A Close Save (Area 88)

The finished model:

The scene:

On Kanzaki’s last flight before becoming a full-fledged Yamato Airlines pilot, he’s forced to fly without the use of an auto-pilot. When the B747-200 he’s piloting strays slightly off course, he learns the need to be ever alert after a near collision with his former friend Shin’s F-5E Tiger II in a cloud bank over the Mediterranean.

Check out the original manga scene from Chapter 005 “The Crossing Point of Solitude” here:

The story:

Man, I’ve been wanting to tackle this part of my Area 88 1/144 project for a long time. I had a lot of trouble to get started though, because a) It’s such an iconic scene from the manga that I really wanted to do it justice, and b) it’s a 747!

Once I got over that hurdle though, I really was happy to dig into this one. I remember reading this chapter when if first came out (in English) in the 1980s. It’s early in the manga, so I couldn’t believe that Shin and Kanzaki would almost have a “mid-air reunion” or sorts so soon. At the time I can remember thinking… “He’s right there… so close! but yet, so far”. Which, I suppose, is exactly the sentiment that Shintani was trying to invoke. Well, it worked.

The other thing that I want to mention about this build is that it kind of supports my whole idea behind building in 1/144 scale. The B747-200 is big, even in 1/144 scale… it would be almost impossible to do in 1/72. However, being able to bridge the gap and get the F-5E into the scene really does allow you to get a true sense of the relative scale between the airplanes – and how close this encounter would have come to a total disaster in real life.

The kit(s):

- Boeing E-4B Airborne Command Post by Revell
- Northrop F-5E Tiger II by Revell
- Area 88 Shin Kazama with F-5E by Hasegawa (decals only)

The build:

As I mentioned, the real trick to this build was just getting my head wrapped around it. I was a bit intimidated by the size of the B-747, but luckily the kit (in the form of the E-4B Airborne Command Post) was easy enough to get. I also had my hands on the resin 1/12 Figure + 1/144 Aircraft release from Hasegawa, but I wanted to upgrade the F-5E kit from the one in the box (I think it’s an early Dragon tooling), so the very nice Revell kit did the trick. Luckily I still had the flaming unicorn mark decals to work with though.

There’s not much to say about the F-5E kit. It’s a beautifully detailed tiny little gem that comes together nicely. The paint scheme for Shin’s Tiger II is simple blue and white livery, so not a huge challenge on that part, and having the correct decals to use made that part of the build easy as pie.

The fit on the B747 was another story. I was prepared for some issues along the lengthy top seam – I’d already experienced that particular joy dealing with my DC-10 as part of the Upside Down Bomb project. But being prepared, and being able to do anything about it are too different stories. I did my best, but you can still see the phantom seam if you look for it. Oh, well.

I also spent a bit more time than usual on the lighting. I knew I wanted several… so there were the red/green wingtip lights, the white lights on the elevators, the wing tip/tail strobe lights, the upper and lower fuselage red lights, and the interior lights all to deal with. Because I didn’t want them all blinking in unison, I decided to write a short bit of code and apply an Arduino nano to control them. It worked well, except somewhere along the way the upper red light was somehow disconnected. Not much I could do about that once the fuselage was closed.

The paint scheme itself was relatively easy. White upper fuselage, aluminum lower fuselage, some darker metallic grey on the wings to give it some contrast, and some red cheat lines and we’re done.

I did get a bit greedy with the homemade decals for the tail emblem and the “Yamato Airlines” text along the fuselage. Luckily I got the near side ones (the side usually displayed) on on the first try, but on the other side they “weren’t quite right” so I made a bit of a mess of them fighting them into place. I really should’ve just left them alone, but at least it’s not THAT noticeable.

Anyway, I’m pretty satisfied with the result. I think it does justice to the dramatic little encounter story in the manga, and if nothing else, it sure lights up the room! Feel free to tell me what you think.