Ronin Decals | RDS-143: RAAF OS2U-3 Kingfisher History 1942 - 1948
Reviewed by Tony Paton
"Unveiling the mystery of the RAAF OS2U-3 Kingfisher" are the words that greet you on the cover of Ronin Decals 1/32 Royal Australian Air Force Kingfisher limited edition decal sheet. I must confess the Kingfisher in Australian service is a mystery to me and its service is not widely known. The aircraft were originally destined for the Dutch East Indies in 1942 but after the Japanese invasion, the order was transferred to Australia. Eighteen aircraft were assembled and flown out of Flying boat base Rathmines, approx a 90-minute drive north of Sydney. Given the RAAF prefix A48, the aircraft served from 1942 to 1946 and mainly used in the anti-submarine role.
Designed for the newly released Kitty Hawk kit, the decals provide markings for all 18 aircraft in 10 different schemes. From the original US Navy Atlantic scheme as delivered to the fetching bright yellow example used in the Antarctic flights of the late 1940s with various camouflaged and natural metal finishes in between.
The decals themselves are silk screen printed and glossy. Three A5 sheets are provided with a small sheet providing four squadron shields which appear to be inkjet printed due to their complexity. White backgrounds are provided for these shields on one of the A5 sheets. One sheet provides all the A numbers and letter codes in black and grey. The second provides all the various roundels and fin flashes worn over the years with coloured prop tips also included. The last A5 sheet provides yellow stripes and light grey lettering. The decals look crisp and sharp on the sheet with no obvious flaws in the printing and colours in register. There also appears to be enough decals to make one of each scheme without the need to buy another set. Included with the decals are ten A4 sized colour placement diagrams dealing with each of the major schemes worn. There is also a key to advise as to which paint is required. Finally there is one A4 page with an explanation into some of the mysteries in relation to the colour schemes. The folks at Ronin decals appear to have done their homework but some conjecture remains as to what exactly was worn. This is probably due to the fact there is not a lot of decent material out there and trying to decipher colours from black and white pictures is not an exact art.
This sheet comes highly recommended for those who like large flying boat aircraft of something different in their collection. The sheet can be ordered online at their eBay store.
This review was originally published on the Modelling the RAAF, RAN and AAAvn Facebook group page, and is republished here with permission.
© Tony Paton 2016
This review was published on Sunday, February 28 2016; Last modified on Sunday, February 28 2016