Operation Omega "Patrol Hopper"

Scale: 1:48
Initial Release: 1985
Medium: Polystyrene
Kit Rarity: 3

About the Design

At the height of the 1980's "Transformer" craze, Japan's Hasegawa company decided to come out with its own line of transformable model kits.  But instead of creating airplanes or rockets that transformed into fighting robots, its first "Project Omega" kit, the "Patrol Hopper," was a highly detailed air/space transport that transformed into a 1:144 scale U.S. Space Shuttle and a transport/launching vehicle.  As it turned out, the "Patrol Hopper" design was far more interesting that the shuttle/launcher combination -- which actually resembled the launching system used in the movie Airplane II -- and it is rarely shown or displayed in that alternate configuration.

About the Kit

Like AMT's Strategic Space Command series, Hasegawa's "Project Omega" turned out to be a one-shot deal.  No follow-ups to the Patrol Hopper were ever produced.  Oddly enough, the kit was picked up by Monogram later in the 1980s and re-released under the title  "Eagle Lunar Explorer" as part of that company's Young Astronauts series.This model was built from the original Hasegawa issue.