JN014              “Saburo Sakai’s Zero”

Petty officer later Lieutenant Sakai was an Imperial Japanese Navy “ace” who took part in the attack on the Philippines in the days immediately after Pearl Harbor.  Having already seen combat in the war in China Sakai was a battle-hardened veteran fighter pilot when he attacked Clark Field, the principal U.S. air base in the Philippine Islands.

Through the course of the Pacific War he fought and flew in many of the principal theatres of operations and continually added to his tally of enemy “Kills”.

Officially, Sakai was credited with 28 aerial victories although one of his biographies claims up to 64 “Kills”..!

Our model shows one of Saburo Sakai’s “Zeros” as it appeared in 1942 complete with a diagonal blue stripe and the code “V103” on the tail plane.

A standing figure of Sakai is also included with this aircraft.

Just 150 of this special set are being released.