Completed Airfix Sea Hurricane 1/48 scale

My interest in the Sea Hurricane stems from my interest in Operation Torch – the Allied Invasion of North Africa.  When the invasion began, there was some question as to whether the Vichy French would resist the landing.  Floating on a troop ship offshore that morning was a young infantryman, Kenneth “Red” McBride, who was destined to survive the war and become my father-in-law.  He was probably wondering if he would manage to survive the coming battle.  Little did he know, not only would he survive the coming battle, but he would also survive fighting across North Africa, the invasion of Sicily, the invasion of Italy at Salerno, and finally the Anzio landings.  He was a great father and grandfather, and we miss him each and every day.

I wonder if he saw this particular Sea Hurricane fly over that morning before it crashed on the beach. (See photo below)

Of great assistance in finishing this model was a masking set from AML in the Czech Republic.  These masks are made of vinyl, and they worked perfectly.  Highly recommended.

The camouflage paints are from Vallejo Air, and the decals came from my decal collection.

An invaluable aid in building this model was The Hawker Hurricane, Airframe and Miniature No. 16, by Richard A. Franks and published by Valiant Wings Publishing Ltd. (https://www.valiant-wings.co.uk/) in the U.K. in 2020. (If you have a strong interest in one of the subjects for Mr. Franks’ books, your library is incomplete without it. These books also contain extensive model construction information on many kits of the subject.)

There is something about the new Airfix kits.  They are always fun to build, and Airfix is bringing us modern kits of many subjects no other company is going to produce.  I always enjoy them.

Operating from HMS Biter crash landed on the beach at St Leu, in Algeria, during the Torch landings. 8th November 1942 (Believed to be in the public domain)

Airfix Sea Hurricane 1/48 scale

The last month or so, I have been pursuing (without enormous success) competing at the world championship of Cowboy Action Shooting. It was fun, exhausting and took up way too much time (and money).

But here is a project I began last month. My inspiration was a profile painting in Richard Franks’ The Hawker Hurricane, a truly fantastic compendium of information about the Hurricane. Check out all his wonderful books published by Valiant Press in the UK.

There was a profile in the book of a Sea Hurricane that participated in Operation Torch and crashed on the beach in Algeria on November 8, 1942.

As I understand it, in order to make the French believe that Torch was an all-American operation, the British insignias were painted over as seen in the photo below.

I had to build it, but all my usual sources for Airfix kits were out of stock. Then I read that all the parts for the Sea Hurricane were included on the sprues for the regular model. And, the Hurricane was in stock, so I snapped it up. I rummaged through my leftover decal box, and I found the necessary markings.

I am in the process of applying those decals right now, and then it will be time for some light weathering (this Sea Hurricane did not last that long to look very weathered).

I really like Airfix kits. I am well aware of some features some modelers regard as faults in the lineup, but I don’t care. They are always fun to build.

More on this model when I finish it.