Eastern Alliance "Stazi-Class" Destroyer

from "Battlestar Galactica" (1978-1979)

Scale: 1:288
Initial Release: 2011
Medium: Resin
Kit Rarity: 3
Length: 13.0"

About the Design

Featured in the Battlestar Galactica (Original Series) episodes "Greetings from Earth," "Baltar's Escape" and "Experiment in Terra," the "Stazi-Class" Destroyer is a compact warship operated by the planet Terra's "Eastern Alliance," which is at war with that same planet's "Western Coalition."

Small enough to be housed in a battlestar's landing bay, the Destroyer is crewed by a Commanding Officer and six crewmen. Although its firepower is limited, it uses "swarm attacks" to overwhelm much larger adversaries.

The Destroyer is a classic example of late 1970's era "kit-bashing."  The trend was started in the late 1960s when articles on the making of Stanley Kubrick's 1968 "2001: A Space Odyssey" revealed that SPFX director Douglas Trumball's team had used parts of plastic model kits to texture many of the movie's breathtaking miniatures.  Immediately, cash-strapped SPFX artists began to employ the same technique, not only detailing their ships with plastic model parts but sometimes building filming miniatures out of nothing but model kits pieces. The Eastern Alliance Destroyer is an example of such a "kit-bash,", the main body clearly composed of a repurposed F-15 fighter.

About the Kit

This 1:288 resin kit was released by Fantastic Plastic in May 2011.  The kit was patterned by Alfred Wong and cast by Millennial Models International (MMI). Decals were by JBOT.