1/72 Mitsubishi A7M2 Reppu Type 11 (Sam)

Designed to be the ultimate successor to the Zero, the Reppu held lots of promise and pilots commented favorably on the plane in trials. But poor engine performance, a major earthquake, and of course, B-29 bombing raids combined to prevent the plane from ever seeing full production before the conflict ended (three prototypes survived the war). Get a feel for what US Navy pilots may have been facing if history had turned out a bit differently...

This earlier release by Fine Molds is now available again. A few soft spots in some details, and a bit of flash on some parts, but this builds up into a fine model.