This is the wonderful 1/48 scale Sea Vixen kit from Airfix. The aeroplane featured was flown by the last person to fly a Sea Vixen who also flew them operationally. It’s a great kit with very good detail, excellent fit and a good range of options for folded wings etc.

I always love an aircraft with a twin boom – and the Sea Vixen is one of the most interesting, iconic and beautiful. The original DH110 looked set for greatness with the RAF, but was tragically forever associated with the horrific accident at the 1952 Farnborough Air Show where the prototype was diving at supersonic speeds to thrill spectators with a sonic boom, but broke up on approach, ploughing both Avon 208 turbojet engines into the crowd killing 29 and injuring many more. It’s hard to believe in today’s risk-averse society, but once the injured and dead had been taken away, the afternoon’s flying continued.

Following this, the DH110 was strengthened and some areas redesigned, but the RAF had lost interest (choosing the Gloster Javelin instead) and the aeroplane was repurposed for the Royal Navy and the Sea Vixen was born.