Matchbox 1/72 Gloster Gladiator (PK-8)

The Gloster Gladiator was the RAF's last biplane fighter — and very nearly its last line of defence. Entering service in 1937, it was already approaching obsolescence by the outbreak of war, yet it fought in almost every theatre of the early conflict: Norway, the Western Desert, Malta, East Africa, and the skies over France. Most famously, a handful of Gladiators — named Faith, Hope, and Charity in popular legend — defended Malta against the full weight of the Regia Aeronautica in 1940, buying precious time before Hurricanes arrived. The Gladiator's combination of manoeuvrability, four-gun armament, and its pilots' skill made it a far more effective weapon than its biplane configuration suggested.

The RAF's last biplane — and one of its most unlikely heroes.

This is a vintage model kit. Box shows signs of age-related storage — see photos. Kit appears complete, but please look at the photos carefully. Instructions and decals are present.