Tamiya Gloster Meteor F.3 Bill C Build 1:48 – build review

Short Feature Article with Bill Clark

Just before we get into this very short feature, here’s a look at how it all turned out…

Also, you may have spotted that Geoff C has also built this kit in a different scheme: Royal Air Force- 2nd Tactical Air Force, 1943-1945. A white-painted Gloster Meteor F Mark III of No. 616 Squadron RAF Detachment, at B58/Melsbroek, Belgium. A flight of Meteors was detached from 616 Squadron to 2nd TAF to provide air defence against the Messerschmitt Me 262, being joined by the whole Squadron in March 1945. During the initial deployment, the Meteors were painted white to aid identification by other Allied aircraft.

Tamiya’s Meteor F3 is an excellent kit. Fit of parts is superb, as is to be expected. Quite a simple kit, typical of kits of that era, unlike the more involved Airfix F8 for example.

I decided to build and finish mine in a post-war scheme of overall Aluminium paint, rather than the camouflaged version, or overall white. This aircraft had been passed on to the ‘weekend warriors’ of No.500 (County of Kent) Sqn. RAuxAF based at RAF West Malling ca. 1949.

The Squadron was reformed again on 10 May 1946 at RAF West Malling, equipped with Mosquito NF.19s and later NF.30s, as a night fighter squadron in the Royal Auxiliary Air Force. Later, following an Air Ministry decision to convert all RAuxAF units to day fighter roles, the squadron became equipped with Meteor F.3s. The squadron disbanded finally on 10 March 1957, along with all other flying squadrons of the RAuxAF.

The blue tail band and numeral ‘I’ was applied for exercise purposes.

The build…