HOBBY MASTER AIR POWER SERIES

In 1952, then-Lieutenant Williams was serving with VF-781 aboard the USS Oriskany as part of Task Force 77. On 18 November 1952, on his second mission of the day, while on combat air patrol near Hoeryong, North Korea, his group of four pilots spotted seven MiG-15s overhead. The other three pilots had to return to the carrier and the MiGs began to fire on Williams, putting him into a one-man dogfight with seven MiG-15s that lasted 35 minutes. It is believed to be the longest dogfight in U.S. Navy history. Commanders on his carrier ordered him away, but Williams had to tell them that he was already fighting for his life. He shot down four of the MiGs and likely hit two others. By the end of the 35-minute period, only one of the MiGs was still in the air with him, and he managed to escape back to his carrier, out of ammunition and having lost his hydraulics. He was uninjured, but 263 holes were counted in his Panther jet. He never saw the plane again; reportedly, it was pushed into the sea.

Designed as a carrier borne jet fighter for the US Navy, the F9F was first flown on November 24th, 1947. During the Korean War, the Panther was the Navy's most heavily used jet fighter. It flew 78,000 sorties and was responsible for the first US Navy air to air kill of the conflict. The Panther's armament included four 20mm cannons and two bombs or an assortment of rockets. The wingtip fuel tanks and dark sea blue coloring made the aircraft extremely recognizable. The Panther was such a successful design that in 1949 it became the first jet flown by the "Blue Angels."

Hobby Master's 1:48 scale F9F Panther has been designed with almost no visible seams. It has a solid look with a nice, heavy feel. The highlight of this model is its solid metal folding wings, pull the wing away from the fuselage to reveal a robust metal hinge, then configure it in a folded position to view internal structural wing details. The flaps are movable, the metal tail hook is retractable and the wing tip fuel tanks are removable. The canopy slides open, revealing front and side instrument panels. A deployable speed brake is positioned behind the hinged metal nose gear, and the main gear is also hinged for easy display. A selection of appropriate wing-mounted ordnance is included with each release.

Info: Grumman F9F-5 Panther - USN VF-781 Pacemakers, White 106, Royce Williams, USS Oriskany, Korea, 1952