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The Fairey Firefly was a British Second World War carrier-borne fighter aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm (FAA).
It was superior in performance and firepower to its predecessor, the Fulmar, but only entered operational service towards the end of the war. Designed around the FAA concept of a two-seat fleet reconnaissance/fighter aircraft, the pilot and navigator/weapons officer were housed in separate stations. The design proved to be sturdy and long-ranging in carrier operations, although the limitations of a single engine in a heavy airframe reduced overall performance.

The Fairey Firefly served in the Second World War as a fleet fighter and participated in actions against the Tirpitz, raids against German shipping in Norwegian waters and against Japan where it was a mainstay of the British Pacific Fleet. The Firefly proved itself adept at anti-shipping, flack suppression and ground attack, using either its 20mm cannon or detachable rockets.

In post-war service, although it was superseded by more modern jet aircraft, the Firefly was adapted to other roles, including strike operations and anti-submarine warfare, remaining a mainstay of the FAA until the mid-1950s. UK Fireflies flew ground attack operations off various aircraft carriers in the Korean War. In foreign service, the Firefly was in operation with the naval air arms of Australia, Canada, India, and the Netherlands whose Fireflies carried out a few attack sorties as late as 1962 in Dutch New Guinea.

This model comes with photo-etched parts and has been built, airbrushed and weathered to an exceptional standard to represent aircraft DK438, 277/N "Lucy Quipment" of 1771 Squadron during its service on the aircraft carrier HMS Implacable in May 1945. In July of 1945, the Fireflies of 1771 Squadron became the first FAA aircraft to fly over mainland Japan. The Fireflies rocketed airfields at Matsushima, Sendai, Masuda and Tokyo over a two day period and sought targets of opportunity along the coast.

Please note the diorama base shown in the photos is for illustrative purposes only & is not included.

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