Starter Set range gains beautiful new P-51D Mustang

Welcome to this latest edition of our Workbench blog and all the news, updates and modelling exclusives from the fascinating world of Airfix.

As we embark on a new year of posting our weekly Workbench project update blogs, we are already looking at a punishing schedule of subjects to bring our readers and now only have 48 weeks left to do so. Returning once more to the subject of recently announced new tooling additions to the 2024 kit range, we have another very special project exclusive for you this week, and the latest in our popular series of designer interviews. This time, we will be immersing ourselves in the world of new Starter Set kit design and the latest new tooling addition to a series of scale model kits which have a particularly important role to play in the future of our hobby - please join us as we place the iconic North American P-51D Mustang under the Workbench spotlight.

Unquestionably one of the most important fighter aircraft of the Second World War and one which has attracted many accolades over the years, including being called 'America's Spitfire', we will not only be seeing why the Mustang continues to captivate modellers and model manufacturers alike, but also how in this particular guise, our latest P-51 kit project brought with it a very specific set of design challenges. Benefitting from the input of the new kit's talented designer Ethan Barker, we will be allowed exclusive access to this project, as we follow it from the very beginning, right through to receiving first test frames and the signing off of the tooling design, with a fascinating selection of imagery included to highlight many of the design points raised.

If last week was all about America's most heavily produced four engined heavy bomber from the Second World War, this latest update features its most capable 'Little Friend' in scale form, an aircraft which finally enabled Allied Air Forces to claim air superiority over Europe.

North American's Mustang - A fighting thoroughbred

Unmistakably a P-51D Mustang, this design screenshot shows the new 1/72nd scale Starter Set kit, complete with its distinctive shadow stand. 

When it comes to the world of aviation, surely very few people will not have heard of the North American P-51 Mustang and the impact this magnificent aircraft had on the Second World War. Having said that, a great number of people would probably be surprised to learn that this American classic owes its very existence to a British requirement to secure additional aircraft for their war effort and later, a British invention which unlocked its operational potential. 

Although not actively participating in WWII during the late 1930s, America passed a significant amendment to their Neutrality Act, which allowed warring nations to purchase military equipment if they were prepared to pay for them and transport them on their own ships, at their own risk, a move which clearly favoured Britain and France. With a desperate need to obtain more fighter aircraft to take the pressure off indigenous manufacturing companies already working at maximum capacity, the British Purchasing Commission approached the Curtiss-Wright Company to supply Britain with hundreds of P-40 fighters. Unfortunately, as they were already working at maximum capacity on existing USAAF contracts themselves, they approached the relatively new and at that time, underused North American Aviation to see if they would be interested in building the P-40 under licence.

In an unexpectedly bold move, North American said they could produce a new, better fighter than the P-40 and crucially, that it would be ready for evaluation in a shorter amount of time than it would take them to establish Curtiss production lines in their facility. As the British were looking for a capable fighter to take on the Luftwaffe, they clearly had some reservations, particularly as North American had never previously designed or built a fighter aircraft and this project would probably not have got off the ground, had their position not been so desperate. As it was, they agreed to the proposal and hoped that they would still be in the war when the new aircraft was finally ready to take to the air.

Repaying the (blind) faith the British placed in North American Aviation, what their design team achieved was nothing short of miraculous and even though their impressive new aircraft incorporated a host of advanced new features, their prototype aircraft (NA-73X) was rolled out on 9th September 1940, only 120 days after the production contract had been signed. The aircraft was powered by the same Allison V-1710 engine used by the Curtiss P-40 and if the potential of an aircraft went hand in glove with it's appearance, the new fighter was destined for great things.

The first flight of the new fighter took place 47 days after it was first unveiled and other than the usual issues associated with the first flight of a new aircraft type, it immediately showed great promise and was clear vindication of the confidence North American Aviation had in their design and manufacturing capabilities. Rather than this being nothing more than an impressive stopgap first attempt at producing a fighter aircraft in record time, what they had actually produced was a thoroughbred fighting aeroplane, one which although they didn't know it at the time, would go on to be a war winner.

Such a classic shape, the Mustang may have started its life with a request to build Curtiss P-40 fighters for Britain, but would become one of the most famous fighting aeroplanes in the history of aviation.

Once in Royal Air Force service, Britain would give the Mustang its combat debut in the European theatre, with the first aircraft arriving in the UK during October 1941 and after work up, seeing operational service from early the following year. These first machines were powered by the tried and trusted Allison V-1710 V-12 liquid cooled engine and whilst perfectly adequate for low and medium altitude operations, the lack of a supercharger did affect its performance at higher altitudes, therefore restricting its effectiveness as a fighter. Whilst the Mustang found plenty of roles to perform, these were predominantly at lower altitudes and usually in ground attack/support roles, however, pilots were extremely complimentary about the aircraft and just had a feeling that it was capable of much more.

When it comes to looking at the development history of the Mustang, everything appeared to happen very quickly and there was always an element of 'opportunity' about pivotal situations, and that was certainly the case when it came to unlocking its true potential. As the capable new aircraft continued to be operated by several development units in Britain and more pilots had the opportunity to fly it, one Rolls Royce test pilot who was impressed with its handling broached the subject of installing the latest variant of the Rolls Royce engine in the aircraft with his superiors. Was the performance of this magnificent aircraft capable of being improved still further?

In August 1942, the Mustang X program saw several Mustang airframes experimentally fitted with Rolls Royce Merlin 61 two speed, two stage supercharged engines and the results were nothing short of spectacular. In this configuration, the Mustang was capable of achieving an impressive 441mph at 29,800ft, a speed which was approximately 100mph faster than the Allison powered Mustang I at the same altitude, a truly spectacular improvement. The magnificent Mustang had just been given its fighting wings!

News of this development was immediately shared with officials at the North American Corporation and a programme put in place to have the Packard Motor Car Company produce licence built Merlin engines in the US. Developed further, the latest variant of the Mustang would be produced with Packard Merlin powerplants, with aircraft carrying the P-51B designation being produced at Inglewood, California, whilst those referred to as P-51C variants being almost identical, but produced in Dallas, Texas.

The combination of the Mustang's advanced laminar flow airframe, excellent overall design and new Packard Merlin engine transformed what was always a promising fighter into a world-beater, one which was destined to have a dramatic impact on the course of the Second World War.

The new Merlin powered P-51B Mustang entered service in the European Theatre from December 1943 and immediately presented Allied commanders with an aircraft with which to clear the skies of Luftwaffe aircraft in advance of the proposed Normandy landings. Equipped with new lightweight external drop tanks, USAAF daylight bombing raids could now be supported by fighter protection all the way to their targets and should the Luftwaffe dare to put in an appearance, Mustang pilots were only too happy to show them what their impressive fighter could do. 

Is it any wonder we love a Mustang! This artwork, produced for the latest 1/48th scale kit release, shows how this magnificent aircraft even became the nemesis of the world's first operational jet fighter.

Despite the fact that USAAF Packard Merlin powered Mustang fighters only made their European combat debut at the end of 1943, constant development of the aircraft and a desire to produce the best fighting aeroplane of the war by listening to the combat experiences of pilots in the field quickly led to the introduction of arguably the definitive variant of the Mustang, the P-51D. Working closely with combat units and listening to the combat experiences of pilots flying the existing B/C variant, the already impressive credentials of the Mustang were further refined in an attempt to hammer home its superiority in European skies. One of the main concerns pilots had related to the relatively poor field of view from the framed canopy of the first aircraft and as any fighter pilot will tell you, in combat, vision is everything.

The new aircraft benefitted from a host of improvements, which crucially included better visibility for the pilot, increased range and more firepower, in an attempt to make the Mustang an even more capable fighting aeroplane. With ever greater numbers of Mustangs filling the skies over enemy occupied Europe, it's interesting to consider that the 'D' variant of the Mustang was only in combat service for just about twelve months before the war in Europe ended, however, it would make a massive contribution towards securing air superiority for the Allies at that crucial stage of the conflict.

The impact of the P-51 Mustang is probably best described by former pilots and military historians, many of whom share the same opinion. When it comes to analysing the European Air War during WWII, there is the period prior to the introduction of the Mustang and the period after, so different were the fortunes of the Allied air forces during both those periods of aerial combat.

A scale Mustang for the modelling masses

An absolutely fascinating image where Ethan has attempted to show us how he managed to import reference information from the two existing P-51D Mustang projects as he worked on his new Starter Set. 

As you might imagine for an aircraft of this pedigree, the modelling world has long considered the Mustang as a subject heavyweight and in that regard, Airfix have always been staunch supporters. In fact, over the years, it could be argued that Airfix designers have had an infatuation with the magnificent Mustang, one which extends back to our very first 1/72nd scale kit release in 1958, the start of a long and successful association between the two.

Currently, we have Mustang model kits in almost every range in our 2024 collection and if you find yourself with a desire to build a Mustang model, you have plenty of options available to you. We have Mustangs available in our Quickbuild range and in all our traditional construction kit ranges, including examples in 1/72nd, 1/48th and 1/24th scales - we really do love a Mustang!

The enduring popularity of the P-51 Mustang still shows absolutely no sign of abating any time soon, so we are therefore delighted to announce that the 2024 range includes our latest scale tribute to this magnificent aircraft, one which has a particularly important role to perform in the future of the wider modelling hobby. Over the past couple of years, Workbench readers have been the first to discover the design ethos behind our new series of Starter Set kits, an impressive range of kits which has grown significantly across recent ranges and can now boast the impending addition of a new Mustang.

Thankfully, when comes to the subject of introducing an important new kit to the Airfix range, we are in position A1 when it comes to being granted exclusive access to the designer responsible for the project and this new Mustang is no exception. Fresh from his success with the new Ferret Scout Car Mk.2 and Land Rover Series 1 Pick-up kits, designer Ethan Barker was only too pleased to spend some time with us to discuss his latest design project, sending us a fascinating selection of imagery to illustrate the points he is about to raise. Thanks to Ethan, we are about to learn about the finer point of designing a kit which will surely be amongst the most popular subjects with modellers of all ages and abilities for many years to come, our new 1/72nd scale North American P-51D Mustang Starter Set.

With so many previous Mustang tooling projects in the Airfix design archives already, we were interested to find out what information Ethan was presented with at the outset of this project and specifically, if he was able to use any existing design data?

Scaling and moving CAD data from the 1/48th scale P-51D Mustang design files.

As we have covered the design of our new series of Starter Set kits in some detail within Workbench over the past couple of years, we had something of a preconceived idea of what Ethan's answer might be, but as is often the case, we were a little wide of the mark on that score. He informed us that he had full access to the design data from both the classic 1/72nd scale Mustang tooling and the more recent 1/48th scale project and whilst neither would be used as the basis for this new project in their entirety, both did play their part in designing the new Starter Set kit.

Workbench regulars will be familiar with the design ethos behind our new range of Starter Set kits, with ease of construction being the primary consideration, however, Airfix subject accuracy and authenticity is never compromised when it comes to these kits, as they must always build into an appealing representation of the subject which inspired their range inclusion. As Ethan was describing this to us, he was sharing his screen to show us how he was able to import elements of both the existing 1/72nd and 1/48th scale Mustang kits into his latest design files, taking some features of both, even though they required significant re-working.

Shape and dimension details could be checked using this method and where appropriate, design elements could be imported and refined for this new project, even though Ethan was keen to stress that anything he did take would be the subject of a great many design modifications. Clearly, as the design of a new Starter Set is very different to that of a traditional kit, Ethan will instinctively know what he can and can't use from these existing files, but help is at hand, why not use it.

As he enthusiastically explained how he managed to pull information from the previous two Mustang design incarnations, the screenshots he was sharing just looked so complicated, with components in both 1/48th and two different 1/72nd scale projects on screen, we didn't have a clue what on earth was going on, but thankfully, Ethan was all over it. In situations like these, we find it's always better to leave this kind of work to the experts!

Ethan has entitled this images as 'References Above' and whilst it will be extremely familiar to him and the rest of the design team, it's pretty mind-blowing for we mere mortals. 

It was truly fascinating to see how aspects of both existing design projects could play a part in Ethan's new Mustang design, even though these mature projects still required extensive design modification before they could be used in the early design phase of this impressive new Starter Set. To summarise the situation, Ethan described how the design tools available to the Airfix team are incredibly powerful and improving in capability all the time, so when this is combined with other industry advancements and the designer gaining in experience, each new project genuinely offers plenty of scope for innovation and improvement. 

Are there any specific design compromises or considerations which must be embraced when working on a new Starter Set projects, as opposed to designing a more traditional classic Airfix kit?

Ethan told us that even though this new design was the latest addition to the new style of Starter Set kit range and therefore was required to be easier to build, there is never any compromise made on accuracy or authenticity, because when the model's assembled, it must be able to hold its own within any collection of built models. Comparing its design directly against that of the existing 1/72nd scale Mustang kit, the new Starter Set had to have less parts and be easier to assemble, almost intuitive, as it's aimed at a younger, less experienced and potentially first time modeller. To illustrate this point, Ethan informed us that the existing 1/72nd scale Mustang kit has 53 parts, whilst his new Starter Set has just 31 and two of those make up the new shadow stand.

The skill needed on projects such as this is how you split your parts in design, making them more robust, easier to assemble and combining smaller components into the design of larger ones - there can be no confusing or complicated assembly stages with these kits. Having recently completed the Land Rover Series 1 Pickup Starter Set, Ethan was already in the zone when it came to the Mustang project and was determined to make his mark with this iconic subject.

Cross section image showing cockpit detail and how the newly designed cockpit canopy locks into place without the need for glue.

Design innovation - Ethan was able to design the Mustang's bubble canopy to fit securely without the need to use any glue. 

With regard to designing the kit to be an easier to build modelling experience, Ethan knew instinctively which areas he would need to focus his attentions on, namely the canopy of the Mustang and the propeller assembly. Both of these features of a standard kit often pose problems for the less experienced modeller and if the new kit was to be deemed a success, both would have to incorporate some clever design. The canopy in particular required some thought and a bit of design innovation, because if Ethan was going to save the novice modeller from the distress of ruining his beautiful new Mustang by getting poly cement all over its canopy, then he was certainly going to do that.

In order to overcome the potential problem of over-enthusiastic application of glue, Ethan decided that no glue was going to be needed on his Mustang canopy and instead, designed it to use a locating lug at the windscreen end to hold it in the correct position, locking it into place by use of a ridged pin under the rear edge of the clear part. In addition to this, he also modified the design of the propellor components, another area where the inadvertent application of glue can prevent this most distinctive of features from rotating as intended.

Both of these design features required quite an amount of testing during the design phase, just to ensure everything worked as Ethan had intended and just as we discovered last week whilst looking at the design of the new B-24 Liberator, the in-house Airfix 3D printer came in handy for this. 

Is the split of parts when designing a new Starter Set much different to how a classic kit would be designed?

More Mustang design innovation. The first image shows how Ethan adapted the propeller assembly to make it more appropriate for a Starter Set kit, with the original design on the left and the new assembly cross-section to the right.

This image shows how Ethan modified the wing to be a single piece unit, as opposed to the separate two piece design on the existing 1/72nd scale Mustang kit.

Modified main undercarriage design, with the set on the right hand side being slightly thicker and therefore more robust.

Very much linked to what has already been covered, Ethan told us that the design of a Starter Set is all about ease of assembly and when combined with a significantly lower part count, these are the most important considerations a designer must adhere to. Whilst both share the same exterior shape and detail accuracy, and both would look equally appealing if displayed next to each other, getting to that finished model displaying stage has to be achieved in a simpler, quicker and less challenging manner. 

Reducing the number of parts has the impact of forcing a designer to incorporate the smaller parts associated with a standard kit into larger designs, something which more often than not will see things like separate flaps, aileron and rudder pieces becoming part of the much larger wing and fuselage components. With his new canopy and propeller designs, Ethan was also able to include more accurate shape and general detailing into this latest Airfix incarnation of the Mustang, something which reflects both advancements in the industry and his own design skillset, because as we all know only too well, there's no substitute for experience.

Ethan's work in the new Mustang tooling included redesigning the upper nose cowling section, the tail and rudder, and completely redesigning the main undercarriage legs, in addition to exchanging the two part top wing components of the existing Mustang tooling for an impressive new single piece unit, one which includes strategically placed strengthening pieces to provide the strength integrity the kit required. Both the cockpit section and wheel bays retain impressive levels of detail and whilst this new kit may be easier to build than its 1/72nd scale predecessor, it's still 100% a North American P-51D Mustang.

The next question we put to Ethan was that from a design perspective, which aspects of your design work on this new Mustang project are you most pleased with and what to do think people building the kit will appreciate most?

Ethan sent this next series of images to try and help us visualise how he managed to build up the detail on his new P-51D Mustang design project with a combination of existing 1/72nd and 1/48th scale Mustang CAD files and the many areas he designed from scratch. This one references the existing 1/72nd scale CAD.

In this screenshot, Ethan has added the 1/48th scale Mustang CAD.

Scaling the 1/48th scale Mustang CAD.

Starting work on the new kit's main starboard fuselage half.

In replying, Ethan was keen to impress on us here that whilst it might not initially appear to be the case, due to the images we included earlier, showing how he was able to import details of both the existing 1/72nd and 1/48th scale Mustang design projects, this new kit has plenty of new design elements in it and was actually quite a challenging project to work on. Whilst he was showing us his design files, a column down the left hand margin of his screen displayed a log of actions associated with each design overview and if we told you there were hundreds of them, we wouldn't be exaggerating.

Not only did Ethan incorporate design innovation with his new canopy and propeller designs, he also took the opportunity to include more surface detailing into his design, making this much closer to a reduced 1/48th scale P-51D than just a simple transfer of details from its 1/72nd scale cousin. He described the two earlier projects as almost serving as his design skeleton for the new Starter Set project and even though he had access to all that data, they were mainly only used as points of reference for this new design project.

A new Airfix Starter Set isn't just for the novice modeller

When it comes to our new range of Starter Set kits, the design ethos is very much geared towards simplification, the amalgamation of smaller parts and ensuring the overall assembly process is as easy and enjoyable as possible for the modeller. We want the build experience of any modeller to be a positive one, intuitive and enjoyable, leaving them flushed with their success and keen to have another go at building a kit. Significantly, every time they look at their new model sitting on a shelf, or in a display cabinet, we went them to think that it looks great and despite their lack of modelling experience, how they've produced a really nice looking model.

The same fuselage half images as shown above, but this time including where Ethan's design changed the nose and canopy of the new kit.

The Mustang's new nose starts to take shape.

Updated nose and tail design information.

Ready for action, the final design of the new Starter Set P-51D Mustang's starboard fuselage.

On this new Mustang, the major components all include parts which would have been designed separately on a traditional kit, such as the flaps and ailerons now being part of a single piece wing and the engine cowling and rudder all part of very complete fuselage halves. In addition to the canopy and propeller design, Ethan also worked hard on the main undercarriage legs, making these components stronger to cope with inexperienced fingers and completely redesigning the location points these components were anchored to. This was all done to provide the modeller a sense of reassurance throughout the build process and the confidence that what they were doing was right.

In summary, Ethan described how from a designer's perspective, you have to prepare yourself in a different creative mindset when taking on a new Starter Set project, because it really can be the inverse of how you might approach a traditional kit design. Rather than designing a kit with a multitude of smaller, detailed parts for assembly in a highly detailed enthusiast kit such as the Ferret Scout Car, a Starter Set is all about simplification and a minimum of parts, even though both must share the same goals of authenticity and accuracy. 

Ethan is always happy to supply us with images of the tooling blocks produced from his design files, because he knows just how effectively they complete these project overview features. We must say that his new Mustang kit looks magnificent! 

The ideal outcome of all this work would be for the novice modeller to enjoy his first build experience with the Starter Set Mustang so much that they stay with the hobby, take on more projects, gaining skills and experience along the way. Before long, they will be ready to take on something like the Ferret and at that stage, the modelling world really is their hobby oyster.

In Ethan's opinion, taking that first plunge into scale plastic modelling might be quite a daunting prospect for some and if he can help alleviate some of those initial trepidations through design, then he might have done something really worthwhile. For those modelling for the very first time, or perhaps coming back to the hobby after something of an extended sabbatical, that first experience is really important and if they remember it as being enjoyable and in no way frustrating, then we're in with a chance that they might come back for more.

That's not to say that any build experience shouldn't be a bit of a challenge, because we all enjoy the feeling of having achieved something, but it is important that every time you look at your completed P-51D Mustang, it really does look the part and can hold its own amongst any collection of built models.

Marvellous Mustangs

Design reference information shown from above - how on earth did Ethan negotiate his way through all this to create a simplified kit of the P-51D Mustang?

As far as modelling subject matter goes, the North American P-51D Mustang really is a stunner and as our new concept in Starter Set kits might be designed with the novice modeller in mind, they are certainly not exclusively for their consideration and will definitely appeal to a much wider modelling audience. For some modellers, the painting and finishing of their models is more important than the thrill of the build and for them, these new Starter Set kits are perfect, beautiful scale representations of the subject matter, but ones which can be built in no time at all.

Taking the Mustang as our illustrator, if we happened to be a Mustang fanatic or someone interested in Eighth Air Force fighter operations during the Second World War, you might decide to produce several model representations of the 352nd Fighter Group Mustangs which operated out of Bodney during the latter stages of WWII. You could quickly assemble the number of Starter Set Mustangs you required, before going on to present them in all their blue nose glory, because as we all know, one of the most appealing things about US aircraft of the Second World War is how attractively they were presented. Surely, this is a subject which was responsible for getting many of us hooked on modelling in the first place. 

Whatever your reason might be for building Ethan's new 1/72nd scale North American P-51D Mustang Starter Set kit, he really hopes that you will enjoy the experience and with this growing range now boasting quite a collection of appealing kits, including a fantastic collection of classic WWII fighters, there really is no excuse for not taking that first exciting plunge into the world of modelling.

A thing of beauty, Ethan's new P-51D Mustang Starter Set kit is destined to be an Airfix favourite for many years to come.

Did we mention that as of range launch this year, the Starter Set collection also includes a new Messerschmitt Bf 109F kit now? Well, we just had to include an aircraft to shoot at all those Spitfires and Mustangs, didn't we - we will have much more about this new Starter Set project in a forthcoming edition of Workbench.

For now though, we would like to take this opportunity to thank Ethan for giving us this fascinating insight into his recent Mustang Starter Set design project and particularly for supplying us with such an engaging selection of images with which to illustrate the feature, images which were taken straight from his work computer. We are certain to be back speaking with Ethan on another of his design projects in the very near future, but for now, thank you so much for your help.

We are afraid that's all we have for you in this latest edition, but we will be back next Friday with more project development updates and the very latest Airfix kit exclusives. In the meantime, we are always keen to hear your views on all things Airfix and in particular, any thoughts and opinions you may have regarding our Workbench blog. If you would like to drop us a quick line, could we please ask that you use our workbench@airfix.com email for all correspondence. 

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