[kingpin]

Hello All

Here is what I was told a few minutes ago.

1st Century Wings F-8

VF-211 Fighting Checkmates

F-8E Crusader

NP100

1967

Unsure of shipping or actual release date as of yet...

Enjoy

Glen

[Louie]

Cool. Thanks buddy i hope someone will post some drawings or pics.

[kingpin]

I forgot pictures were not ready yet.
Maybe next week sometime

Glen

[PappyB]

This one perhaps?

[STARMAN 352ND]

Really....cool scheme...now the wait is over....or is it.....
Let make sure their flight suits are red too.
JP

[kb466]

Great news and a great scheme! I have found pictures of VF211 F-8's in the 1967 timeframe, but none of NP 100. I wonder if NP 100 looked different from the others, being a CAG bird. Does anyone know?

[David Hingtgen]

I think the pic posted above is a J model, can't be sure.

I can't find pics of NP100 either. No CAG plane was a MiG-killer, and most F-8 CAG's were no more colorful than the other planes (VF-24 and sometimes 111 being an exception). Don't know why this was chosen, VF-211 in 1967 was about the least-colorful 211 ever was. I'd love one of their J's, but their E's are IMHO the least interesting of 211's Crusaders. Unless the CAG was notably different from the line birds then.

I hope we don't see only/mostly CAG F-8's from Century, there's no point to them---they look the same as the others, and are not MiG-killers. Why have a CAG when you can have a plane that is otherwise identical, but also a MiG-killer?

::edit:: OK, found what I *think* is it. Looks just like its MiG-killing shipmates, no special CAG markings. And about as "plain" as VF-211 planes go. Again--why THAT one? (sorry, can't post a pic) It's kinda like the pic above, but the ventral fins are plain white, and no big red checkmark on the fin. A small red stripe across the top of the fin.

::edit 2:: Here's the best I can do:

[rdenham]

A ‘Fighting Checkmates’ is a nice choice I just wish it was this one with the kill markings.

Edit: The F-8 profiles are for a "F-8E MiG Killer, VF-211, CDR Paul Speer; F-8E, VMF(AW)235, Vietnamlace, Sept. 1966"

CDR Paul Speer shot down a MiG-17 on 5-19-1967 flying BuNo 15034

By the time of CDR Paul Speer's kill on 5-19-1967 VF-211 had made 5 kills plus another kill on the same day as Speer's; which could acount for the 6 kill markings on the plane in question.

[David Hingtgen]

Hmmmn. It COULD be the variant in your first pic---I was unaware the CAG did the "5 kill markings on the ventral fin" thing too, I thought only the actual MiG-killers got to do that, not the entire squadron. Though it kinda makes sense, some squadrons do show "total kills" on all their planes. But still---why do a plane that merely shows the kills, when you can have an identical one that actually GOT the kills it's displaying?

PS--I don't think either of those drawings are quite right. VF-211 couldn't have displayed six kill markings in 1966, they only had 3 at that point. And 149150/NP101 doesn't match up. NP101 is a MiG-killer of that time, but NP101 at that time wasn't 149150.

(All info based on "F-8 Crusader units of the Vietnam war" which is THE best book by far on F-8s and their kills)

[STARMAN 352ND]

I hope it looks like this one right here.......
JP


Well i see rdenham beat me to the picture with the kill flags on it...