Airfix new tool Vickers Wellington IC 1/72 (May 2018)

Airfix has just released a new tool 1/72 Vickers Wellington Mk IC medium bomber model kit in July 2018. One of the most successful and important British aircraft of WW2, the Wellington served throughout the conflict and was produced in greater numbers than any other British-built bomber. The new Airfix kit will represent the Mk.IC, which improved on the previous Mk.IA by employing an updated hydraulic system, 24 volt electrical system and “Lorenz beam” blind landing equipment. The Mk.IC also dispensed with the previous retractable ventral turret in favor of .303 Browning machine guns mounted mid-fuselage on each side of the aircraft .The Airfix team designed the model with the aid of original engineering drawings and other rare Wellington information to provide historical accuracy and “impressive levels of detail.”

The ancient, almost horrible by today standards, Airfix Wellington tooling was written off around 2005 (pre-Hornby era), after the original mould wore out and was no longer usable. This is why the last Wellington issued by Airfix in 2008 was actually a rebox of the MPM kit. Photos of the completed model below are from the new tool kit, built by Jim Bren. For more info see here.