Hobby Master Archive

Hobby Master 1/48 Air Power Series HA7207 Grumman F9F-5 Panther VA-192, “Golden Dragon Squadron”

Die-cast metal with a minimum of plastic.

All markings pad applied for superb results.

Cockpit slides open.

Pilot figure.

Comes with display stand.

Landing gear is fully retractable and can be displayed up or down.

Wings can fold and unfold.

Extremely sought after by collectors.

Powered by a Rolls-Royce engine the first F9F flew in 1947. These new engines were fuel hungry and with no extra internal space permanent wing-tip tanks were added. These tanks also had the unexpected benefit of increasing the aircraft roll rate. In the Korean War the F9F was the primary USN aircraft for ground-attack and served with distinction. However it was realized that the Panther was inferior to the MiG aircraft so a swept-wing version was developed. The new aircraft retained the F9F designation and was called the Cougar.

VA-192 Squadron (Golden Dragons) saw several name changes over the years. Originally VF-153 in 1945 and VF-15A in November 1946 only to be renamed VF-151 in July 1948 and VF-192 in February 1950 with a final designation of VA-192 in 1956. While flying from the USS Oriskany the F9F-5 Panthers of the “Golden Dragons” took part in the filming of “Bridges At Toko Ri” and “The Men Of The Fighting Lady”. These movies brought the squadron much publicity so they became known as “The World Famous Golden Dragons” and added it to their newly designed patch. Later in 1956 the Dragons received the new swept-wing F9F-6 Cougar.

Specifications for the Grumman F9F-5 Panther Crew - (1) pilot Performance Engine - (1) Pratt & Whitney J48-P-4/P-6A turbojet @ 6,250 lb.s.t. Internal fuel capacity - 1,003 US gallons Maximum speed - 604 mph @ sea level, 579 mph @ 5,000 ft, 543 mph @ 3,500 ft Cruising speed - 481 mph Stalling speed - 132 mph Initial climb rate - 5,090 fpm Service ceiling - 42,800 ft. Range - 1,300 miles.

Dimensions Wingspan - 38 ft 0 in Length - 38 ft 10 1/2 in Height - 12 ft 4 in Wing area - 250 sq ft Weights Empty - 10,147 lbs Gross - 17,766 lbs Maximum takeoff - 18,721 lbs Armament (4) 20-mm cannon in the nose (8) Under wing hard points could accommodate up to 3,465 lbs. of bombs and rockets

Motto “Be Ready, Our Enemy Must Lose”