To share ideas and discuss the Aérospatiale SA 321 Super Frelon.
While models of the Super Frelon are few, this is an interesting rotary wing aircraft of French design and manufacture by Aérospatiale. Sikorsky was involved with the design of the rotor system and Fiat assisted in the design of the transmission.
My first encounter with the Heller 1:35th scale Super Frelon kit was in a hobby shop near the main train station in Frankfurt, Germany. I really wanted that kit but being stuck in the barracks and little to no personal space meant it went on my wish list. Several years later I was able to obtain the kit and several years after that I let the kit go at a model show since I was a poor student attending college. That never stifled my desire to have that kit and several years later I was able to acquire another Heller Super Frelon. This was the French Navy version had the Exoceet anti-ship missiles and radar. Not really as interesting as the original Super Frelon kit that came with several squads of infantry to fill the passenger compartment but it had all of the original parts for the troop carrier plus the new parts for the French Navy version. The one thing I appreciated about the Heller Super Frelon was all of the attention to small details. The kit included wire for the rotor system and a sheet of very thin plastic to fabricate the troop seats. There were a lot of internal details included with the Super Frelon kit that most other model companies at the time were ignoring. Overall it was a very intimidating and impressive model kit.
Thumbnail image and link to the Wikipedia page on the
Aérospatiale SA 321 Super Frelon and Changhe Z-8.
As for the model. The only Super Frelon I have seen actually built was by some modeler from the Spokane, Washington area that built the model in a very dynamic scene showing the Super Frelon coming in for a landing. The main landing gear was modified by removing the floats (like the South African and Israeli versions). I don't recall what markings were on the model so it could have been a what-if or it may have been in South African markings. It was impressive and it got my attention.