North American PBJ-1J BuNo 35849 Naval Ordnance Test Station

These are 1/72 scale decals for North American PBJ-1J, BuNo 35849, operated by the Naval Ordnance Test Station (NOTS), China Lake, California — a highly modified airframe used for the testing of the experimental Harvey rocket, fitted with a purpose-built rocket launcher integrated directly into the nose.

The PBJ-1J was the U.S. Navy's designation for the B-25J Mitchell, the definitive production variant of North American's legendary twin-engine medium bomber. While the Mitchell served with distinction in every theater of World War II — most famously in the Doolittle Raid — the Navy's PBJ variants were adapted for maritime patrol, anti-shipping, and special weapons development roles. BuNo 35849 represents one of the more unusual postwar applications of the type, pressed into service as an airborne test platform long after the Mitchell's combat career had ended.

The Naval Ordnance Test Station at China Lake was — and remains — the U.S. Navy's premier weapons research and development facility, responsible for testing and evaluating a vast range of rockets, missiles, and ordnance systems in the remote Mojave Desert. The Harvey rocket program was one of many experimental weapons evaluated at NOTS in the postwar era, and the decision to mount the launcher directly in the nose of BuNo 35849 gave engineers a stable, controllable airborne platform for live-fire testing under realistic flight conditions.

A genuinely one-of-a-kind subject at the intersection of postwar weapons research and the twilight of the Mitchell's operational life — a must for collectors interested in experimental aviation and Cold War ordnance development. Please allow some time for decal printing and shipping.