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Introduction
The Grumman TBF Avenger was truly one of the greatest Naval aircraft of WWII. It was also used in a variety of roles, including torpedo bomber, straight and level bomber and even to a limited extent, a dive bomber. The Avenger was originally designed and built by Grumman, but as the war progressed, production was shifted to General Motors (designated TBM instead of TBF) so that Grumman could concentrate on building F6F Hellcats.
The Avenger entered service in 1942 and saw its combat debut in the Battle of Midway. It's debut combat record was inauspicious to say to the least. Five of the six Avengers which took part in the raid were lost. It, did however, go on to be the most widely used torpedo bomber of the war and was responsible for sinking 30 Japanese submarines and was instrumental in the sinking of the battleships Yamamoto and Musashi.
The Avenger was a large plane, in fact, the largest plane on aircraft carriers in WWII. It had a wingspan of just over 54 feet and a length of just over 40 feet. It had a crew of three; a pilot, turret gunner and radio operator/tail gunner/bombardier. It was armed with (3) .50 caliber machine guns, two controlled by the pilot and one by the ball turret gunner. A .30 caliber machine gun was used as a "stinger". It could also carry a wide ranger of munitions, including a homing torpedo, bombs, mines, HVAR rockets and depth charges. Later versions were also equipped with radar.
It underwent numerous modifications and different missions, including forest fire duty over the course of its career and actually remained in service until the 1960's. It was the aircraft flown by former President of the United States, George H.W Bush during WWII. It also served in the Atlantic Theatre fight German U-boats that were raiding cargo ships bound for Britain. Besides the US and Royal Navies, the Avenger was also flown by Brazil, Canada, Cuba, France, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand Nicaragua and Uruguay.
The Kit
Just as the Avenger was a very large aircraft, so is Trumpeter's 1/32 version of it. The kit comes in a very large and sturdy box, with a total of 17 light gray sprues containing 489 pieces. It also comes with a PE and 2 clear sprues. The detail is very sharp and the rivets and panel lines not overdone as had been the case on several previous Trumpeter offerings. The level of detail is outstanding, from the engine to the front and rear cockpits. This may be Trumpeter's best kit up to its date of release. Weapons included in the kit include bombs, torpedo, rockets and an auxillary fuel tank. Unfortunately, much of the extensive rear cockpit detail will be difficult to see once the model is "buttoned up". The cowling is molded in clear so engine detail can be visible.
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