- World War II Historical Collection
- 272 high quality pcs
- 1/35 scale
- 1 USAAF pilot figure, 16th Fighter Squadron, 23rd Fighter Group, 1942 China
- Bodywork with pad printing
- A sheet of stickers with historical symbols
- Completed Dimensions 11.0” L x 13.4” Wingspan x 4.7” H
- Compatible with leading block and brick brands
- Recommended for 6 years and above.
The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk is an American single-engined, single-seat, all-metal fighter and ground-attack aircraft that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time and enabled a rapid entry into production and operational service. The Warhawk was used by most Allied powers during World War II, and remained in frontline service until the end of the war. It was the third most-produced American fighter of World War II, after the P-51 and P-47; by November 1944, when production of the P-40 ceased, 13,738 had been built, all at Curtiss-Wright Corporation's main production facilities at Buffalo, New York.
P-40 Warhawk was the name the United States Army Air Corps gave the plane, and after June 1941, the USAAF adopted the name for all models, making it the official name in the U.S. for all P-40s. The British Commonwealth and Soviet air forces used the name Tomahawk for models equivalent to the P-40B and P-40C, and the name Kittyhawk for models equivalent to the P-40D and all later variants.
Starting with the 24th Model 87, an additional .50 MG was added to each wing and the carburetor intake was moved forward 6 in. Although these changes were relatively minor, this new variant was given the designation P-40E.
The Flying Tigers, known officially as the 1st American Volunteer Group (AVG), were a unit of the Chinese Air Force, recruited from U.S. aviators. Compared to opposing Japanese fighters, the P-40B's strengths were that it was sturdy, well armed, faster in a dive and possessed an excellent rate of roll. While the P-40s could not match the maneuverability of the Japanese Army air arm's Nakajima Ki-27s and Ki-43s, nor the much more famous Zero naval fighter in slow, turning dogfights, at higher speeds the P-40s were more than a match. AVG leader Claire Chennault trained his pilots to use the P-40's particular performance advantages In the spring of 1942, the AVG received a small number of Model E's, each equipped with a radio, six .50-caliber machine guns, and auxiliary bomb racks that could hold 35-lb fragmentation bombs. Chennault's armorer fitted the new planes with additional bomb racks that held the 570-lb Russian bombs, which the Chinese had in abundance. These planes were used in the battle of the Salween River Gorge in late May 1942, which kept the Japanese from entering China from Burma and threatening Kunming.
The American Volunteer Group (Flying Tigers) was integrated into the USAAF as the 23rd Fighter Group in June 1942. The unit continued to fly newer model P-40s until the end of the war, achieving a high kill-to-loss ratio.
This COBI P-40E is representative of a plane from the 16th Fighter Squadron, 23rd Fighter Group, Kweilin, China 1942. The kit features the “Sharks Mouth” livery of the Flying Tigers. Other features include. retractable landing gear, rotating propeller, movable flaps. The plane comes with a stand also made of blocks.
