Upgrading My Game - 1965 India-Pakistan War

While the Hunter looks grand, the others do not

I have to be honest, I am not loving my Raiden planes I have for the 1965 Second India-Pakistan War. The various wings and tails have too many bends, and while I have straightened them out as best as I could, the metal, being soft, tends to bend at the slightest touch. The paint work I had commissioned is also not up to the normal levels I used to receive - some sort of sealer was used on the bare metal planes that make them look gray, and I prefer the look of aluminium (intentional spelling) as opposed to whatever effect the sealer is having on changing the coloration.

Image from Flight Deck Decals

To that end, I have decided to redo my 1965 India-Pakistan project, this time using those bee-you-tee-ful 3D prints offered by Flight Deck Decals. I am focusing on just four plane types - F-86 Sabre, BAE Gnat, Hawker Hunter, and Dassault Mystère. This limited mix of planes will still allow me to put on a dozen scenarios from the SkirmishCampaigns Crisis in Kashmir book, the scenarios ranging from three to six players, some including missiles, which is an area of the rules I admittedly struggle with at times. This time around I will be painting the planes myself, as I have started to feel more confident in my skill at painting 1/285 scale aircraft. I do not add the bells and whistles, and will just focus on national insignia and fin flash, letting the quality of the Flight Deck prints stand out with a fairly minimalized approach.

Flight Deck of course delivered excellent customer service - I placed my order on a Sunday evening and had the miniatures by Saturday's post. I also picked up decals for the opposing sides - both national insignia (roundels) and fin flashes. Some pictures of the planes:

Mystère

Sabre

The pesky Gnat and the powerful Hunter

I will spray the planes with a coat of gray primer, then the Sabres, Mystères, and Gnats will be given a coat or two of Vallejo Air Aluminium - I prefer using their Air line as the metallic paints brush on very smoothly, even if a second coat is sometimes needed. The Hunter will be given a green/gray camouflaged upper with aluminum lower surfaces.