Arma Hobby 1/72 70090 F4F-3 Wildcat US WW2 Fighter Kit

Grumman F4F-3 Wildcat was the U.S. Navy’s main carrier fighter during the opening phase of the Pacific War. It was this version that entered combat after the attack on Pearl Harbor, when the American fleet had to halt Japan’s offensive advance. Although less manoeuvrable than the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero, the Wildcat was tough, well protected compared with enemy aircraft, and capable of returning even after severe damage. The F4F-3 had fixed, non-folding wings and was armed with four .50 calibre machine guns. It was valued for its rugged construction, stability as a gun platform, and reliability during operations over the open ocean. In the first months of the war, Wildcats took part in a series of American carrier raids against advanced Japanese bases across the Pacific. Their main role was escorting carrier bombers and defending the task force against enemy attacks. Even then, several pilots scored their first victories in the F4F-3, beginning the path to fighter ace status. The F4F-3 played an important role in the Battle of the Coral Sea in May 1942 – the first naval battle in history fought entirely by aircraft operating from carriers. Wildcats protected their own ships and strike aircraft. A weakness of the F4F-3 was the lack of folding wings, which limited the number of aircraft that could be carried aboard carriers. For that reason, after the Battle of the Coral Sea, units were rapidly re-equipped with the newer Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat, while older F4F-3s were gradually moved to secondary duties. Although the F4F-3’s frontline carrier service was brief, it was this variant that carried the burden of fighter combat in the hardest period of the war, when the outcome of the Pacific struggle was still uncertain.