Eurofighter Typhoon FGR.Mk 4 – ZK361,12 Sqn RAF/ Qatar Emiri Air Force, RAF Coningsby, England, 2020

Hobby Master 1/72 scale HA6650: Eurofighter Typhoon FGR.Mk 4 ZK361 of 12 Sqn RAF/ Qatar Emiri Air Force, RAF Coningsby, England, 2020. Production run of 700 models.

Length8.75 inches Wingspan 6 inches

The original No. 12 Squadron was formed in 1915. Between 1926 and 1931 they were equipped with the Fairey Fox bomber that had a very shiny cowling so they earned the nickname “Shiny Twelve”. Their fox head squadron badge also came from the Fox. In July 2018 No. 12 Squadron traded their Panavia Tornado GR4 for the Eurofighter Typhoon to become a joint RAF/Qatari Emri Air Force squadron tasked with training QEAF staff to be proficient when Qatar received their 24 Typhoons. Typhoon ZK361 was built in 2014 c/n BS122.

Designed as part of a co-operative effort by Germany, Italy and the UK to produce an air superiority fighter, the Eurofighter was first flown on March 27th, 1994. The Eurofighter is a single-seat, twin-engine, agile combat aircraft used in air-to-air, air-to-ground and tactical reconnaissance roles. It is intentionally aerodynamically unstable, which gives it its high levels of agility-but this means the Typhoon is controlled by a computerized “fly by wire” system instead of by its pilot. The Eurofighter’s first rate performance is matched by excellent all round vision and by sophisticated attack, identification and defense systems and stealth technology.