Aichi D3A1 Type 99 „Val“

1/6th scale

wingspan 2396 mm (94,3″)
length 1696 mm (66,8″)
weight appr. 20-24 lbs
engines: 4-strokes 50-60 ccm
min. 5 channel radio (elevator, rudder, gas, aileron, flaps)
building skills: advanced

  • colored planset, wood kit plus premium extras: firewall, u/c mounting, wing and servo mounting milled from 6 mm air-ply, hinges, controls and connectors milled from phenolresin plates
  • accessory set: clear canopy, detailled fiberglass cowling, pair of fiberglass wheel pants
  • fixed gear set, custom designed for my planset

1/4th scale

prototype status!
wingspan 3590 mm (141,3″)
length 2549 mm (100,4″)
weight appr. tba
engines: tba
min. 5 channel radio (elevator, rudder, gas, aileron, flaps)
building skills: experienced

  • colored planset, wood kit plus premium extras: firewall, u/c mounting, wing and servo mounting milled from 6 mm air-ply – hinges, controls and connectors milled from phenolresin plates
  • no gear set, cowling, wheels pants or canopy available!

     

Kit development and Larry Sutherland

The aichi was my very first design and has therefore a special meaning to me. I started after unsuccessfully looking for a val kit this size and had no plans how to do cad. This took (and still takes) many hours and evenings to establish both understanding and workflows when working with cad.

The first partner in crime I had was Larry Sutherland from California, who believed in this kit long before any wood had been cut. Next to that we’re keeping a wonderful conversation right over the atlantic and it is somehow funny, that an american guy from the westcoast (CA) did the first japanese prototype of a plane that was part of the Pearl Harbor raid.

We usually wrote about little kit issues, updates, his progression in building the kit and he sent a couple of very nice pics from california with his val as well as he uploaded two videos on Youtube.

It is a wonderful and stable flyer.

Larry mentioned when being interviewed at the giant scale festival in Atwater, CA.

Thanks to you, Larry!