1/200 U.S. Air Force Rockwell B-1B Lancer 34th Bomb Squadron “Thunderbirds”, 28th Bomb Wing, Ellsworth Air Base “The Last Laugh” 86-0115

Description

This is a die-cast metal and plastic display aircraft.

From the manufacturer:

U.S. Air Force Ellsworth Base is located in South Dakota, and accommodates the 28th Bomb Wing of the Air Combat Command. One of its two flying components is the 34th Bomb Squadron with its B-1B Lancer swing-wing bomber, one of four active units operating the strategic bomber today.

These very powerful warplanes designed for lolng-distance operations have been in service there since 1994. The history of the 28th Wing, however, goes back a lot further, and has its origins in World War I. It was established in 1917 and restructured several times, deactivated and re-established, and was often involved in crises and conflicts all over the world, most recently over Afghanistan and Iraq.

Also known as the Thunderbirds, the squadron was equipped with the fearsome B-52 bomber in the 1960s. Here, the grim joker with the “last laugh” was applied for the first time as nose art. This figure is now also featured on the B-1B with the construction number 86-0115 on the left side of the front fuselage, and is also depicted authentically on this 1/200 scale model.