The Joint Strike Fighter program started with a set of requirements for a tactical fighter that would meet the operational needs of the US Air Force, US Navy, and US Marine Corps using an airframe that maximized the number of common parts and thereby reduce development and maintenance costs. As with any ambitious program like this, the devil is in the details and as the program evolved, challenges arose. The first step in the program was to determine the best overall design and Boeing developed the X-32 that had, shall we say, a rather unique appearance. Lockheed Martin countered with the X-35 and this design would ultimately prevail. This victory made Lockheed Martin the only US company to produce the only two Generation Five fighters in US service - the F-22 Raptor and the F-35 Lightning II.

Academy has released the F-35A in 1/72 scale and this looks to be a nice kit. Molded in their multi-color plastic scheme, the kit is presented on two parts trees molded in dark gray styrene, two trees molded in light gray styrene, one tree molded in white styrene, one tree in black styrene, and one tree of clear parts (seven trees total).

Features:

• Precisely reproduced panel lines of upper and lower body
• Authentic markings for three versions included
• Positionable canopy, bay doors, and landing gear; Seated pilot figure also included
• A spot-on replica of its radar-evading stealth contours
• Positionable landing gear, canopy, and weapons bay doors
• Detailed cockpit instrumentation
• Nicely detailed cockpit and weapons bay
• Optional seated pilot with new virtual display helmet
• A complete arsenal of weapons
• Multi Color Parts (MCP) no painting needed

Specifications:

• Scale: 1:72
• Type: Aircraft Model

Please note: Plastic model kit requires glue and paint to complete (not included)