Author Archives: atcDave

About atcDave

I'm 5o-something years old and live in Ypsilanti, Michigan. I'm happily married to Jodie. I was an air traffic controller for 33 years and recently retired; grew up in the Chicago area, and am still a fanatic for pizza and the Chicago Bears. My main interest is military history, and my related hobbies include scale model building and strategy games.

A Little Refresh

I’d been wanting to tidy my space for a few months. It had gotten dirty and disorganized. So here is my little clean-up. Some new shelves, more paint racks,. But mostly just rearranging. After 5 years I had some ideas … Continue reading

Posted in Administrative | 4 Comments

Theme Build 5 – Complete

Spitfire That took a lot longer than expected! As I mentioned at the start, the Eduard kit all of these planes were built from, is an involved and sometimes tricky build. Combine that with a few busy months and this … Continue reading

Posted in Theme Build | 8 Comments

Supermarine Spitfire Mk XVIe

A different look appeared for the last Merlin Engined Spitfire produced during the War. Let’s take a brief look at the end of the line.

Posted in Britain, Fighter, New Zealand | Tagged , , | 10 Comments

Curtiss Tomahawk Mk IIb

Here’s a type we all know well. Right? Let’s take a look at a familiar type, that gets more than a little confusing in knowing where it actually fits into the grand scheme of things!

Posted in Britain, Fighter, USA | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Messerschmitt Bf 110C

The first major production of Messerschmitt’s famous “Zerstorer” was in extensive use from the start of the War. Let’s look at an example that fell, along with the type’s reputation, during the Battle of Britain.

Posted in Fighter, Germany | Tagged , , | 20 Comments

Mitsubishi A6M3a Model 22 Zero

The greater Solomons Campaign extended from the final securing of Guadalcanal in February 1943 until the major Japanese base at Rabaul was isolated and reduced to impotence in early 1944. Arguably even longer, fighting continued on several of the islands … Continue reading

Posted in Fighter, Japan | Tagged , , | 8 Comments

OptiVisor

I’m not normally big on product placement or advertising, but I did want to mention this new gadget. And no, it’s not really new! The product has been around for so many years it has number of copy-cats, some are … Continue reading

Posted in Miscellaneous | 17 Comments

Supermarine Spitfire Mk XVIe

The final Merlin-engined Mark of Supermarine’s famous product entered service in October 1944 and remained in service until well into the post-War period. Let’s look at a late War Spitfire.

Posted in Britain, Canada, Fighter | Tagged , , | 14 Comments

Vought F4U-1a Corsair

I imagine this type needs little introduction. Let’s take a look at a Corsair flown by the type’s most famous pilot.

Posted in Fighter, USA | Tagged , , | 19 Comments

Lockheed P-38J Lightning

Perhaps the single most famous P-38 of all time. Let’s take a look at a Lightning flown by the top US ace of all time.

Posted in Fighter, USA | Tagged , , | 13 Comments