Well, we are delighted to say that our Photographer David M managed it, as he has just supplied us with these magnificent Defiant build images. The latest impressive modelling creation off the conveyor belt of projects our product designer Paramjit Sembhi has been turning out recently, this beautiful build surely highlights how this slightly less fashionable RAF home defence fighter makes for a stunning modelling tribute to this Battle of Britain 80th anniversary year. When combined with the previously released Spitfire and Hurricane, could there possibly be three better looking models to mark the achievements of Churchill's 'Few'? Providing effective mobile artillery support to ground troops, each US Armoured Division had up to three battalions of M7 HMC’s assigned to it, which reflected the importance in which these vehicles were held when planning any ground operation. Used by all the Allied armoured fighting units in Normandy and the battles to come, the M7 may have been something of an unsung armoured hero of WWII, however, its combat effectiveness could never be called into question. Little and large, our Dogfight Doubles Bristol F2B Fighter pays tribute to an aircraft which is on display at the Imperial War Museum Duxford. By 10am, six Fokker Dr.1 fighter aircraft of Jasta 11 took off from Cappy aerodrome to embark on an offensive patrol over the Somme Valley region. Led by their inspirational commander, Manfred von Richthofen, this was an elite unit where only the finest fighter pilots were invited to join the squadron - the ‘Best of the Best’, but on that morning, von Richthofen would have a significant distraction. This latest patrol would be the first combat sortie for his young cousin Wolfram von Richthofen, who had been given strict instructions not to be drawn into any fighting and simply to gain height and watch the battle from a safe distance, just to experience what an aerial duel looked like.

His opponent was clearly an experienced pilot and May simply could not shake him from his tail - his only chance of survival was to dive for the ground and try to make it over Allied lines, in the hope that his enemy would not follow. What he didn't know at the time was that he was being chased by the distinctive red Fokker Dr.1 of Manfred von Richthofen, the greatest air ace the world had ever known.An impressive vessel in every respect, the German Deutschland class ‘Armoured ship’ Admiral Graf Spee was built during the 1930s, around the restrictions imposed by the Treaty of Versailles, following the end of the Great War. Although this prohibited Germany from building warships with a weight greater than 10,000 long tons, the country knew that if they were to prevail in any war to come, they would have to challenge the dominance of Britain’s powerful fleet and have some presence on the world’s oceans. Working loosely around the restrictions, this new ship had a nominal weight which did conform to the weight limitations, however, when she was fully fitted out, she significantly exceeded it. Welcome to this latest edition of Workbench and all the news, updates and exclusive announcements from the fascinating world of Airfix modelling. Both of these magnificent ships were popular additions to the Airfix model range and their inclusion in the growing Vintage Classics range has been welcomed by many. We are pleased to announce that both are now ‘on the water’ and scheduled for imminent release. An armoured minister of wrath Equipped with high explosive anti-tank shells, explosive and smoke shells, the M7 Priest proved to be a vital component of the ground war following its combat introduction in October 1942, with many examples going on to see service across the world long after the end of the Second World War.

Messerschmitt Me 262A-1a, Wk Nr 111711, test flown by Hans Fay and surrendered to the Allies at Rhein-Main, Frankfurt, Germany, on March 31, 1945 As the kit is based upon a mere legend, its accuracy cannot be determined, detail has been derived from photos that are blurry at best. The plan outlines that survive were drawn up after the war from supposedly accurate sources that have never been confirmed as being anything other than conjecture. So, as far as this kit is concerned it is as accurate as any other. Revell's more recent re-working of the kit has crisper mouldings of the various components such as portholes, 20mm cannons &c but the proportions on the old Airfix kit look 'just right' whereas the Revell kit is a bit dumpy and bloated in comparison to the older offering.A Dogfight Triple - Our third look at this restored original Roy Cross box artwork, this time in full Vintage Classics presentation for the first time. We begin by looking at a pair of Vietnam War classics brought together for an Airfix modelling tribute, before featuring arguably the most eagerly anticipated aviation addition to the Vintage Classics range in the current catalogue. We follow this up with articles looking at a pair of 20th century warships and a Second World War military vehicle which went by a distinctly ecclesiastical name. Relying heavily on our extremely busy photographer David, we are hoping to end with exclusive build images of a recent release which is the third of our 1/48th scale Battle of Britain 80th Anniversary releases, but this will definitely be going right to the wire if we do manage to include them. OK, we have a lot on our modelling agenda, so we had better make a start straight away. Agile adversaries clash North American P-51D Mustang, 44-14164/E2-D ‘Detroit Miss’, Lt Urban Drew, 375th Fighter Squadron, 361st Fighter Group, USAAF, Bottisham, UK, 1944

The above is an account of undoubtedly one of the most famous incidents in the history of aviation and when this is combined with the fact that this new release also occupies quite a historic position in an Airfix modelling sense, could there be a more appropriate build project for us to embark on this year? With this kit destined to be the first Dogfight Double kit to be inducted into the Vintage Classics hall of fame and with it boasting a restored version of its original iconic artwork, we think this release will strike a chord with many a modeller in the weeks and months ahead. That is the story, or is it? See SBD's amazing original art here on which this kit top artwork is based: The modern Airfix company released new pairings of Dogfight Doubles in the 2000s however the original batch of Dogfight Doubles that Roy Cross provided the box artwork for in the 1960s and 1970s were as follows – The origins of No.39 Squadron began with No.19 Reserve Aeroplane Squadron and how in February 1916, they were assigned to fly Home Defence duties, protecting the greater London area. In April, the unit was renumbered No.39 (Home Defence) Squadron, initially based at Hounslow, but also operating from satellite airfields at Hainault Farm and Suttons Farm. In August 1916, the Squadron's 'A Flight' relocated to North Weald, where they were joined by the rest of the Squadron early the following year.When the RFC initially deployed to France in 1914, it did so with just 4 squadrons and 48 aircraft, however, over the coming two years, the increasing influence of the aeroplane would see the service embark on a significant period of expansion both with units deployed to France and those operating in Britain. In the UK, the RFC Home Establishment was not only responsible for the training of air and ground crews, but also the preparation of units destined for deployment overseas. Following the first Zeppelin raids against southern Britain, their remit would grow to include the establishment and operation of airfields and squadrons in the role of Home Defence, in an attempt to calm the fears of a terrified population. The next edition of Workbench is due to be published on Friday 24th July, when we will have more interesting features from the world of modelling. The Vintage Classics range is about to welcome the return of two much loved and eagerly anticipated warship kits, one British and one German, but both possessing strong links to the sea battles of the Second World War.