It
is built stock out of the box. Painted with testors Gloss
Red and Gloss Black.
Even
at 1/48 it is quite a small model kit. I was building several
race planes at the time, and this was one in the collection.
"THE
1929 NATIONAL Air Race spectators witnessed the beginning
of a new era in commercial aviation. This was in the form
of a sleek racing job built by the Travel Air Company of
Wichita, Kansas. This racer, whose design and construction
began in 1928, earned the name Travel Air "Mystery
Ship". Its design and construction was a closely guarded
project at the factory and even as it landed at the Cleveland
airport to participate in the 1929 air races, the racer
was hastily rolled into the hangar and hidden with a canvas
cover." Air
Racing History
Race
with the Wind: How Air Racing Advanced Aviation - In the
decades leading up to World War II, legendary air races were
often the proving grounds for radical new aviation principles
and designs. This unique look at the key players and aircraft
in all the early 20th century's great air races examines and
explains how innovative racing technologies found their way
into future fighter and passenger aircraft.
Gee
Bee Enthusiast Color Series - Here's the inside story
of the creation of the Gee Bee R-2 replica, written and photographed
by the men who designed and built it. This star of air shows
is followed from re-creating the original plans through all
stages of construction; on its first test flights; and wowing
the crowds at Oshkosh and other air shows. Packed with original
color photography.
The
Risk Takers: Racing & Record-Setting Aircraft: A Unique
Pictorial Record 1908-1972 - This book focuses upon two
distinct but complementary - and in certain cases overlapping
- aspects of aviation. At the Reims Air Show in 1909, the
American Glenn Curtiss and Frenchman Louis Bleriot vied with
each other for the speed record and Henry Farman won the distance
prize. The first official air races were held in 1911. Why
'The Risk Takers'? There were a staggering 32 aviation fatalities
in 1910; CS Rolls (co-founder of Rolls-Royce) was the first
to perform a non-stop return crossing of the English Channel;
but his Wright Flyer would break up in mid-air a month later.
This book illustrates and analyses all such pioneering
achievements in precise technical detail.
Reno
Air Racing - Flying at up to 450mph, wingtip-to-wingtip,
just feet above the ground, the Mustangs, Bearcats, Corsairs,
and other Unlimited Class air racers are the fastest, loudest,
and most powerful piston-engine aircraft in the world. Witness
these amazing aircraft, their daring pilots and the dedicated
crews as they compete head-to-head at Reno's annual pilon
air races in Nevada.
