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Hello all of you fine people of LSP. May I share my new project with you please? Although I have already built one of the Airfix 1/24th scale MkIX Spitfires I felt this model was the ideal basis for a tribute to Squadron Leader Mark Long who perished whilst at the controls of his aircraft earlier in 2024. The aircraft was part of the RAF's Battle of Britain Memorial flight and had been well known on the airshow circuit for many years. At the time of the fateful incident she was wearing the desert markings of No. 92 squadron (QJ-3) so that is how I will depict her. As a restored warbird this aircraft sports a number of elements not seen on period aircraft. I will mention the ones I spot as I go along. She will also be quite clean. The BBMF keep there aircraft in generally good condition with the exception of exhaust staining. Many reference photos online show plenty of exhaust staining for me to get my teeth into later. The model will be buttoned up. No open panels, canopy closed with possibly even a modern RBF tag on the pitot This means that I won't be spending alot of time or energy on things that won't be seen. Whereas I included the Airscale aftermarket set for the cockpit of my previous build I aim to largely use the kit parts this time around with only minimal extra detail added. Having said that, here are a couple of pics of the seat. I'm trying to give the impression of a contemporary parachute pack. I've also replaced the flare holder with a scratch built one. This is quite an obvious feature even through the canopy so I wanted to improve it's look and shape. I started out thinking of simply drilling out the kit part but the plastic sidewall is so thick it was easier to fabricate a fresh one. I also re-shaped the seat backrest a little because pics online seem slimmer in appearance. So, we've begun our journey. As ever, any and all comments are welcome. If anyone can share images of MK356 or knowledge that may help along the way, please feel free to include it here. There are a couple of superb large scale Spitfire builds going on elsewhere so you can rest assured I will be following those like a hawk for all of the tips and tricks I can glean. Cheers, Guy