introduction

The S.A.S (Special Air Service) was formed during World War Two by Sir David Sterling. Sterling wanted to use commando style hit and run tactics on German airfields and supply lines. Today there is not much know about the S.A.S because they remain hidden, however they have been made famous by the media. The best known example of this was the Iranian embassy siege. The siege took place in 1980 and resulted in the S.A.S taking control of the embassy and killing all but one of the terrorists.

the kit

The Figures:
The figure set released by Dragon appears to be based on Iranian embassy siege. The box art shows four figures in action poses. The first figure has his gun raised and looks like he might be checking the stairway. The second figure is aiming down his Iron sights, maybe at a terrorist? The third figure is my least favorite and he looks like he is running. I doubt that the S.A.S would run during a siege. The last man is my favorite, he is slightly bent over with a shotgun and has a hammer on his back, preparing to clear a room.

The uniforms are probably still used today and could be used in any modern diorama. As for heads all of the figures are wearing balaclavas and two have respirators on. I am pretty sure watching the documentary all of the S.A.S wore respirators to protect themselves from any gas and stun grenades. Inside the box there are two sprues, one main and a weapons sprue. The main one has the figures and the accessories. The figures are broken down into legs torso arms and head. For an old kit the detail is superb; the creases are really well done and detail is crisp. The heads are really nice and will turn out nice with a bit of paint. The only gripe about the figures is a tiny bit of flash on the figures legs, boots and on some of the heads.

The Accessories:
Moving onto the accessories, you get some nice gear to add to the figures. There are four torches which do look cool. Then you also get combat knives and what looks like a pouch for the gas mask. The sledge hammer is molded onto the back of figure four and all you have to do is add the metal end.

The Weapons:
The weapons sprue is comprised of four weapons and three stocks. The weapons consist of three Heckler and Koch Mp5’s and a shotgun. The Mp5s are well detailed but look a bit small for me. But they are well detailed and you can see all the little details. Dragon also includes an extra magazine for the second guy to put on his Mp5. The last weapon, the shotgun looks nice but I feel it is not as well detailed as the other weapons.
The paint guide on the back suggests a light black, almost dark grey. This will prove hard to some inexperienced modelers and a good challenge to figure painters.

Conclusion

All in all this is one fantastic set of a subject that has rarely been covered. This set of figures cries out for a diorama. Highly recommended.