Scale: 1:24
Span: 17.5"
Length: 13"

Keen to enter the market with a lightweight sporting amphibian, Republic acquired the design of an aircraft in this category from P. H. Spencer, a well-known designer of single-engine amphibians. The resulting Republic RC-1 prototype was first flown during 1945. In production form, as the RC-3 Seabee, this airplane had four-seat accommodation and was powered by a Franklin flat-six engine. Demand for the Seabee was enormous, primarily because the company had underpriced it, and when production was brought to an end in late 1947, a total of more than 1,000 airplanes had been built. The company's order book was then far from satisfied, but Republic could not afford to sell each airplane at a considerable loss and, in any event, the buyers would soon have disappeared had the Seabee been given a realistic price tag. The RC-3 Seabee was powered by one Franklin 6A-215-B8F or B9F flat-six engine, giving the airplane a maximum speed of 120 mph at 2,500 feet, service ceiling of 12,000 feet, and a range of 360 miles.