Lockheed P-38 Lightning – kit from LEGO® bricks

Description

Germans called the heavy American fighter plane, which was manufactured by the Lockheed Corporation from 1941 to 1945, the ‘fork-tailed devil’ (Gabelschwanzteufel). Its almost reverential nickname is owing to its twin tail boom, a construction that was as unusual as it was striking.

The P-38 was not only used for aerial combat, but also for reconnaissance. In the latter function it was designated F-4 or F-5. The best-known Lockheed F-5B pilot was Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, the very one whose book The Little Prince shot him to fame around the world. He was less fortunate as an aeroplane pilot, getting shot down south of Marseille on 31st July 1944. Saint-Exupéry was initially thought to be missing in action, until in 1998 a bracelet that clearly belonged to him, and then two years later, the plane wreck, was found in the sea.

Colour of the model: light grey

Number of original LEGO® bricks: 2229

Measurements of the model: 53.6 x 74.5 x 16.4 cm

Scale of the model: 1:21

Difficulty level: advanced