Hobby Master 1:48 Air Power Series Die-cast Model

Grumman F9F-5 Panther – Lt. Royce Williams, VF-781, U.S. Navy, Korean War (museum's F9F Panther painted to replicate William's aircraft with the addition of four kill markings below the canopy..).

1:48 Scale.  Length: 9.25".  Wingspan: 9.5"


Limited production of approximately 400 models worldwide

On November 18, 1952; 7 Soviet MiG-15s were detected heading for the USS Oriskany. Royce Williams with three other F9Fs were sent to engage. One F9F had to return to the carrier due to a fuel pump problem so it and his wingman left. Two Panthers continued on to intercept but the third Panther had a gun jam and left Royce Williams to take on the 7. In a battle that lasted 38 minutes Williams was able to shoot down 4 MiGs plus one crashed returning to Vladivostok.

At the age of 97, Capt. Williams received the Navy Cross in a ceremony at the San Diego Air and Space Museum, California, on January 20, 2023. The award was presented by Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro and comes on top of a Silver Star Medal that Williams had received in May 1953, weeks before the end of the Korean War. The museum's F9F Panther has been painted to replicate William's aircraft with the addition of four kill markings below the canopy.

The Grumman F9F Panther was the most widely used US Navy jet fighter of the Korean War. It flew 78,000 sorties and was responsible for the first US Navy air kill in the war - the downing of a North Korean Yakovlev Yak-9 fighter on July 3 1950. A total of 1,382 F9F Panthers were built.


Hobby Master offers a wide selection of quality, pre-assembled, diecast model airplanes. Each model is crafted to a high level of accuracy using specifications of the original aircraft. They are constructed with diecast metal and some plastic components.

This model of an F9F Panther features: