AIRFIX 1:72 FAIREY ROTODYNE

Reviewer: Richard Stracey (rec.models.scale)
Kit Review submitted: 9 May 2002
Model image submitted by Richard Stracey

AIRFIX 04002 1/72 FAIREY ROTODYNE

Aircraft:
History is littered with incompetent and stupid political politicians and political decisions, never more so than in aviation. Just look at the Canadian government’s destruction of (perhaps) the greatest interceptor of all time, the Avro Arrow and with it the destruction of the Canadian aircraft industry. Britain did the same with the (perhaps) greatest strike aircraft, the TSR2, the infamous April 1957 White Paper and forced amalgamation of the aircraft industry.

The Fairey Rotodyne, having first flown in on 6^th Nov.1957 was, unfortunately, born right in the middle of this chaos. After the war Bristol, Saunders Roe, Cierva, Westland and Fairey were all involved in Helicopter development. Fairey was interested in torqueless rotors which meant the tail rotor could be dispensed with. Their Gyrodyne, with pressurejet units at the rotor tips took the helicopter world speed record in June 1948 at 124 mph. This led to the Rotodyne “Y” XE521 that was the prototype for the much larger proposed Rotodyne “Z”. There was tremendous interest in the concept, especially from the USA and Japan. Due to the British government the idea was allowed to die and the project was finally cancelled in Feb.1962. The Americans are still battling with the crazy and lethal Osprey. The tragedy is that by now , with development, the Rotodyne would be a commercial success to compare with the DC3, 737 and 747. It was powered by two Napier Eland turboprops and had a wingspan of 46’ 6”, length of 58’ 8” and a rotor diameter of 90’!

The Kit:
Many moons ago when Airfix was a dynamic, switched on company they had a policy of delivering an exciting Christmas present to the aeromodellers each year. For 1959, and at the very reasonable price of six shillings (UK), they delivered the Rotodyne. I have never seen either but Frog made a Rotodyne in 1/72 and Revell in 1/78. This kit consists of over one hundred parts including two pilots and twenty one transparencies and, in the original issue, a stand. The box art is by Roy Cross and shows the machine over London. The later release comes, for some reason, in a box 50% larger! Normally I don’t bother to comment on flash but do feel that Airfix could have done a little “housekeeping” on the dies as the flash, ejector pin marks and surface damage is quite extensive in the re release.

Construction:
The cockpit floor requires the console boxing in with plastic card and holes drilling for the joysticks. I added seatbelts but, surprisingly, not much can be seen when complete. The dashboard and console are in decal form. Other than the cockpit no interior is supplied so I simply painted the interior matt dark grey. Prior to assembly and fitting the twenty windows I sprayed the fuselage white. This resulted in a problem later. The only difference between issues is the decals but in both cases it would be better to paint the window openings in French Blue prior to fitting the transparencies.

Considering that the dies are over forty years old the surface detail is good and fit of parts, not bad. I glued the rotor shaft (49) to the fuselage so that the 15” dia. rotor could be removed for storage or transport. I also replaced the tail struts (58 & 67) with Contrail Aerofoil as the kit ones were a bit “chunky”. The undercarriage was designed to retract but I glued them firmly down and the rear clamshell doors are openable but with rather overscaled hinges. The side door complete with air-stairs can be glued open but in both cases there would be nothing to see inside. The main feature of the machine, as depicted by the decal option, which Airfix hasn’t supplied is the large 6’ long pitot tube. To be strictly accurate, if the model is to be depicted on the ground, the upper fins should be hinged down to clear the rotors.

Versions & Decals:
The colours are simple in French Blue, White and Aluminium. My problem lay with the decals. I couldn’t find any pictures of XE 521 as depicted by Airfix”s decals. Finally I found a picture in Flying Review of Nov.1958 confirming the marking/colour scheme supposedly at Farnborough Air Show 1958. As with all prototypes the colours, fittings and details changed quite often. As mentioned earlier the decals have been changed in the re release in that the blue fuselage decal is complete rather than having to paint it with only the blue/white pinstripes being provided. The blue nose , however, still needs painting. She is a bit of a “tail sitter” so some weights are needed either at the front of the main cabin or in the side of the nosewheel bay.

Reference:
The latest release was reviewed in Scale Aircraft Modelling of August 1996. Aeroplane Monthly of Jan.2000 provides interesting information, cutaway drawing and photos. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft V8 p.1718 also covers it.

Overall:
In conclusion, a nice kit of a fantastic aircraft which should have been a world beater. For those who like “what if”, how about a Rotodyne in Pan Am, JAL, BEA, Sabina, Lufthansa, RAF, or US Marine markings?

Related Reviews:-

Airfix 1/72 Fairey Rotodyne (Pete Noyle) | (Michael Johnson)

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