Bristol Beaufighter Mk.IC "Coastal Patrol"

This injection-moulded kit contains 53 parts and six clear parts (cockpit canopies, position lights etc.). A comprehensive instruction leaflet and a decal sheet are included. The rear side of the box now comprises the representation of a tarmac section of the airfield which can be cut out and used as a display base for the assembled model.

The Bristol Beaufighter was a British long-range heavy fighter, developed early in 1939 from the Beaufort torpedo bomber. It became an efficient night-fighter, employing the then novel AI radar. Following short-term development the first prototype flew in July 1939 and the first aeroplanes reached the squadrons in the summer of the next year.

The Beaufighter was a two-seat, twin engine, all-metal mid-wing cantilever monoplane, fitted with a retractable undercarriage. It was powered by two Hercules radial engines and the armament consisted of four cannons in the nose, four guns in the starboard wing and another two guns in the port wing.

The Beaufighter Mk.IF was destined for RAF Fighter Command units, while the Mk.IC, fitted with an additional radio and navigational equipment, was a dedicated long-range fighter for the Coastal Command. Total production of both variants reached 914 aircraft.

The Beaufighter had a long career and served in almost all theatres of war during the WWII, at first as a night fighter, then as a fighter-bomber and eventually being used as a torpedo-bomber.