Specimen 0021 · Model kits
Imai Thunderbirds kits (1966 onwards)
The original Japanese Thunderbirds kits, many with box art by Shigeru Komatsuzaki.
About this item
Japanese Wikipedia (mostly uncited) records that Imai’s Thunderbirds kits, launched in 1966, were a big hit; that Imai sponsored the first Japanese broadcast of the series; and that many of the box illustrations were painted by Shigeru Komatsuzaki. Imai reissued the series in 1971–72 and added new kits through the 1990s.
The Science Museum Group holds an Imai Thunderbird 2 kit dated to about the 1980s.
How to identify it
Imai boxes carry the Imai name; later reissues of former Imai kits appear under the Aoshima name.
Model kits
On the same shelf
- Aoshima BIG Thunderbird 2 (Thunderbirds No. 20) An extra-large (about 250 mm) Thunderbird 2 kit with Thunderbird 4, the Mole and a magnetic towing vehicle — reissued in January 2026. Current
- Aoshima 1/32 FAB 1 kit Lady Penelope’s FAB 1 as a 1/32 plastic kit. Current
- Aoshima 1/48 Thunderbird 4 kit Thunderbird 4 as a motorised 1/48 kit with a working searchlight. Current
- Aoshima Thunderbirds mini kits Small kits of the Mole, Thunderbird 4, Thunderbirds 3 and 5, and Thunderbird 1. Current
- AiP10001 Thunderbird 1 (1:144 kit) A 1:144 Thunderbird 1 kit with movable wings and a choice of launch or in-flight build — a UK release of an Aoshima kit. Current
- AIP10012 Thunderbird 2 with Firefly (1:144 kit) A newly tooled 1:144 Thunderbird 2 with Pod 6 and the Firefly, plus turned metal legs. Current
- Bellfine “Trapped in the Sky” model kit A three-craft kit based on the first episode: Thunderbird 1, the Fireflash airliner and a high-speed elevator car. Current