88s, the Beaufighter worked in concert with ground control systems to make great military gains. Although the Beaufighter was replaced by the faster Mosquito as the RAF's main night fighter in the second half of WWII, its stalwart body and powerful punch earned the trust of many a pilot

1/48th Model #61053