Profile Photo
John vd Biggelaar
44 articles

F16 at 50 group build: F-16A 311 Squadron airbase Volkel, Hasegawa 1/72

January 28, 2024 · in Aviation · · 41 · 259

My first finished model in 2024. First modern aircraft in years as is valid for a RNLAF aircraft.
When Erik @airbum created this group build for the Falcon at 50 years, I could not resist to build one in RNLAF scheme of 311 squadron stationed at Volkel airbase. It was my favorite squadron and did visit the base many times during my childhood since it is close to my hometown. I do remember going there by bike, just 15 minutes, and spending lots of hours watching the F104s and F5s and F16s landing and taking off. I'm pretty sure I have seen aircraft J-636 in real but I do have no evidence of that. This build is therefore a nice remembrance of my childhood, many years ago 😀.

This build was a bit out of the ordinary for me, a modern aircraft, a Dutch scheme and 1/72 are not my usual builds. Nevertheless I really enjoyed building this aircraft. At first I was a bit affraid for this Hasegawa kit regarding fit issues, but I was positively surprised how this one went together. The cockpit is a bit spartanic but acceptable. The only thing added was the green oxygen bottle. I used the three color scheme and tried to give the panels a bit of shading. Some soot added to the gun exit as well to make it look like it just returned from a shooting practice. The aircraft is shown in its early years where the tail parachute was not applied yet.

Overall I really enjoyed this built and I would like to thank all of you who participated in the building thread giving great advises and background information.

The build thread can be found here:
https://imodeler.com/groups/f-16-at-50/forum/topic/f-16a-311-squadron-airbase-volkel-hasegawa-1-72/

edit: Just noticed I forgot to paint the red/green lights 😱 Easy to correct.

Reader reactions:
16  Awesome 1  2 

17 additional images. Click to enlarge.


41 responses

  1. Wow, that is some gorgeous airbrushing, John @johnb! Very, very nice color variations!

  2. That came out really well @johnb, even though it’s a little out of your usual sphere of aircraft modelling. Great childhood memories rekindled for you.

  3. Great looking Falcon John @johnb.

  4. Excellent result, John. It’s nice to see an early F-16 built without all of the lumps and bumps added over the years.

  5. Excellent job, John and ditto build thread!
    Congratulations!

  6. Nicely done Falcon, John.

  7. John vd Biggelaar (@johnb)

    You have done a magnificent job with this one. It's good to go back and remember some of our child hood memories, especially the good ones. I am very impressed with your model. It looks just like the real ones I have seen over the years, only in miniature.

    Well done ! I'm definitely clicking on several of the various "like" buttons. Thank you for sharing this with us, and for posting the detailed build journal.

  8. Congratulations with this gorgeous Viper, John.
    Nice photoshoot too!

  9. What a fine looking F-16 at 50 entry, John @johnb. Nice to see a more modern build from you.

  10. Nice work on this, John. A solid F-16.

  11. Great looking Viper John @johnb, and an awesome addition to the GB.
    It was nice to see the progress work posted, and see the great result.

  12. Well done Jojn, it was fun following you on your WIP getting this Viper together. Though not your typical subject, you did well on your change of pace and built an excellent F-16 in this scale. Hasegawa does give a great kit to start with and add you can add some bits to make it even better. Well done, and thanks for sharing.

  13. Beautiful bird John. Very nicely done, this small scale. The finish is flawless.

  14. Looks good - well done!

  15. Very nice build, John. @johnb

  16. Good work John (@johnb) - looks fantastic 😀

  17. Splendid work sir 'tis a beauty

  18. Very nice painting!

  19. Great job! It looks good

Leave a Reply