Reviewed May 2022
by Martin J Quinn
HISTORY
USS Wright, named for Orville Wright of Wright Brothers fame, was an auxiliary ship in the US Navy.  Built in Philadelphia, PA, the ship – initially named SS Skaneateles - was laid down in February 1919 as a Hog Island type "B" cargo vessel at American International Shipbuilding Corporation.

Launched on April 28, 1920, she was then moved to a Hoboken, NJ shipyard, where she was completed as a "lighter-than-air aircraft tender”.   She was commissioned into the Navy, as AZ-1, USS Wright, on December 16, 1921, at the New York Navy Yard. 

 Wright began her career supporting Scouting Division 1 and tending to seaplanes along the East Coast of the United States and in the Caribbean.  Her official career at a balloon tender was a brief one, as she raised her kite balloon for the last time in July, 1922.   Afterwards, she tended seaplanes, such as NC-10 flying boats and F5L seaplanes, during training and fleet exercises, such as Fleet Problem 1 in 1923. 

After a foray into the Pacific Ocean, and a trip to Pearl Harbor, Wright was converted to a seaplane tender at Norfolk, VA in 1925, subsequently being re-designated AV-1.  As AV-1, she had a long and varied career, highlighted by this alleged encounter on the night of December 6/7, 1941, per Wikipedia:

 “During the night of 6/7 December 1941, while sailing toward Pearl Harbor at night, the crew spotted an aircraft carrier that overtook it as it sailed toward Hawaii. Whether Wright radioed a report of the sighting or not is unclear, but even if they had, the report was not recognized for what it was—an actual sighting of one of the Japanese aircraft carriers just hours prior to the attack, and the only such sighting made by an American Naval asset. The sighting was recalled by a former member of the crew serving on Wright named Sherwin Callander. As an elderly gentleman in 2019, while being interviewed for a video, unexpectedly he recalled, "A carrier passed us, going in the same direction. We were headin' back to Pearl and they were headin' towards Pearl too. And we knew it was a carrier -- it was at night -- but we didn't know what nationality it was. Then the next morning, we heard over the news broadcast that they attacked Pearl Harbor.”  (I can’t recall ever hearing this story before, and can’t imagine that Wright wouldn’t have been quickly dispatched by the Japanese if their paths had crossed in the dark and stormy Pacific that night.)

Reclassified AG-79 in October 1944, she was renamed San Clemente in February 1945, freeing up her name for a new light carrier then under construction.

For more on Wright’s career, both as AZ/AV-1 and finally as AG-79, see her Wikipedia page here: USS Wright (AV-1) - Wikipedia.   You can find photos of Wrighthere and here.
The Doggy Industries Wright

Wright is packaged in a white cardboard box, with a photo of the real vessel on the box top.  Inside the box is everything you'll need to build her - hull, resin parts, injection-molded parts, photo-etch and some plastic rod for the davits, along with instructions and a brochure with other Doggy Industries offerings. 
THE HULL 
The hull is waterline.   According to the measurements I found for Wright, the hull scales out pretty much perfectly in both beam and length.   The hull is very well cast, with deep portholes and nominal over pour on the bottom of the hull.  The hull "plating" is mimicked by recessed lines in the hull.  This is the least attractive part of an otherwise excellent casting. 
SUPERSTRUCTURE 
The larger part after the hull is the central superstructure, which is cast as one piece.   It's slightly warped, but not terribly so.  There are well define portholes and windows (the windows are really well done) as well as doors, though these will be covered by the kit supplied PE.  There are shallow lines cast into the deck for placement of the boat cradles - a nice touch.
SMALLER PARTS
Amongst the smaller parts is the kite balloon hangar, the funnel, ships boats, armament, bridge equipment and lots and lots of cowl vents.  The hangar is well cast, with well defined portholes and nicely done braces/supports.  There is no detail inside the hangar, so if you choose to pose it open, you'll have to get creative. 
BONUS PARTS
This edition of Wright includes bonus parts, these being a kite balloon and a F5L seaplane.  The shape of the kite balloon looks good to the eye.  The stabilizing finhus look good, but the lines in the balloon to replicate the seams in the fabric are grossly overstated.    The seaplane is a Naval Aircraft Factory F5L.  It's composed of a resin hull and engines, with the rest of the parts being PE.   Compared to photos, it looks like a F5L. 
INJECTION MOLDED PARTS (X2)
There are two injections molded sprues included in the model.  They are labeled as sprue "T".   I have no idea where they are sourced from, but they include signal lamps, 5in guns, 20mm guns and shields, 40mm guns, paravanes, boats, anchors, rafts and vents.   The barrels on the 5in guns on both sprues were broken.   The parts remind me of one of the PitRoad upgrade sets, though perhaps a little better molded. 
 
PHOTOETCH
There is an extensive photo-etch set included.   Here you'll find railings, inclined ladders, deck houses, the facing on the bridge, booms & rigging, the deck surrounding the hangar, and more, including parts for the seaplane.   There are also parts for the kite balloon, which would allow you to show the balloon deployed, with her observation basket deployed.   Overall, the photo-etch looks to be really well done. 
DECALS
There is a small decal set included, with two versions of the US flag and the US naval jack. 
INSTRUCTIONS
The instructions are two sides of one piece of paper, on glossy paper, and in color.   While they should get the job done, I think they could have been a little more detailed for a model with so many photo-etch parts.  But, being that most modelers tend to ignore the directions, this might not matter to you. 
CONCLUSIONS
This is a unique kit of a little known (at least, to me) ship.  It's really nicely cast, with an excellent photo-etch set.  My only nit pick is the directions not being as robust as I would like.   Strongly recommended for anyone who's interested in US navy auxiliaries or the USN's "Old Navy" (pre-WWII) era (I bet this would look good in a diorama), though with all that photo-etch, this isn't a kit for a novice.   Hopefully they release more of these unique types of ships. 

This is Doggy Industries 1/700 USS Wright, kit number MDW-051.  The model lists for $99.99 (before shipping) and is available on eBay, if you search "doggy industries wright". 

This is an in-box review.  While the model seems to compare nicely to photos and drawings found in books and online, your mileage may vary once you commence construction.  Thanks to Doggy Industries Models for the review sample.