This
is my Monogram 1/72 F-4C/D Phantom II. It
represents the F-4D flown by Captain Richard “Steve” Ritchie of the 555th
Tactical Fighter Wing, the “Triple Nickel”.
Captain Ritchie was the only U.S. Air Force Pilot who shot down five
MiG-21s during the Vietnam War to become an ace.
He shared four of these victories with Weapons Systems Operator (WSO)
Captain Chuck DeBellevue and one with WSO Lawrence Pettit.
Click on
images below to see larger images
|
|
|
I
purchased this model about 15 years ago at a flea market for $1.00.
I finally got around to putting it together around 5 years ago and,
although there were some issues with the fit, the kit went together reasonably
well and built into a nice model of an early F-4.
I used Model Master Paints for the standard SEA camouflage pattern of
Dark Green, Medium Green and Dark Tan over Camouflage Gray.
The model was airbrushed freehand prior to my obtaining a regulator, so
there was some overspray of the colors. Also,
I used the kit decals; however, they were not very good.
About a month ago, I took it out of my display case and gave it a light
acrylic black wash and some drybrushing to represent fading from the hot, humid
climate of
Southeast Asia
.
Paint chipping was done by using a silver artist pencil.
Cheers,
Rick
|
|