Trumpeter 1/35 CH-47 Diorama

By Craig Hartnett

This is my recently completed Chinook diorama. Some of you may have seen it already on a couple of other sites but for those who haven't I hope you enjoy.

This build took me 6 years and God knows how many hours and depicts an Australian CH-47D, A15-202 on the flightline of Kandahar in Afghanistan around 2009. The kit actually started off as an A-model but with extensive rework (as well as covering the entire exterior with archer rivets) it's something close to the set up we have when deployed. There is a full interior as well, with the cargo handling rollers, stretchers and ammunition bins for the mini-guns. The little "gator" vehicle was scratch built and I used Meng's excellent 1/35 "pickup" for the ops car and Italeri's tanker with a few details thrown in.

I certainly learned a lot from this build, least of all how seeing the subject every single day can actually be a bad thing, as I went a lot further with detailing then I ever initially planned. Oh well, in the end I'm pretty happy (not to mention relieved) that it is finished, and I'm currently in negotiations with the Australian War Memorial to have it on display as a permanent part of their Afghanistan exhibit they are in the process of planning. So if you're ever in Canberra, you may be able to see it for yourself one day!

I apologise for the quality of the photos, I'm certainly not the world's best photographer...


© Craig Hartnett 2013

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This article was published on Saturday, March 16 2013; Last modified on Wednesday, May 22 2013