Feature: Big world of little airplanes

WASHINGTON, Nov. 20 (UPI) -- These are definitely not toys meant for little boys. The thrill of first seeing those sleek, soaring miniature giant metal birds -- three to six foot scale model of a passenger airplane on display at airports, travel agencies, or aviation museums, or the fighter aircraft models displayed at defense exhibitions sets grown men's hearts pounding with excitement.

When passenger airlines bosses, or Air Force generals announce the acquisition of a new fleet of aircraft from manufacturers such as Boeing, Airbus, General Dynamics or Northrup Grunman, news pictures of those announcements will invariably show the executives standing next to excellently produced scale models of these newly acquired airplanes.

Smaller models of these aircraft are also very popular with current and former pilots of combat or passenger aircraft who often purchase these model planes to remind them of their flying days. But they are not the only ones to collect these models.

Movie stars such as Harrison Ford and John Travolta, who fly their own airplanes, have purchased scale model replicas of their aircraft.

The Guinness Book of Records includes Bader Murad, of the Persian Gulf principality of Bahrain, who has not only assembled the world's largest collection of scale model airplanes (several thousand of them), but even owns and operates his own state-of-the-art, mahogany wood model airplane manufacturing company (badermurad.com), complete with its own newsletter and Internet chat room.

Model airplanes have numerous other uses. They display and promote their "real world" counterparts in advertisements. When a terrible airplane accident or act of sabotage occurs, television news programs purchase models of the wrecked aircraft in order to create computerized visual animations of the flight paths of these planes. When airplanes are involved in terrorist incidents or are mysteriously blown up, the FBI and CIA will contact stores that carry models of these airplanes and purchase them to assist in their investigations.

The world of model planes is even characterized by its own version of "cut throat" competition between companies vying to obtain licensing permission from airplane manufacturers and airlines to display their logos and color schemes on their models.

Such, then, is the big world of little airplanes.

Some of them may be mounted on wooden stands for display on one's desk (hence the term "desktop" models) or displayed on wall shelves.

One of the latest trends is the production of wooden scale size airport tarmacs. Collectors can build their own airports and terminals on them and assemble their own airline fleets, complete with replica airplane maintenance crews and vehicles -- just as is done in the world of model railroads.

Also similar to their model railroad counterparts, desktop model airplanes are not everyday play toys, but are intended for display in a showcase, owing to the fragile nature of their often very intricate details, such as their wings, propellers, landing gear or under-wing missiles.

Like the airplanes they replicate, desktop models originated in the United States but have proliferated throughout the world: they are produced in the Philippines, China, Hong Kong, Germany, Italy, England, Australia, Taiwan, and, as mentioned earlier, in Bahrain.

The airplane features replicated in the desktop models can be as detailed as the popular plastic model kits manufactured by companies such as Revell, which require varying skill levels and much patience to assemble and paint.

Desktop model airplanes range in size from the very large 1:20 scale for the large commercial models to the much smaller 1:400 to 1:600 for the 3- to 6-inch models. The larger the aircraft model, the more expensive it is. In terms of scale size, on the 1:20 scale, one foot is equivalent to 20 feet in a real airplane. Thus, depending on the scale size, materials used, and level of detail required, the models will range in price from $10 to more than $85,000.

In the collectors market, the most popular scale sizes are the 1:48 and 1:100 for military aircraft, the booming segment of 1:400 and 1:500 metal die-cast scale models of passenger airplanes and the latest trend of larger 1:200 scale die-cast passenger planes.

In fact, the collectors of this smaller scale segment are so "addicted" to acquiring more and more of these relatively inexpensive models and accessories that they share many of the "empire builder" characteristics of fanatical collectors of sports cards and Star Trek memorabilia, including exhibition shows.

Make no mistake about it, the world of desktop airplanes is big business.

Scale models can be found at the increasingly proliferating airplane model specialty stores, such as the Airplane SuperStore (airplanesuperstore.com,) at Dulles International Airport, outside Washington, which has one of the largest inventories of model airplanes in the United States In fact, its owner, a long-time aviation buff, introduced to the collectors market the first presidential Air Force One scale model in the mid-1990s. This model became so popular that other companies have introduced their own lines of the presidential airplane.

Air Force One, the presidential flying White House, is one of the most distinctive and sought after airplane models.

The owner of the Airplane Superstore commissioned the first model in this segment in 1997 from Wooster, the Scottish model company, as a 1:250 scale plastic model and priced at $21.95.

It quickly took off and developed a wide grassroots following by collectors as the first model of its kind. The producers of the movie, "Air Force One," requested a model of the plane prior to filming the movie and once the movie came out there was such tremendous demand for this model that it spurred other companies to produce their own versions of the plane.

Production on the model was discontinued when Wooster went bankrupt; fortunately, however, it is now being produced in China by a joint venture between Herpa and PPC.

Another magnificent 1:100 model of Air Force One, made of mahogany is distributed by Toys and Models for $150.

Even industry leader PacMin sells Air Force One desktop models on its web site, including providing models to the Office of the Presidential Pilots -- the association of pilots who fly the presidential planes. Smaller and equally magnificent metal die-cast models of Air Force One are produced by Herpa (1:500; $19, Schabak (1:600; $7.25) and Corgi (1:144, $79.95).

In the cutthroat and intricate business of model airplanes, some aircraft manufacturers compete with model-makers and will also sell scale models of their airplanes.

Boeing's on-line store (boeingstore.com) features several models of the company's 727 and 747 jumbo jets.

The "Executive" model with costs about $345 is built by Pacific Miniatures (known as PacMin), one of the biggest and well reputed of the corporate-scale model airplane manufacturers, who builds many of the large scale model airplanes on display at travel agencies, at airlines and airframe manufacturers corporate offices, or trade shows. PacMin is one of Boeing's primary modelers.

The large scale models of Airbus aircrafts, Boeing's main competitor, are produced by Aerospace Modelmakers International or AMI, a British company, while the smaller, miniature replicas of its aircraft are made by Herpa, a German manufacturer of small-scale metal die-cast models that are prized in the collectors' world.

The serious and deep-pocketed collectors can visit Atlantic Models (atlanticmodels.com) of Miami, another highly regarded corporate-oriented scale model manufacturer: its line of 1:100 scale models of the Boeing Pan American flying boat are highly sought.

There are also well-known distributors, such as Toys and Models Corporation (e-mail: [email protected]) that distribute and sell 1:24 to 1:48 scale military aircraft or 1:100 to 1:200 scale passenger airplane models to the retail and consumer markets that are hand-made of specially treated mahogany wood by the Desktop Company in the Philippines.

These desktop models have become so popular that even a major shopping mall chain: the Discovery Channel stores (shopping.discovery.com) carries a line of 10 specially designed model aircraft, including authentic mahogany replicas of the 1:24 scale Spirit of St. Louis ($129) and the sleek 1:72 scale Lockheed Martin SR-71 Blackbird spy plane) in cooperation with the Smithsonian's Air & Space Museum, whose curators approved the models' designs.

Discovery Channel entered this market because their history of aviation series, "Wings," was one of their most popular programs and they wanted to provide aviation enthusiasts models that would authentically replicate of some of the more famous airplanes featured in the shows.

The world of desktop airplanes is governed by its own pecking order.

At the high end is the commercial aviation market, with the models either built in-house or commissioned by airline manufacturers to companies, such as PacMin or Atlantic Models, that go to incredible lengths to produce exact model and scale replicas of their airplanes, with every detail technically proportional.

Such companies are generally commissioned to produce models during the initial design stages of developing a new aircraft. At companies, such as Boeing, an entire engineering model laboratory is located in-house and charged with building "working" models of new aircraft. They use digital engineering databases to build intricately detailed model prototypes, complete with landing gear.

PacMin, for example, has been commissioned by airplane companies to create special cut-away prototype models (usually in the 1:20 or 1:40 scale) displaying the cockpit, crew bunks, interior passenger seating, and working interior and exterior lighting, including blinking wing lights, working cargo loaders and landing gear. These cut-away models are built to let customers see the intricate details of new aircraft designs or actual planes that are being ordering.

The price of these models is in the tens of thousands of dollars.

In other cases, these models are used as a marketing tool to entice potential corporate or government buyers to close the deal and upon delivery of the aircraft the manufacturers will present the customers with a model of that aircraft. These models are also used to promote the aircraft at trade shows, for instance, to display a detailed large wingspan or other features of an aircraft. At travel agencies, the large-scale model airplanes provide the illusion of flight to the prospective traveler.

All these aircraft models are of exceptional workmanship and are produced in limited quantities and are therefore greatly prized by collectors. Some of these large models can be purchased from the British Internet store aviationmodels-online.com for about $300 for the 1:100 scale and $1,000 and up for the 1:50 scale.

Those who are lucky enough to have contacts at the airline manufacturers can obtain sample models for free or at a discount. A contact at British Aerospace, for example, provided me with a model of the prototype of the Joint Strike Fighter that is being developed by Lockheed Martin and BAE.

Because of the nature of the competition between them and Boeing to sell the JSF to the U.S. Air Force, this scale model is deliberately misleading in some of its specifications for security reasons in order not to reveal certain new details to the competition. Once the chosen aircraft is in production, however, its scale model will conform to its exact specifications.

PacMin is one of the world's leading manufacturers of desktop models (typically 1:100 scale) and larger scale models (for example, 1:20 scale that can be more than 6 feet in length) for corporate clients, such as Boeing.

Its 1:100 desktop models are normally made of a solid urethane material, whereas the larger scale models are typically manufactured from fiberglass. It also produces 1:48 and 1:72 scale models of smaller regional passenger aircraft, such as Gulfstream and Bombardier

Most of PacMin's exhibit scale airplane models are not available for purchase by the individual collector because they are specially commissioned by the marketing departments of airlines, airframe companies, airplane museums and even restaurants that feature airplane themes.

Michael's Charcoal Grill in Midland, Texas, for example, which is owned by an ex-Air Force tanker pilot, has as its motif a celebration of aviation. To visualize this motif, the restaurant's owner commissioned PacMin to produce a series of large scale airplane models ranging from nearly 6 feet to 16 feet in length, with the models suspended from the ceiling, providing the customers with a sense of realism and drama. There are plans to open more aviation theme restaurants in other cities.

Fortunately, many of PacMin's 1:100 desktop models can be ordered through its Web site at (pacmin.com) or by phone at 714-447-4478; fax: 714-447-4465). In fact, PacMin has started a Collector's Club on its Web site, with plans to offer approximately two models every two months to help satisfy the cravings of collectors who prize these models. Prices range from about $200 to $400 for the 1:100 scale desktop models of their 28" 1:100 scale Boeing 747 jumbo jet, which retails for about $350).

These more affordable PacMin models are also popular with aircraft manufacturers, airlines and leasing companies for presentation purposes and customer give-a-ways because of they are a good size for travel and desk display and a persuasive way to convince an airline to purchase an aircraft by providing a scale model depicting their livery. Other customers include chief executive officers and airline pilots who request certain models. Many airlines now run company stores that also feature PacMin models.

In terms of production runs, following market leader PacMin, Atlantic Models is the second largest manufacturer of high quality commercial and collector airplane models in the United States. In 2000, more than half of its production was for commercial airlines and manufacturers. Its prices range from $160 to $85,000, and average around $250 per model for the collector market.

Atlantic Models' production line includes more than 150 different aircraft, with an almost endless variety of paint schemes to match the airlines and other aircraft companies they represent.

In the special large-scale corporate models, which are used as lobby displays, Atlantic Models has produced full-scale cockpit sections, 10- foot wingspan ceiling hung models, floor-mounted models and prototype aircraft models, including paint scheme proposals being considered by airlines. Other models include specialized large-scale models used in radar testing for several corporations and universities. They even produce models used in litigation to recreate functions or procedures used in aircraft overhaul.

Atlantic Models sells to both the corporate and collector market. The corporate buyers range from the airframe and/or engine manufacturers, the airlines, and collectors. The CEO of a famous airfreight shipping company recently ordered an aircraft model with one of the cargo doors open so that one could see the company's containers on board the aircraft. When the new Pan Am airline was reborn in 1997, Atlantic Models was commissioned to build models of their fleet that were presented to President Clinton, members of Congress and Florida state officials, some of whom had their names inscribed on the models, such as "Clipper Bill Clinton."

Atlantic Models is also highly regarded among serious collectors for several lines of specialty models where it has established a market niche for older airplanes and airliners. These date back to the Pan American Boeing flying boats, the Douglas propliners, the Lockheed Super Constellations, and other more recent collectibles, such as the Braniff "Jelly Bean" aircraft.

Collectors of airplane models include aviation buffs, pilots, the children of pilots who seek a model of an airplane flown by their parents, and, in one instance, a couple who met on a Pan Am DC-6 when he was the pilot and she was a flight attendant, and requested a replica of that aircraft with the fleet number they recalled.

One of Atlantic Models' most famous airplane models is a special 3-foot wingspan TWA Super Constellation, which it built for the son of a TWA pilot. The model cost $5,000 and it included electric motors, fully functional lights, landing gear and all the antennas.

In another segment of the specialty corporate and collectors market, several firms specialize in taking generic models produced by other companies and applying design specifications to replicate an aircraft's exact details.

At Model Craft USA, Inc. (modelcraftusa.com), for example, engineers employ specialized software programs that can reduce actual airplanes' specifications to the minutest size. Model engineers will then carve out the inside of a generic model supplied by companies such as Toys and Models Corporation ([email protected]), and, depending on the customer's needs replicate an identical model to the minutest details, such as flight control surfaces and even, on occasion, create an actual working landing gear, complete with remote control turned props.

Many former and current commercial and military pilots, corporate executives, and even movie stars who fly their own airplanes have commissioned Model Craft USA to custom paint their aircrafts' logos, registration numbers, and color schemes.

For its basic replica work, Model Craft USA will charge between $325 and $375. This custom work takes between six and eight weeks, while the more elaborate replication process is much more expensive. Some 400 such models are produced by ModelsUSA annually.

At the lower end of the collectible civilian market are the 1:100 and 1:200 scale passenger aircraft models that are mass produced, have no "working" parts and are generally made of mahogany and the much-cheaper plastic.

All these models come with their own stands. Leading companies in this segment are Desktop of the Philippines (prices range from $60 to $160), for the wooden models, and PPC (its prices range from $20 to $30) and Long Prosper, of Taiwan (Longprosper.com) (prices around $25).

Fighter Aircraft

Also immensely popular are fighter aircraft models made of mahogany or plastic. A leading company in the wood segment is Desktop (with scale sizes ranging from 1:32 to 1:164 and prices ranging from $60 to $160).

Long Prosper has established itself as one of the leaders in the inexpensive plastic segment with its 1:48 and 1:72 models made of solid plastic fuselage. In fact, Long Prosper's fighter aircraft are so impressive that the renowned U.S. defense magazine Armed Forces Journal International, sells five of their models of U.S., French, European, and Russian fighter aircraft on its Web site (afji.com) for $29.95 each as a marketing tool to promote itself to its readers.

According to its editor, the magazine has received orders for these aircraft from defense officials from far-flung parts of the world such as Singapore, Germany and Jordan.

Metal Die-cast Metal Models

There are two basic types of die cast metal model airplanes: military and civilian. Two scale size categories predominate: the 1:48 scale for military aircraft and 1:400 to 1:600 scales for civilian aircraft. Although not quite as immensely popular as the smaller scale sizes, the latest trend is the production of an increasing number of the larger 1:200 scale models.

Military Models

The metal die-cast military models are immensely popular with military aviation buffs of all ages. They typically come in 1:48, 1:72 or 1:100 scales. These models tend to feature many more detailed parts than their comparably priced mahogany wooden counterparts.

The Armour Collection (armourcollection.com) fighter airplanes are considered the premier metal die-cast scale models in this category.

This is a truly international company: its models are made in China while research on the aircraft and production design and markings are done in Italy.

Their models are primarily in the 1:48 and 1:100 scale. The 1:48 scale is most popular with military aviation enthusiasts and historians, whose collections tend to have fewer aircraft than the typical 1:400 to 1:600 scale collectors (the 1:48 scale typically retails for $60 to $100), but are focused on aircraft of a particular aviation era (e.g., from World War II to the present) or type of combat aircraft (e.g., F-4 or F-18).

On the other hand, Armour's 1:100 scale models of combat aircraft are most popular with metal die-cast collectors who buy dozens of these planes because they are less expensive (the typical retail price ranges from $19 to $27) and their smaller size allows them to display more of these planes in the same amount of space.

To teenagers, the 1:100 scales usually represent the beginning of what will turn out to be a life-long collection of model aircraft.

Not only are the Armour Collection models breathtakingly magnificent in their authenticity but the company's glossy catalog offers a comprehensive pictorial history of military aviation, complete with background data and physical specifications about all the featured aircraft. Priding itself on the authenticity of its aircraft, even its Web site begins with a simulated flight of a fighter aircraft with engines roaring.

Military and civilian vintage airplane models are also popular in metal die-cast segment. These tend to be smaller scale aircraft, generally 1:72 or 1:144 scales. In addition to the Armour Collection's World War II models, another leader in this category is the famous British company Corgi (corgiclassics.com), which is also known for its popular lines of replica cars and military vehicles.

While the exact proportions and details of Corgi's aircraft are not intended to match that of the Armour Collection, their models commemorate significant military and civilian aircraft and are intended for the nostalgic collectors.

In February 2000, Corgi started tailoring their products to the American market, including the highly popular C-130 Hercules transport aircraft with U.S. Air Force Vietnam camouflage.

Since the large scale airplanes take up so much more space, in the early 1990s the smaller 1:500 to 1:600 scale metal die-cast model passenger airplanes were introduced to make it easier for collectors to collect and display a large number of these relatively inexpensive models ($15 to $30 each).

These models range in size between 3 to 6 inches and are highly proportionate and detailed in their airline paint replicas, placement of engines, and other parts, down to the landing gear with turning wheels.

Several world-class companies dominate this segment. In 1990, the German company Herpa (herpa.com) started making models for the German carrier, Lufthansa, as promotional items.

These models also became immensely popular when they were sold to airplane passengers. In 1993, Herpa started making models for other airlines. Two years later, Herpa introduced the 1:500 scale models. By 1996, these became so popular that Herpa produced more than 700 different models of airplanes and airlines. In the late 1990s, in response to the introduction by competitors of the 1:400 scale models, Herpa introduced its own line, although this is not an extensive as the models produced by its competition.

Herpa is known for the meticulous and authentic rendering of its models. These models are produced in close cooperation with the respective aircraft manufacturers and airlines: no model finds its way to the retailers before the airlines have approved the samples sent to them. On occasion, Herpa will produce a model of a new aircraft that is about to be introduced commercially, such as the Airbus "Beluga" super transport.

The 1:500 scale planes are constructed of metal die-cast, while the newly emergent 1:200 scale are made out of high quality plastic. There are two lines of 1:200 aircraft: the Premium series, made in Dietenhofen, Germany, and cost between $150 and $200 (and must be ordered from Germany), and the regular series, which is available from retail stores at between $25 and $40 each. An example of Herpa's 1:200 scale is the Boeing 747-400 "Air New Zealand," which is its largest-size model.

Herpa's tremendous comprehensiveness of the range of its models in terms of aircraft type and airlines make it a truly a world-wide company. It is also one of the few model airplane companies that sells plastic hangers for its aircraft and complete airport sets, including main terminals, control towers and support infrastructure, such as passenger air bridges, gangways, airplane towing trucks and display showcases.

To retain and increase the value of its models, like other companies in this highly sought after segment, Herpa will introduce a new model, produce 2,500 copies and then discontinue its production. As a result, some of these models are so popular and in such demand -- particularly some of the earliest discontinued models -- that they are worth thousands of dollars each.

Herpa publishes an extensive, glossy catalog with bi-monthly updates. It is also the only such company to publish Wings, a monthly magazine, (in English and German). This magazine not only informs the collectors/aviation buffs about the company's historic and latest models, but its feature articles on the airlines industry exposes them to the actual world of commercial aviation, thus enabling them to feel that they are part of international aviation.

Like other companies in this segment it also runs a Herpa Wings Club, which offers discounts and members-only first choice purchase of certain models. It even runs a customer message board (herpa.de).

While Herpa is the most famous and largest company in this segment, several companies have emerged to gain a strong foothold in this world of miniaturization.

The American company, Gemini Jets (geminijets.com), of Las Vegas, came onto this scene in the mid-1990s to originate the 1:400 scale size, is 25 percent larger than the 1:500 scale models.

It quickly established a reputation for producing highly accurately detailed die-cast models at lower prices than Herpa's.

Gemini Jets' airport accessories include passenger air bridges and the various trucks that provide support services to the aircraft. Like other companies, its models are also licensed by the respective airline and aircraft manufacturers.

Some of their models commemorate significant events in aviation, such as the visit by Chinese President Jiang Zemin to Hong Kong in July 1998 on board Air China.

Like Herpa, Gemini Jets also runs a members club, entitling one to purchase certain "club-only" models which are produced in limited quantities of 750 pieces, and also access to their popular private discussion forum.

Other leading companies in this segment are Schabak, from Germany (schabak.com), which introduced the 1:600 scale, and Dragon Wings, from Hong Kong Dragon (dragon-models.com), which specializes in the 1:500 and 1:400 scales.

One of the fastest growing trends in this collectors' world is the production of intricately designed wooden bases on which to place an airplane collection, much like the boards that model railroad buffs use to place tracks and create their own scenic railways and train stations.

Because of space constraints, these bases are designed for the 1:400 and 1:500 scale airplane segments. Interestingly, with major companies such as Herpa neglecting this segment of the collection, a Canadian company, Aerodisplays (aerodisplays.com), of Ontario, Canada, stepped in to custom build a highly detailed airfield, on which one can create an airport, complete with terminals, runways, airport buses, luggage carriers, and support crews.

According to Colin Campbell, Aero Displays owner, the next trend in base design will likely feature new airport accessories, such as hangars, car parks, hotel strips and even links to a connecting railway or subway system. It will be interesting to see if model railroad manufacturers respond with 1:500 or 1:400 scale trains to appeal to the model airplane collectors.

To give airplane enthusiasts a sense of the grandeur of the world of airplanes, several companies produce videos of airplane takeoffs and landings at some the world's most glamorous and busy airports, including cockpit views of actual flights from one airport to another.

Herpa Wings, for example, distributes a fascinating 90-minute video produced by Harry's Cockpit Flight, of an actual flight from Frankfurt to Hong Kong by a Lufthansa Boeing 747 jumbo jet.

The video provides the aviation buff/collector with the experience of being in the cockpit during an actual flight, the preparations made by the pilots prior to takeoff when they review the flight plan, check the tires, brief the flight crew, and interact with the control tower.

The viewer is then exposed to a cockpit view from the pilot's perspective of the actual flight, including the spectacular landing in Hong Kong airport. Accompanying the video is Herpa's 1:500 scale metal die-cast model of a Lufthansa Boeing 747 jumbo jet.

AirUtopia ([email protected],), an American company, has produced several videos of the airports of San Diego, St. Martin's, and Bangkok, (with Washington's Ronald Reagan National Airport currently in production).

According to Dave Maxwell, AirUtopia's president, his goal is to bring back the enthusiasm for aviation which was so widespread in the 1950s and 1960s, when parents used to take their children to view airplanes at airports, unlike today with the increasing security at the world's airports severely restricting many vantage points at which to view flights from close range as opposed to behind the terminals massive windows.

Thus, his videos take the viewers right up to the airplanes by showing their catwalks at the airfields, where one can see and hear engines start to roar, wings and tails flapping as the pilots test their aircraft, and tires begin to run as the airplanes prepare to take off into the sky.

The St. Martin's airport video, for example, is filled with a wide variety of different airplanes from jumbo jets to two-seater airplanes either taking off in the direction of the breathtaking scenery of the magnificent mountain range behind the airport, or emerging from the ocean to land.

The video of the Bangkok airport begins with a brief history of the airport and is filled with shots of foreign airliners from some of the world's most exotic destinations, such as Persian Gulf principalities. In all these videos there is the magnificent panorama of airplanes driving along the runways, often in formation, taking off or landing, and being quickly succeeded by the next flight.

The avid collectors of these airplane models can express themselves in numerous Internet chatrooms, which are segregated by scale model size and model manufacturer.

One of the most popular chatroom is located at diecastaircraft.com, and run by Gordon Wenrer, an aviation buff.

It is here that the collectors display their airline fleets that are mounted on realistic looking airport tarmacs and buildings, and discussions abound about news and rumors of eagerly awaited introductions of new aircraft and airline markings, as well as discussions and even arguments about the accuracy of various models.

These forums have a cult-like following, with active participants from all over the world.

The great demand for collectible model airplanes has also produced a large-scale black market with bootleg models of popular brands.

Like other booming business areas, the Internet now proliferates with numerous mail order sites where one can purchase desktop airplanes of varying quality.

Some unscrupulous dealers offer models at low prices, and the buyer is unaware of their dubious workmanship, while other "rogue" companies go so far as to steal models from the established firms, and reverse mold the models in order to mass produce them after placing popular airline logos on them.

To avoid being taken by these dealers, new collectors need to familiarize themselves with stores that have established a solid reputation for high quality models. Collectors are also advised to visit the specialty stores, whenever possible (as aviation buffs their owners tend to be very accessible and informative) and browse through their wealth of inventory, where they can sense the ambience of the different models.

The big world of little airplanes is dynamic and constantly evolving as manufacturers introduce new generations of airplanes, as well as the next generation military aircraft.

New airlines are constantly being formed, either through mergers or the creation of new companies. As a result, the world of model aviation collectors is constantly changing as new models and new fleets of airlines are created. Moreover, with new technologies for manufacturing model airplanes, new types and scales of models, including new paint schemes, are constantly being introduced into the market. This keeps manufacturers and collectors constantly scrambling for new products, making the collecting of model planes one of the world's most exciting hobbies.