TAMIYA 1/48 P-38 F/G LIGHTNING

The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was the WWII fighter with the daring design. It featured twin booms with a piston engine in each and a central nacelle which housed the cockpit and armament (machine guns and cannon in the nose). Introduced in June 1941, the aircraft went on to be used extensively in the Pacific through WWII. The F variant was manufactured from April 1942 onward, and featured pylons for 150-gallon drop tanks to make it capable of longer bombing missions. Later P-38Gs had more powerful engines and could carry bigger 300-gallon drop tanks. The P-38 was used for interception, dive bombing, level bombing, ground attack, night fighting, photo reconnaissance, radar and visual pathfinding for bombers and evacuation missions, and extensively as a long-range escort fighter when equipped with drop tanks under its wings. Thanks to extensive research and ever-evolving mold making techniques, Tamiya’s designers have gone to great lengths to achieve the best fitting and most accurate P-38 Lightning F/G model assembly kit to date. Modelers will definitely want this kit to be a part of their collection. This 1/48 scale kit can be built in two variants, the P-38F or P-38G. The kit precisely captures depictions of early P-38 features such as the slimline engine cowlings, intercoolers in leading edges and the curved canopy front. The option is given to assemble the canopy open or closed. When closed, it is a 1-part slide-molded piece with dedicated F and G variant parts. The hatch is shown open sideways on the P-38F, and vertically on the P-38G. Parts are included to recreate two each of 150- and 300-gallon drop tanks. A detailed cockpit features the wheel-type controls, radio, throttle box and more. Includes two marking options: “White 147” P-38G which took part in the interception of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto in April 1943 and “White 33” P-38F. Mirror stickers are included to recreate cockpit mirror and engine cowling interior surface sections. Comes with canopy masking stickers and a full-color painting guide. A figure, colour painting guide and a 4-language informative leaflet is also included.