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Rafi Ben-Shahar
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A parrot out of hell: Academy 1/48 B 25D

November 16, 2023 · in Aviation · · 30 · 0.7K

Here is the historic background to the model by Tom Cleaver:
Red Wrath was the personal mount of Lt. Colonel Clinton "Fearless" True, Group Commander of the 345th BG. Aircrew viewed him as "hard," but someone who never asked anyone to do anything he hadn't done first. He led the first Rabaul strike on October 17, 1943. They ran into a storm front in the Bismarck Sea and most of the attacking force aborted for weather, but True led the 345th through the front flying at 50 feet above the waves. The attack totally surprised the Japanese - the four squadrons claimed 41 aircraft destroyed on the ground and 38 air victories, and three ships sunk.. When they got back to Dobodura airfield, the CO of the 1st Air Task Force wanted to put True up on charges, not believing him when he said he hadn't received the recall order. True was sent to Brisbane to General Kenney. Fortunately the headline of the local paper wa "MacArthur Using Daring New Tactics, Sends B-25s Over Rabaul Unescorted." Kenney didn't believe True's story any more than the pilots in the group and the air task force commander had, but in view of the overall success of the mission, a court-martial was deemed "inappropriate." Instead, True got the Distinguished Service Cross, with 16 Slver Stars and 7 DFC's awarded to others on the mission. The group got a DUC for the mission.

Re-boxing of excellent series models. Thanks to the painted parrot on the glazed nose, it is possible to pack the nose with weights without worries of compromising the insides of the nose and cockpit. I opened the front cowl a bit to be in line with the only significant criticism of the kit.
The parrot also appears in my IL 2 sim.

Reader reactions:
15  Awesome 1  1 

9 additional images. Click to enlarge.


30 responses

  1. Nicely done Rafi. This one turned out excellent!

  2. This is an angry looking parrot, Rafi @blackmopane
    Beautiful result.

  3. Well done, that's a mean looking bird

  4. AWESOME job, as always, Rafi! I remember the cowling openings were said to be more closed than in reality. Fixable issue, though, as is the case here.
    Congratulations!

  5. ๐Ÿ™‚ ... Greetings ... ๐Ÿ™‚ :
    Nice work on that B-25 Rafi.

  6. Your work never fails to impress, Rafi @blackmopane! ๐Ÿคฉ Another great model from the House of Ben-Shahar! ๐Ÿ™๐Ÿป

  7. Maybe itโ€™s the original โ€œangry birdโ€, great looking model.

  8. Great paintwork, Rafi. It really looks the part.

  9. Great looking build. Those decals seem to have cooperated nicely (@blackmopane).

  10. Great job Rafi. I've always liked the B-25s with the nose painted like that. I have a Doolittle raid Accurate Miniatures B-25 kit, they look like they build up into a nice piece. Beautiful work.

  11. Very nice work, Rafi, and a great result.

    Red Wrath was the personal mount of Lt. Colonel Clinton "Fearless" True, Group Commander of the 345th BG. Aircrew viewed him as "hard," but someone who never asked anyone to do anything he hadn't done first. He led the first Rabaul strike on October 17, 1943. They ran into a storm front in the Bismarck Sea and most of the attacking force aborted for weather, but True led the 345th through the front flying at 50 feet above the waves. The attack totally surprised the Japanese - the four squadrons claimed 41 aircraft destroyed on the ground and 38 air victories, and three ships sunk.. When they got back to Dobodura airfield, the CO of the 1st Air Task Force wanted to put True up on charges, not believing him when he said he hadn't received the recall order. True was sent to Brisbane to General Kenney. Fortunately the headline of the local paper wa "MacArthur Using Daring New Tactics, Sends B-25s Over Rabaul Unescorted." Kenney didn't believe True's story any more than the pilots in the group and the air task force commander had, but in view of the overall success of the mission, a court-martial was deemed "inappropriate." Instead, True got the Distinguished Service Cross, with 16 Slver Stars and 7 DFC's awarded to others on the mission. The group got a DUC for the mission.

    There's the backstory to your very cool model, @blackmopane.

  12. That's a stunning job on your B-25D! I can appreciate the effort you put into it because I'm building the same kit as PBJ-1D. If your kit was anything like mine then you had a lot more obstacles to overcome than just opening up the cowlings.

  13. Great work on this, would love to add this kit to my stash after seeing yours

  14. Beautiful as the eyes pass.

  15. The B-25 is my favorite multi-engine WWII aircraft, and this one is a beauty! Love the S. Pacific theater and the stories that go with it.

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