The "Simian Space Transport" is still on that Red Arrow list and has been out for quite some time as the "Liquidator". I knew the list was outdated and not a good reference when I saw that one.

But, how about the F-15 and F-101 on that list? Anyone know anything about those? They already have the Screaming Eagle, so I'm not sure what they would do differently there. And there was an F101 Centuri kit at one time, wasn't there?

Centuri had an F-104 Starfighter, F-15 Eagle, F-16 Falcon, and Israeli Mirage, IIRC. Definitely no F-101 Voodoo in the lineup, though.

Yet another reason not to trust that Red Arrow list.....they list it as the F-101 "Starfighter". :rolleyes:

It's been a while since I looked at the Centuri plan for the F-15, but IIRC, the Estes Screaming Eagle is pretty close.

Centuri also had a stand-WAY OFF-scale F-4 Phantom in their "Fighter Fleet", but they definitely never had a F-101 Voodoo in any way, shape, or form.

I don't think any of the fighter fleet was intended to be "scale", but rather representations of famous aircraft that could be launched from an 1/8" rod. If your interest is in "scale" airplanes, then RC or plastic modeling would probably better suited. As you well know, liberties are often taken at the expense of "scale" likenesses to make aircraft and guided missiles more model rocket friendly.

Forgot about the F-4.......both were McDonnell Douglas planes, though. ;)


As for the Centuri F-15 being similar to today's Estes Screaming Eagle....All the old Centuri kits had clear bubble canopies and fiber fins/wings. Today's Estes offering doesn't have a bubble canopy, but I have no idea if it uses fiber or balsa.

BTW, I still have my Centuri F-104 Starfighter. It is rigged for horizontal recovery. Not sure if the rest of the fighter fleet were supposed to be, but I'd imagine the fiber tails were pretty fragile on some of the others too.

The Screaming Eagle, which I am just about to put a primer coat on, is balsa. Sure does seem rock solid to me also, the kit went together in a snap and does not seem to have many issues. There is no horizontal recovery on it, though now that you mention it I think it might be kind of neat way to bring it in...

Yeah, the Centuri version is definitely different after taking a second look. I've got the Estes Screaming Eagle and it's balsa...some really hard balsa at that. The thing is a tank but flies surprisingly well.

Looks nice; I'll have to get me one!!

I think all of the Centuri Fighter Fleet was meant to have horizontal recovery per the instructions, just like the SST shuttle booster.
On designs like these this results in much less landing damage, no matter the chute size.
The the force of the vehicle mass at touchdown is spread over much more surface area, thus less pressure on any given area.