Hawker Siddeley HS 748 1:400 Scale Mould Review

Hawker Siddeley HS 748 Moulds in 1:400 Scale

Updated: June 2026

The British airliner production scene in the late 1950s and 60s was a disappointing one as the UK threw away the lead it had gained with the Comet and Viscount stuttering through technically impressive but ultimately poor selling types such as the Britannia, VC10 and Trident. A highlight of the period for British manufacturers was the HS 748 (nicknamed the Budgie), one of many new entrants trying to do the impossible - replace the DC-3. Developed initially by Avro the type avoided the pitfall of head to head competition with the Fokker F27 that the Herald came up against. The Avro 748 instead focused on a more rugged design with STOL capabilities. This made the type a favourite for airlines operating in less sophisticated conditions.

The first Avro 748s were delivered in April 1962 to the British independent Skyways. During the early 60s Avro was swallowed up by Hawker Siddeley and was renamed the HS 748. The type was also produced under licence in India as the HAL-748 by Hindustan Aeronautics. Although the majority of sales were ones and twos to smaller airlines the 748 sold well and consistently over nearly three decades. When production ended in 1988 381 aircraft had been built (89 in India). The final HS 748 in service undertook its last flight on May 30, 2025 when Air Creebec donated their final machine to the Canadian Aviation Museum.

HS 748 in 1:400 Scale

Somewhat surprisingly there have been two moulds developed for the Budgie in 400 scale. In its earlier days JC Wings developed an impressive range of regional types including the 748, which debuted in 2009. The same year Aeroclassics also produced a 748 and unsurpisingly they have used their mould much more regularly, with the last release being made in 2020.

Unsurprisingly these are some of the smallest moulds available in 400 scale. See more on this at:

The Smallest Aircraft in 400 Scale

HS 748 in Real Life

Unlike the competing F27 and Herald the HS 748 has a low mounted wing, with dihedral from the root, allowing good ground clearance, easy access to the engines and shorter stronger landing gear. The long, high lift wing, which was fitted with a unique single slot flap with a hinged flap tab at the trailing edge, gave the aircraft excellent short field performance.

Ken Fielding/https://www.flickr.com/photos/kenfielding, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Pedro Aragão, CC BY-SA 3.0 GFDL, via Wikimedia Commons

MOULDS

JC Wings (2009)

JC Wings entered the 1:400 market under its own steam with an impressive range of aircraft moulds available for use, many of which were unique to itself and represented smaller regional types. Most of these moulds, which also include the DHC-8, ATR-42, Shorts 360 and Saab 340, are excellent and the HS 748 is just as good.

The only drawback that the mould can have is that it is something of a tail-sitter at times. Unfortunately usage of this delightful little casting has been very limited. Only five models were made between 2009 and late 2010 - 4 by JC Wings and 1 by Gemini Jets. Two further models have been made, both by Gemini. One in 2012 and after an eight year break another in February 2020.

Oddly the last model made did not include the nosegear doors, had something of a hot rod stance and the horizontal stabilisers pointed upwards. I reviewed the 2020 Dan Air example at Model Airliner.com:

Model Review: Dan Air HS 748 G-ARRW by Gemini Jets

Aeroclassics (2009)

Both the Aeroclassics and JC Wings HS 748 moulds are quite accurate and so both share a strong resemblance to each other too. The easiest way to tell them apart is at the wings and undercarriage. The wing flaps and engine exhausts are not as well detailed on the Aeroclassics mould and unlike the JC Wings edition the landing gear is static. Even so, the Aeroclassics Budgie is a great little casting. It's a shame that Aeroclassics is so sloppy in painting the tyres of the static gear as this often detracts from the overall quality.

The mould has had a lot better usage than the JC Wings version with 29 models made. Production started with six models in 2009-2010, then 15 in 2016, 4 in 2017, 3 in 2019 and the last in 2020. I reviewed one of the 2019 Dan Air examples at Model Airliner.com also:

Model Review: Dan Air HS 748 G-AZSU by Aeroclassics

Release Options

Obviously the sales potential for the HS 748 is a limited, but there are still options that I think are as viable as those made to date that remain unmade. These include

From the UK there is: