Hobby Master October 2026: A Closer Look at All 21 New Releases

Posted by Diecast Airplane Store on Apr 20th 2026

Hobby Master October 2026: A Closer Look at All 21 New Releases

From the return of the VF-143 Tomcat to a brand-new A-6E Intruder mould and an ultra-limited run of 1:32 Hellcats, Hobby Master’s October releases are one of the most ambitious in recent memory.

Published April 20, 2026•By Diecast Airplane Store•12 min read

Hobby Master F-14A Tomcat VF-143 Punkin Dogs HA5263

The F-14A Tomcat of VF-143 “Punkin Dogs,” NAS Oceana, 1976 — one of the marquee releases in this batch.

Hobby Master has released its October 2026 releases (No. 843069), and it represents one of the most ambitious and diverse batches we’ve seen from the brand in recent years. The lineup spans 21 new models across four different scales — from the flagship 1:72 Air Power Series to a rare 1:8 scale polyresin figure — and touches nearly every era of military aviation history.

What makes this release particularly notable isn’t just the quantity, but the deliberate curatorial strategy behind it. Hobby Master is launching an entirely new tooling family, honoring a current operation with a coordinated trilogy, re-issuing one of its rarest 1:32 subjects at a production run of just 80 units, and quietly expanding into less-covered corners of aviation history like the Pakistani Air Force J-10CE and the Argentine F-16AM.

For collectors trying to decide which models to prioritize, here’s a detailed breakdown of the release, organized by scale, with historical context on the most significant subjects.

“Production runs as low as 80 units make these among the most sought-after collectibles in the hobby — and this October batch has more than one release in that tier.”

The Operation Epic Fury Trilogy

Three aircraft from Hobby Master’s October release commemorate Operation Epic Fury of March 2026: the A-10C Thunderbolt II (HA1344), the F/A-18E Super Hornet from VFA-37 “Ragin’ Bulls” (HA5146), and the F-16C Fighting Falcon of the 79th FS (HA38082). Together they represent three different services — Air Force, Navy, and Marine-adjacent tactical aviation — all participating in the same operation.

This kind of coordinated trilogy is rare in diecast releases. Collectors who follow current operations will want all three to complete a thematic display, and Hobby Master almost certainly knows this. Expect the set to drive strong pre-order demand.

A Brand-New A-6E Intruder Mould

One of the more significant announcements in this release is the debut of a completely new A-6E Intruder tooling. The A-6E Intruder from VA-34 “Blue Blasters” (HC1001) and its companion KA-6D tanker variant from VA-35 “Black Panthers” aboard USS Nimitz (HC1002) carry the new HC-series SKU prefix — Hobby Master’s signal that this is a brand-new mould family.

For longtime Grumman collectors, the Intruder has been conspicuously absent from Hobby Master’s catalog. A-6E fans have largely had to rely on older Witty Wings or Hogan pieces. That changes now. With production runs of 700 each, these should be more accessible than some of the smaller runs in this batch, but new moulds consistently sell through faster than expected as collectors rush to own the first releases from a new tooling.

The HeadlinerF-14A Tomcat of VF-143 “Punkin Dogs”

The F-14A Tomcat BuNo 159434 of VF-143 “Punkin Dogs” (HA5263) is the kind of release that sells itself. VF-143 — nicknamed the “Punkin Dogs” (or “World Famous Pukin Dogs,” depending on which era’s patch you prefer) — flew from NAS Oceana beginning in the mid-1970s and later deployed on USS America. The 1976 livery captured here represents some of the earliest operational F-14s in a pre-TPS low-visibility scheme, complete with colorful squadron markings that collectors associate with the golden age of naval aviation.

Limited to 360 units worldwide, this one will move quickly. The F-14 remains one of the single most collected subjects in diecast aviation, and this particular unit and scheme hasn’t been produced by Hobby Master in over a decade.

• • •

1:72 ScaleThe Core of the Release

The Air Power Series in 1:72 is Hobby Master’s bread and butter, and this batch of sixteen models reflects the breadth of the brand’s global appeal. The selection covers American naval aviation, Cold War Soviet aircraft, modern international fighters, WWII workhorses, and specialized aircraft from current operations. All 1:72 models include a display stand.

Among the 1:72 standouts not already covered: the MiG-25BM “White 43” with four KH-58 missiles (HA5655), a specialized defense-suppression variant rarely covered at this scale; the U-2S Dragon Lady from Osan AB, 2025 (HA6907), representing one of the last operational Dragon Lady units still flying; and the F-16AM MLU from the Argentine Air Force (HA38081), a subject that appeals to both South American aviation collectors and F-16 completists. The Argentine F-16 is particularly noteworthy for its small production run of just 200 units.

1:48 ScaleTwo Battle of Britain Aces

The 1:48 scale releases honor two of the RAF’s top-scoring aces during the summer of 1941. The Spitfire Mk.Vb of Flight Lieutenant Eric Lock (HA7865), flying with No. 611 Squadron out of RAF Hornchurch, and the Spitfire Mk.Vb of Pilot Officer Donald E. Kingaby (HA7866) with No. 92 Squadron at RAF Biggin Hill are both significant historical subjects in their own right.

Eric Lock was one of the highest-scoring British aces of the Battle of Britain before his death in combat in August 1941. Donald Kingaby, often called “the 109 specialist” for his proficiency against the Bf 109, survived the war and continued flying into the 1950s. The 1:48 scale treatment does justice to the elliptical wing and lets the pad-printed markings and panel lines really shine.

1:32 ScaleThe Crown Jewels

At 1:32 scale, Hobby Master moves into genuinely museum-quality territory. These aren’t desk models — they’re display pieces with opening canopies, detailed cockpit interiors, interchangeable landing gear, and authentic ordnance loads. Both of the October 1:32 releases are WWII Grumman F6F Hellcats, and both are significant for different reasons.

F6F-5 “Death & Destruction” of VF-83 — HA0306

This is a re-issue limited to just 80 units worldwide. Let that number sink in. Eighty units for the entire global market, split across retailers in dozens of countries. At that production level, the model will almost certainly be sold out at the factory before it even ships. The original release of this scheme is a regular feature in collector forum “grail” discussions, and the re-issue has been anticipated for years.

F6F-5P Photo-Reconnaissance Hellcat — HA0310

The F6F-5P photo-reconnaissance variant (135P of VF-84 “Wolf Gang” aboard USS Bunker Hill, August 1945) is the rarer airframe of the two — photo-recon Hellcats were produced in smaller numbers during the war and saw limited combat service in the Pacific. At 200 units, it’s not quite as constrained as the “Death & Destruction” re-issue, but it’s still firmly in “pre-order or miss out” territory.

1:8 ScaleA Departure: The Chinese Astronaut Figure

The one non-aircraft item in the release is genuinely unusual for Hobby Master: a 1:8 scale polyresin figure of a Chinese astronaut in the next-generation spacesuit (HF8003) being developed for China’s planned 2030 lunar landing mission. This is the first space-related release in the HF-series and signals Hobby Master’s continued expansion beyond military aviation into broader aerospace subjects.

For collectors who curate broader aerospace collections — or who simply want something unusual among a shelf full of warbirds — this figure will be a conversation piece.

• • •

The Lesser-Known Gems

A few releases in this batch deserve special attention because they cover subjects that rarely appear in diecast form:

The Beaufighter VIF of No. 405 (Lynx) Squadron, RCAF (HA2318) and Beaufighter TF Mk. X of 103 Tajeset, Israeli Air Force (HA2319) together tell two fascinating stories. The RCAF Lynx Squadron flew night-fighter Beaufighters over the UK in 1943, while the Israeli Beaufighter served in the 1948 War of Independence. Both are limited to just 300 units.

The Douglas A-1H Skyraider “The Proud American” (HA2922) represents one of the most storied individual Skyraider airframes of the Vietnam War — flown by the 1st Special Operations Squadron out of NKP Royal Thai Air Force Base in June 1972. The A-1H is a foundational subject for Vietnam-era collectors, and Hobby Master’s treatment at 500 units means it should be available, but not indefinitely.

The J-10CE Vigorous Dragon of the Pakistani Air Force “Cobras” squadron (HA9402) is particularly timely given recent interest in Chinese-exported fighter platforms. This is one of the first J-10CE models produced in the PAF livery, and Pakistani aviation collectors have been waiting for it.

A Note on Pre-Ordering

Hobby Master models are produced in strictly limited quantities. Unlike mass-produced toys, when the factory run is gone, it’s gone — the only option afterward is the secondary market, often at significant premiums. Given that several releases in this batch have production runs of 300 units or fewer (and one at just 80 units), pre-ordering is the most reliable way to guarantee your allocation.

The entire October 2026 release is now available for pre-order. Expected arrival is October 2026, with fulfillment on a first-come, first-served basis.

Browse the Full October Release

All 21 new models are available for pre-order now.

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