FFVS J-22A

At the beginning of the Second World War, the Flygvapnet, or the Swedish Air Force, found itself in a very difficult position. The obsolete Gladiator fighter biplanes called for replacement by some more modern piece of equipment. The Sweden´s effort to solve this trouble by making a purchase abroad was only partially successful as because of the 1940 embargo, the US-made Seversky P-35A and Vultee Vanguard fighter planes could not have been delivered and Italian Fiat CR.32 and Reggiane Re.2000 machines were only kind of stop-gap measure. So the Swedish government took a decision not to rely on foreign supplies any more and commissioned a new and indigenous fighter machine to be built by FFVS´s (Royal Air Administration Aircraft Factory in Stockholm) team led by chief designer Bo Lundberg.

The first prototype J-22 aircraft took off for the first time on September 20, 1942 and the production airframes, known as the J-22A, saw service no later than the following year. Another version, designated as the J-22B, was later also produced. In total, the J-22 fighter saw service with seven Flygvapnet´s Air Wings and remained on active duty until 1952. Between 1943 and 1946, they were the backbone of the Swedish fighter forces until their replacement by more modern types such as were the propeller-driven SAAB J-21A and J-21R jet fighters and abroad-purchased P-51Ds and DH 100 Vampires.

The kit contains nicely detailed resin parts with a PE-fret, white metal undercarriage legs and a decal sheet with markings for two J-22A machines. One of them is adorned with white stripes on its fuselage and wings which were used to mark aircraft taking part in an military exercise. The other kit option is embelished with a unit´s badge in a form of a figure of the devil. The canopy is vacuum formed and the armoured glass situated in front of the pilot is made of clear resin.