This particular sheet is dedicated to Australian Mk 31/32 Sabres. These aircraft were built solely in Australia by CAC and differ from Canadair and North American aircraft by having a larger Avon Engine and armed with two 30mm Aden cannon.

The recommended kit in 1/72 is the Hobbycraft version though I don't see why you couldn't use others. The thing to remember is that these aircraft all had unslatted 6-3 wings. You see, the Mk.30 was the first production Avon Sabre and had slatted wings, but these aircraft were soon converted to Mk.31 standard by having the 6-3 wing installed. The Mk.32 added 'dual-store' wings (as in a second pylon). This pylon was for Sidewinders and the Mk.31 aircraft were retrofitted with this, essentially bringing all aircraft to Mk.32 standards.

Since there is no dedicated Avon Sabre kit, you'll need the High Planes conversion set. As a note on colors, all Avon Sabres operated by the RAAF were basically painted aluminum lacquer overall with black anti-glare panels. Some had black leading edges to the wings, fin and tailplanes. You can see which had these from the images on the left. All these markings came from the 'On Target' book for the Sabre (which I have not seen - HINT!)

First up is the sheet's lone Mk. 31 from 3 Sq at RAAF Butterworth, Malaya in 1958. Red fin and nose.

#2 is from 76 Squadron's 'Red Diamonds' aerobatic team. Red wing tips and nose.

#3 is an ARDU (test squadron) aircraft with Day-Glo nose, fin and wing panels.

#4 is from 2 OCU in the late 1960s. This one has a yellow nose.

#5, with a green nose and wing tips is from 77 Sq, also at RAAF Butterworth, Malaya in the late 1960s.

#6 is a glitch of some sort as it is the same plane as #4.

#7 is from 2 OCU in the mid-1960s, an earlier scheme from the previous one.

#8 is from 5 OCU, also in the mid-1960s. This one has a white nose with a blue and white checkered tail.

#9 is also from 5 OCU with a slightly different paint scheme to the previous version.

Were I to add any info to this sheet, it would be not only which wing was used, but which schemes use the plain roundel on the wings. That info is not provided and for those of us without the reference, determining that will be difficult.

As usual, the instructions are excellent giving all the info needed as well as a number of possible paint company options for the colors.

This sheet is available in 1/72 and 1/48 scale, the 1/72 scale being the one reviewed.

March 2005

Review sample courtesy of Jon Freeman. This sheet can be found at http://homepage.mac.com/daleclarke/Aviationworkshop/ and at quality hobby shops worldwide.

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