Ray Horwell at Fantasy Printshop first released this excellent set of Euro Decals for the Border Models' 1:35 Spitfire. That was all well and good, and a huge plus for anyone building the kit - after all, you don't currently see many options in that scale - but it's very welcome to see the same selection of 11 colour schemes now also available in the much more generally accepted "aircraft" scale of 1:72.  

Set #ED-72143 should offer something to suite all tastes with its well-chosen selection of aircraft that offers a wide variety of camouflage and markings, including European and Mediterranean/North African camouflage, a night fighter, and a mix of full-span and clipped-wing versions.

As you'll expect with Ray's work, the quality of the glossy finished decals is superb, with pin-sharp registration that's all the more impressive in this smaller scale, and minimal excess carrier film except where it's used to group elements. The colours look excellent, with a realistic RAF Dull Red contrasting against the SAAF orange in the national markings. The sheet is packed with items and there are sufficient wing top-surface roundels for two full schemes, and of course you could combine it with existing kit decals to build more.

The decals are accompanied by full-colour A4 4-view drawings, one scheme per page, with modellers' notes where needed highlighting details specific to the airframe. The instructions show original paint names, plus matches for Humbrol, Xtracolour, Xtracrylix, Mr. Color Aqueous, MRP and Vallejo Model Air model paints.

The featured colour schemes are:

1: Spitfire LF Mk.Vb, s/n BL415 AZ-B, flown by Flt Lt Walt “Jonnie” Johnston of 234 Sqn., RAF, 6th June 1944.

2: Spitfire Mk.Vb Trop, s/n ER228 ZX-6 of 145 Squadron, RAF, Egypt 1942.

3: Spitfire Mk.Vb s/n W3458 YQ-X flown by Flt Lt Les “Buck” Casson of 616 Sqn., RAF, 9th August 1941.

4: Spitfire Mk.Vb s/n EP464 NN-E of 310 (Czech) Squadron, Royal Air Force, Exeter, July 1942.

5: Spitfire Mk.Vb Trop s/n JK792 WR-O of 40 Squadron, SAAF, Italy, 1944.

6: Spitfire Mk.Vb s/n W3458 JU-E of 111 Squadron, RAF, North Weald, October 1941.

7: Spitfire Mk.Vb s/n EP254 DW-B flown by Sqn Ldr J. E. “Jonnie” Johnson, CO of 610 Sqn., RAF, 19th August 1942.

8: Spitfire LF Mk.Vb s/n EP644 RY-S of 313 (Czech) Sqn., RAF, March 1943.

9: Spitfire Mk.Vb Trop s/n AB254 GN-H of 249 Sqn., RAF, Malta, 1942.

10: Spitfire Mk.Vb Trop s/n ER622 WR-D of 40 Sqn., SAAF, North Africa, April 1943.

11: Spitfire Mk.Vb s/n BL753 YO-H flown by PO Don Blakeslee of 401 Sqn., RCAF, May 1942.

Conclusion

This is excellent release from Euro Decals and it's great to see it also available now in a more conventional scale. In 1:72 it would be quite practical to use all 11 markings options for an individual project, and it would definitely be a great basis for a shared group/club build. 

Item #ED-72143 is available now from Fantasy Printshop - Price: £10.95

Many thanks to Fantasy Printshop for the review sample.

Please remember, when contacting retailers or manufacturers, to mention that you saw their products highlighted here - on AEROSCALE