1/144 Academy MiG-29 Fulcrum

Gallery Article by S K Loh on Mar 27 2015

 

      

Depicted here is a Polish Air Force MiG-29 with a special scheme to honour Polish WWII pilots. The kit was an Academy 1/144 kit with Russian markings. I chance upon this special Polish demo bird which debut at the RIAT 2012 at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, UK. There were two demo birds at that event. I chose to build the one bearing Red Bort 56 that featured famous WWII Polish fighter pilot Cdr Marian Pisarek on the inner side of the vertical fins (he would have been 100 years of age in 2012). on the inner side of the vertical fins and had the big and nice emblem of 303 Koscuiszko Squadron.  

 

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For the build. I had to scratch build the external sensors, blisters air data sensor, IRST and IFF antenna in front of the cockpit to enhance its look as found from the pictures of the demo bird. I had to discard the original missiles that came with the kit and scratch build 2 x AA-8 Aphids and 2 x AA-11 Archers missiles. Reshaped the pylons to make it looked more realistic too.   

For further realism, I added static dischargers on the trailing edges of the main wing, stabs and fins. As the demo bird carried a centreline tank I added a scratch built tank to go with it. The nose was improved by extending its length and reshaping using putty and sanding it down. Lastly, had the original pitot tube replaced with a metal pin. 

I used a mix of basic Tamiya and Mr Hobby colours to create the Light Grey overall with Dark Grey camo pattern on its upper surfaces. Light weathering was applied as this was a demo bird. However, the oil streaks were accentuated on the undersides near the exhaust and the centerline drop tank as seen from the pictures. Decals were self-made.

Enjoy the photos.

S K Loh

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Photos and text © by S K Loh