DKdecals recently released a new 1/48 scale decal sheet specifically covering the three Iwo Jima VLR Mustang groups. There are decals for 9 VLR Mustangs; one plane from each squadron, and the majority of the planes covered on this decal sheet have not been covered previously by either kit manufacturers or the after market decals manufacturers . Again, nice to see lesser known planes covered by an after market decal manufacturer.

The painting and decal placement guide is nicely done. The nine VLR Mustangs represented on this sheet are as follows:

77 “San Antonia Rose”; 45th FS, 15th FG; P-51D-20NA, 44-63438; flown by 2d Lt. Douglas Reese. 2d Lt. Reese scored single confirmed victories on June 26th, a Kawasaki Ki-61 Tony, and July 8th.

124 “Button – II”; 78th FS, 15th FG; P-51D-20NA, 44-63353; flown by 1st Lt. Doyle T. Brooks, Jr. 1st Lt. Brooks was credited with shooting down two Mitsubishi A6M Zeros on the June 10, 1945, VLR mission to the Tokyo area.

157 “Daisey Mae”; 47th FS, 15th FG; P-51D-20NA, 44-63395; flown by Flight Officer John W. Googe.

200 “Miss Gene V”; 46th FS, 21st FG; P-51D-20NA, 44-63775; flown by Major Fred A. Shirley, commander of the 46th FS. Major Shirley scored his first two victories on the April 12, 1945, VLR mission to Tokyo shooting down a Kawasaki Ki-45 Nick and a Mitsubishi J2M Jack, followed by two more Mitsubishi J2M Jacks on the April 22, 1945, VLR mission to Nagoya.

264 “Marsha Ann”; 72nd FS, 21st FG; P-51D-20NA, 44-63981; flown by 1st Lt. Jacob W. Gotwals. 1st Lt. Gotwals sole aerial victory (a Nakajima Ki-44 Shoki) was achieved on the first ever VLR mission on April 7, 1945, to Tokyo.

302 “Joy’s Boy”; 531st FS, 21st FG; P-51D-20NA, 44-63910; flown by Captain Robert Mallin.

501; 457th FS, 506th FG; P-51D-25NA, 44-72640; flown by Captain Evelyn Neff. Very nice nose art.

550 “Madam Wham-Dam”; 458th FS, 506th FG; P-51D-25NA, 44-72607; flown by Major Harrison E. Shipman; commander of the 458th FS. “Madam Wham-Dam” was lost on the June 1, 1945, Black Friday mission with Lt. Col. Harvey J. Scandrett at the controls.

616 “Shanghai Lil”; 462nd FS, 506th FG; P-51D-20NA, 44-72588; flown by 1st Lt. Darrell Bash and 1st Lt. Edward J. Linfante. 1st Lt. Bash was credited with shooting down a Kawasaki Ki-61 Tony over Yokohama on June 10, 1945.

The decals are in register and the artwork is very well done. My only comment is on the decals for 616 “Shanghai Lil”. DKdecals has done the name in black and have decals for both sides of the nose. Over the years, there has been two other decal sheets with different colors for the name. SuperScale Decals issued a sheet with “Shanghai Lil” (48-1203) that has the name in yellow and outlined in black, which is clearly not supported by the photograph below. The decals that are included with the book, “506th Fighter Group: The History of the 506th Fighter Group, Iwo Jima 1945”, has the name in red. Is the name in red or black? Very hard to tell from a black and white photo so your guess is as good as mine.

The photo below would support that the name only appeared on the left side of the nose. However, was the photo below taken before nose art was applied to the plane? Is there a photo showing the name appearing on the right side of the nose? Good questions that I do not have answers to.

DKdecals is putting out some really nice decal sheets. If you are interested in building a lesser known Iwo Jima VLR Mustang with some really nice markings, this decal sheet is highly recommended. Kudos to DKdecals!