[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by Foxbat

Another unique one in your collection. Is it an official Airbus model ? Which brand ?

An Airbus product (though I'm sure Made in China). I got it at a Airbus conference couple of years ago. They had a choice of a few to choose from and I picked the fat one. A better quality model is available at their gift shop in the Toulouse plant.

...I couldn't resist posting more pictures of my 1/72 Super Entendard assembled 18 years ago. Still looks good apart from the missing canopy (still can't find it).

That shows a lot of skill in the hands of a 12 year old. Savour the piece. It will get more precious with time. You managed a pretty good rendition of the grey shade.

Originally Posted by skanchan95

Just realised that the canopy of my JC Wings 1:72 IAF Su-30MK can be opened ......The pilot and the WSO are too big to fit in the cockpit. The only way I could use them was to make it look as if they are climbing up/down from the cockpit.

The air brake opens too. Nice diorama you've created there. I never thought of using the box as a runway! I think Foxbat is right. We need to chisel those crew members. The Su-30MKI in the tri-colour is always a delight to behold. BTW - my Beluga is upset at not receiving any attention from you and will swallow your MKI whole!!

MiG-21 bis Finnish Air Force :: 1:72 scale :: Hobbymaster
Excellent detailing. Just top class. A little fragile though. About 8" in length

MiG-25 PDS Foxbat-E Soviet Air Force :: 1:200 scale :: Herpa
Decent quality. Accurate detailing. Sadly a little small but a Foxbat nevertheless

I will let the photos speak.....These two all time greats need no write-up. I picked the Finnish AF colours as it was the only Western Air force to fly the MiG-21.

Two not so common ones coming up - a Lockeed and a Sukhoi

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Beluga Airbus A300-600ST; 1:200 scale, plastic model

I don't know how I missed seeing this. Fantastic looking model of a very unique aircraft. It is aptly named as well as it has very close resemblance to the Beluga Whale. Openable doors of the Cargo Bay makes the model even more drool worthy. Congratulations!!!

As a 8-10 yr old kid when I used to visit my relative's place in Bombay, an older cousin of mine used to have the same 1/400 Super Guppy model at his home. That model was his prized possession used he used to keep it locked away in his living room showcase away from the reach of us pesky younger cousins. He also had a aquarium which had varieties of coloured exotic fishes including a few Guppies. I remember looking at the fish and wondering how or why they named the aircraft Super Guppy as I could see no resemblance. The Memories!!!!

Originally Posted by Foxbat

The British were so afraid of the Exocet and Etendard combination that they were ready to go to great lengths to prevent or from being deployed: "After this incident, the Thatcher government was ready to take drastic measures to deal with the Exocet threat. This led to their conceiving Operation Mikado, which envisioned using two C-130 Hercules transports to land fifty-five operators of SAS B squadron onto the Rio Grande airbase to kill the Étendard pilots and destroy their planes, before fleeing to Chile for asylum. However, on May 18, a helicopter on a scouting run for the raid crash-landed in Chile at night and its crew was captured. The UK scratched the obviously suicidal mission at the last minute. In a separate endeavor, British intelligence agents posed as Exocet arms dealers in an effort to sabotage Argentine attempts to acquire more of the missiles."

Thanks for sharing, did not know this. The Exocet was much feared by the British and the Argentines knew it. During the war, the Argentine Air Force even considered borrowing a couple of Exocets from their Navy friends and fit them in their C-130s (on the wing drop tank pylon between the engines). But it was deemed too risky as safe separation on launch was not guaranteed and it could have caused trouble to the engines. The idea was rejected and they chose to mount three Mk.82 bombs on each pylon and used it as a bomber instead.

Originally Posted by Foxbat

The scene looks great with the runway mat

Are the pilots made of plastic? If so get some sandpaper and gently sand away the areas which prevent them from fitting in the cockpit. That area might lose its colour so you may have to touch it up with some paint. In my many years of experience of building fighter aircraft model this was a common problem and it was solved by making the pilots a bit smaller.

Thank you. The mat came with the model box and I think all new JC Wings fighter models come with it now. I am planning to get the mat replicated into a large base and set it up as large apron for my other 1/72 jets.

I am not sure sanding the crew figures will help. I think we might have chop off both hands and legs and chisel a bit off their back sides to stuff them in. They are just too big, even the heads feel oversized!!! On the other hand, my F/A-18A's smaller USMC pilot and F-16's Turkish pilot fit in the respective cockpits just perfectly. I feel the they have got the scale wrong on the Flanker crew models.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

That shows a lot of skill in the hands of a 12 year old. Savour the piece. It will get more precious with time. You managed a pretty good rendition of the grey shade.

Agreed. It needs special skill and patience to build and paint these models and Foxbat has plenty of both. I love the weathering effects on that model. Its a pity that the canopy is missing and I wish you find a way to build a placeholder canopy because it is truly a well made model of an amazing aircraft.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

The air brake opens too. Nice diorama you've created there. I never thought of using the box as a runway! I think Foxbat is right. We need to chisel those crew members. The Su-30MKI in the tri-colour is always a delight to behold. BTW - my Beluga is upset at not receiving any attention from you and will swallow your MKI whole!!

Thank you. I am thinking of searching for a 1/72 pilot and ground crew figure set, paint them appropriately to complete this diorama. JC's twin seat Flanker model is truly exquisite, however the same cannot be said about JC's single seat Su-27 model - the canopy and IRST sensor on their Su-27 models have been inaccurately modelled.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

MiG-21 bis Finnish Air Force :: 1:72 scale :: Hobbymaster
Excellent detailing. Just top class. A little fragile though. About 8" in length

MiG-25 PDS Foxbat-E Soviet Air Force :: 1:200 scale :: Herpa
Decent quality. Accurate detailing. Sadly a little small but a Foxbat nevertheless

I will let the photos speak.....These two all time greats need no write-up. I picked the Finnish AF colours as it was the only Western Air force to fly the MiG-21.

I am drooling at that MiG-21 as I always wished to have a 1/72 MiG-21, especially an MF in Iraqi or Syrian paint schemes. Congratulations, I am so happy that you could find such a detailed and great looking scale model of the MiG-21.

The fourth and final generation of the original MiG-21 - the bis was a significant improvement over the Fishbed's older models in air combat performance at low and medium altitudes thanks to a more powerful R-25 engine and the airframe had quite a few improvements as well and it was manufactured by HAL in great numbers. Unlike other MiG-21s, our locally built MiG-21s had IFF-400 instead of SRO-2M Odd Rods IFF.

The Finnish Air Force, like ours operated a curious mix of western and Soviet fighters including the Draken. Like us, they operated a few Gnat F.1s as well and later, the MiG-21bis.

The Foxbat looks great. Congratulations. I see it is adorned with the Order of Lenin. Even in the 1/200 scale, it looks so huge!!! Wonder how a 1/72 MiG-25 it will measure up against a 1/72 Su-30.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Two not so common ones coming up - a Lockeed and a Sukhoi

Let me hazard a guess - a Jet Star and a SSJ100? Or are they fighters? Cold War or Modern? Ground attack or Interceptor? Either way, can't wait to see your new toys.

[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

MiG-21 bis Finnish Air Force :: 1:72 scale :: Hobbymaster
Excellent detailing. Just top class. A little fragile though. About 8" in length

MiG-25 PDS Foxbat-E Soviet Air Force :: 1:200 scale :: Herpa
Decent quality. Accurate detailing. Sadly a little small but a Foxbat nevertheless

The Mig-21 is just amazing. I have been looking for a 1/72 scale one for some time. The Herpa Foxbat is the same one I have I guess in Libyan colours. Its pretty detailed for its size.

Now you need the Mig-17, Mig-19, and Mig-29 to complete your collection !

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

The Exocet was much feared by the British and the Argentines knew it. During the war, the Argentine Air Force even considered borrowing a couple of Exocets from their Navy friends and fit them in their C-130s (on the wing drop tank pylon between the engines).

The proposed commando action to disable the Exocets was so ill conceived and badly planned and almost certain to end up in all being killed that for the first and last time in the history of the SAS a few Sergeants refused to participate.

Wonder how a 1/72 MiG-25 it will measure up against a 1/72 Su-30.

The Su-30MKI will be a longer (about an inch and a half) and appear to sit higher on the ground due to the long stroke landing gear. Photo below.

Let me hazard a guess - a Jet Star and a SSJ100? Or are they fighters? Cold War or Modern? Ground attack or Interceptor? Either way, can't wait to see your new toys.

Well, well well. One is an ASW hunter and the other is a swing wing fast attack aircraft.

Originally Posted by Foxbat

Now you need the Mig-17, Mig-19, and Mig-29 to complete your collection !

Yesss! I am waiting patiently for the right Air Force colours. An IAF MiG-29 would be a catch. Photo below of the current MiG squadron showing the wing planforms. Each was a classic for its time. While on planforms. The most maneuverable MiG-21 by a long margin was a one off version built to test the wing shape of the Tu-144 Concordskii. The super maneuverability was a unintended off shoot - the long forebody strakes (giant LERXs) gave it stability at high angles of attack and generated air vortexes that scrubbed the wing and kept lift up even in very tight high speed turns. That huge wing volume also had the potential to store more fuel - always needed by MiG-21s.

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

The proposed commando action to disable the Exocets was so ill conceived and badly planned and almost certain to end up in all being killed that for the first and last time in the history of the SAS a few Sergeants refused to participate.

It probably would have met the same fate as the comical and foolish Pakistani SSG Commando raid on Halwara, Pathankot and Adampur air bases during the 1965 war. They had the same intention was of destroying IAF aircraft and kill as many IAF personnel as possible. The attempt proved to be an disaster as after parachuting down from their C-130s on the second or third night of the war, they became comically and hopelessly lost. Realizing their predicament and dawn soon approaching, only 20 or so commandos managed to flee back to Pakistan, One of the commanders of the raiding parties along with 90+ were captured and around 15+ were killed/lynched in encounters with the Indian army, police or civilians.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Well, well well. One is an ASW hunter and the other is a swing wing fast attack aircraft.

Probably a Neptune or a Viking(I am not considering the Orion as you already have one) and a Fencer??(although a swing wing Fitter, though not as fast, would be unique).

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

It probably would have met the same fate as the comical and foolish Pakistani SSG Commando raid on Halwara, Pathankot and Adampur air bases during the 1965 war. They had the same intention was of destroying IAF aircraft and kill as many IAF personnel as possible. The attempt proved to be an disaster as after parachuting down from their C-130s on the second or third night of the war, they became comically and hopelessly lost. Realizing their predicament and dawn soon approaching, only 20 or so commandos managed to flee back to Pakistan, One of the commanders of the raiding parties along with 90+ were captured and around 15+ were killed/lynched in encounters with the Indian army, police or civilians.

What an interesting incident. Cant help laughing at their plight. I didn't know this. You are one hell of a reader.

Probably a Neptune or a Viking(I am not considering the Orion as you already have one) and a Fencer??(although a swing wing Fitter, though not as fast, would be unique).

When aircraft strip tease they don't show you their legs. They show off their tails.

[Foxbat]

The Boeing 767 is a mid- to large-size, mid- to long-range, wide-body twin-engine jet airliner built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It was Boeing's first wide-body twinjet and its first airliner with a two-crew glass cockpit. The aircraft has two turbofan engines, a conventional tail, and, for reduced aerodynamic drag, a supercritical wing design. Designed as a smaller wide-body airliner than earlier aircraft such as the 747, the 767 has a seating capacity for 181 to 375 people, and a design range of 3,850 to 6,385 nautical miles (4,431 to 7,348 mi; 7,130 to 11,825 km), depending on variant. Development of the 767 occurred in tandem with a narrow-body twinjet, the 757, resulting in shared design features which allow pilots to obtain a common type rating to operate both aircraft.

The 767 is produced in three fuselage lengths. The original 767-200 entered service in 1982, followed by the 767-300 in 1986 and the 767-400ER, an extended-range (ER) variant, in 2000. The extended-range 767-200ER and 767-300ER models entered service in 1984 and 1988, respectively, while a production freighter version, the 767-300F, debuted in 1995. Conversion programs have modified passenger 767-200 and 767-300 series aircraft for cargo use, while military derivatives include the E-767 surveillance aircraft, the KC-767 and KC-46 aerial tankers, and VIP transports. Engines featured on the 767 include the General Electric CF6, Pratt & Whitney JT9D and PW4000, and Rolls-Royce RB211 turbofans.

The 767 is the first twinjet wide-body type to reach 1,000 aircraft delivered. As of January 2019, Boeing has received 1,244 orders for the 767 from 74 customers with 1,135 delivered.[1] A total of 742 of these aircraft were in service in July 2018.[3] The most popular variant is the 767-300ER with 583 delivered. Delta Air Lines is the largest operator with 77 aircraft. Competitors have included the Airbus A300, A310, and A330-200. Non-passenger variants of the 767 remain in production as of 2019 while the passenger variant's successor, the 787, entered service in 2011.

1:200 Diecast Varig Boeing 767-241 ER Registration PP-VNQ









The Real Plane.


The 1:200 Boeing fleet is complete for practical purposes:
707, 717 (actually a MD-80 which it is closely based),727,737,747,757,767,777 and 787.

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by Foxbat

1:200 Diecast Varig Boeing 767-241 ER Registration PP-VNQ
The 1:200 Boeing fleet is complete for practical purposes:
707, 717 (actually a MD-80 which it is closely based),727,737,747,757,767,777 and 787.

Heartiest, heartiest congratulations on completing your full line up and that too all in 1:200 scale. That is quite an achievement. We must have more photos of the full fleet. The 767 is quite a big piece you have there complete with its wooden stand. Great stuff Foxbat.

The 7 - 7 story: I suppose most aficionados would know the story behind the Boeing 7 - 7 branding of its jet airliners. I wonder what follows after the 797 moniker is used up.

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by Foxbat

The 1:200 Boeing fleet is complete for practical purposes:
707, 717 (actually a MD-80 which it is closely based),727,737,747,757,767,777 and 787.

Congratulations Foxbat for completing the Boeing lineup. It is truly quite an achievement. I suppose Airbus would be next

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

When aircraft strip tease they don't show you their legs. They show off their tails.

Can't wait to see the whole package . Both of them are unique in their own right, and your penchant for aggressively going after such models continues. Bravo and I look forward to seeing the photos.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

What an interesting incident. Cant help laughing at their plight. I didn't know this. You are one hell of a reader.

Apart from being such a foolish plan, luck wasn't on their side either. One of the SSG squad's radio operator landed straight in the middle of a river and drowned along with his equipment. So there was no way for them to co-ordinate with the others. Only few of the Pathankot raiders were able to get back safely into Pakistan as the border was just 10-12 kms away. Over the next 2-3 days those SSG fellows were hunted down....some hiding in the crop fields were beaten and chopped up by angry Punjabi civilians. Some were lucky enough to be caught by the Army and Police.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

The 7 - 7 story: I suppose most aficionados would know the story behind the Boeing 7 - 7 branding of its jet airliners. I wonder what follows after the 797 moniker is used up.

May be 7'Ten'7, 7'eleven'7 and so on or 7A7, 7B7 and so on? This will let them continue the 7-7 legacy of Boeing airliners. 7A7-200 sounds much better than 7107-200 though.

[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Heartiest, heartiest congratulations on completing your full line up and that too all in 1:200 scale. That is quite an achievement.

Originally Posted by skanchan95

Congratulations Foxbat for completing the Boeing lineup. It is truly quite an achievement. I suppose Airbus would be next

Thank you, yes Airbus is next. I am looking for 1:200 A300 and A310 preferably in diecast. Narayan will get more pics of the lineup on some weekend, its a major task getting them from shelves and removing the stands and trying to get them to fit on the table. Now I know why big collectors prefer 1:400, however I think 1:200 has best balance between scale and detail.

[V.Narayan]

Lockheed Viking S-3 Carrier-borne ASW aircraft :: US Navy :: 1:72 HobbyMaster

Superbly detailed. Couldn’t ask for more. Model’s length ~ 8.5 inches; Wingspan ~11.5 inches. The material like the MiG-21 bis, in post #796, is a hard high quality plastic and not diecast. This makes it relatively light and yet of high quality finish. I have noticed this of Hobbymaster models.

The Lockheed Viking S-3 was a carrier-based, subsonic, all-weather, multi-mission aircraft with long endurance. It was designed initially for anti-submarine warfare to create a cordon sanitaire around the carrier group. Later after the Cold War some were converted to anti-ship roles, carrier borne air-air tanker refueling roles and Electronic Intelligence surveillance (ELINT) roles. It served only with the US Navy from 1974 to 2009 and overall had a great flying record. Several have been kept in storage. The South Koreans and the US Navy have expressed thoughts of refurbishing them and putting them back into active service.

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Lockheed Viking S-3 Carrier-borne ASW aircraft :: US Navy :: 1:72 HobbyMaster
The material like the MiG-21 bis, in post #796, is a hard high quality plastic and not diecast. This makes it relatively light and yet of high quality finish. I have noticed this of Hobbymaster models. [/i]

Wow!!! Congratulations. Can scarcely believe that the model is plastic and not metal as plastic models, especially military ones, rarely have that kid of detailing. How would rate Hobby Master 1/72 military models? Better than JC Wings 1/72 models? I know JC is metal, but still I would like to know your opinion.

Can't recall any other US navy carrier based jet that had jet engines mounted on the wings like a commercial airliner. Shall always remember the S-3 for being the jet on which President George "Dubya" Bush arrived on board the USS Abraham Lincoln to declare "mission accomplished" at the end of the 2nd Gulf War. That the insurgency and Allied Forces casualties increased after the speech is another matter though.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

The South Koreans and the US Navy have expressed thoughts of refurbishing them and putting them back into active service.

The S-3 replaced the KA-6D Intruder in the carrier based tanker role. Later, the S-3 was replaced the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet for the tanker role. Now the USN wants to have the S-3 back as a dedicated tanker and as a ASW platform, to take on the rapidly expanding and modernized Chinese Navy threat.

[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Lockheed Viking S-3 Carrier-borne ASW aircraft :: US Navy :: 1:72 HobbyMaster

Amazing! That must be the most detailed plastic model I have seen. The plane is quite interesting and relatively rare. I remember as a child I built a 1:542 model of the aircraft carrier USS Saratoga in the early 1990s. It had numerous miniature aircraft for the deck and the S-3 was among them and thats when I first saw this aircraft.

Amazingly I saw the same kit available on Youtube! (see 0:45)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kf5IObdcgg

[Monolithic]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

Just realised that the canopy of my JC Wings 1:72 IAF Su-30MK can be opened with a bit of effort and good amount of care and this mechanism is the way it has been designed to work. Initially I thought the canopy was stuck and did not want to risk breaking it in an attempt to pry open the canopy. The other 1/72 JCW/WW models in my collection like the F/A-18s and EF2000 canopy open and close smoothly without much effort. So it was time for a photoshoot...

Hi!

How long did it take for this model to get delivered?

How is the quality?

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by Monolithic

Hi!

How long did it take for this model to get delivered?

How is the quality?

I got mine through a dealer based in Mumbai - dbjets.com. I had the model in my hands within three days of payment.

Quality is quite good, couple of minor goofups in the model but that can be ignored. But remember these things have great level of detailing, which means antennas and probes are modelled as well, which are pretty thin and brittle. Therefore the models require extreme care during assembly(fitting of landing gear and weapons attachments) and handling.