[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

1:18 T-70 X-Wing Starfighter "Black One" , Black Squadron, Resistance Starighter Fleet(Hasbro - Fantasy/Fictional)

A very interesting and unique addition to the thread I think we will have to change the title to include spaceships. I remember making one of these as a child out of plastic cut out cards from a cereal box toy. I wonder how to they assign a 1:18 Scale/Size to a fictional vehicle?

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Bréguet 1050 Alizé:: Carrier borne ASW patrol aircraft::1:72 kit from FROMM a French model kit maker

Excellent addition to your 1971 war collection I really like the subtle weather effects. The kit would have been a rare one as it not a really well known aircraft. One has been recently added to the Naval Aviation Museum in Goa and I was completely surprised by its immense size! Its amazing a single propeller was powerful enough for the aircraft to take off from a small carrier with three people onboard and full complement of weapons and fuel.

Is the retractable radome moveable? I see it changing positions when the aircraft is held inverted.

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by Foxbat

One has been recently added to the Naval Aviation Museum in Goa and I was completely surprised by its immense size! Its amazing a single propeller was powerful enough for the aircraft to take off from a small carrier with three people onboard and full complement of weapons and fuel.

Yes the Alize was a large machine. With its tall landing gear it stood quite high above the deck. Photo below gives a comparison of the hangar mates - Alize and Sea Hawk. The high aspect ratio wing gave it a low take-off speed and high cruise ability. That is why with just one powerful turboprop it could lift 8200 kgs MTOW off the deck. The British in 1957 tried to push us to buy their equivalent the Fairey Gannet but we stood our ground. The Alize in hindsight proved to be the more successful, less complex and longer lasting of the two. We wanted a better machine than the Sea Hawk which by 1961 was long in the tooth but the British had no light carrier borne fighter in their inventory and the only French machine the Dassault Etendard IV was found grossly inadequate on fuel fraction and lift safety margins while executing carrier take-offs and landings. the Etendard IV could either carry moderate fuel or moderate weapons but never both together!!!

Is the retractable radome moveable? I see it changing positions when the aircraft is held inverted.

Yes it can move in and out.

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Bréguet 1050 Alizé:: Carrier borne ASW patrol aircraft::1:72 kit from FROMM a French model kit maker

Superb!!! Such an iconic addition to your collection and it is so good to see the Sea Hawk & the Alize together.

The Alize's successor in INAS 310 - the Naval Do-228 too went onto perform the same EW & ISR role that Alize did flying along the Indo-Pak border during the Kargil War.

Very innovative use of the stand too.

Originally Posted by Foxbat

A very interesting and unique addition to the thread I think we will have to change the title to include spaceships.

There was Star Trek USS Enterprise posted by a member earlier in the thread too.

Originally Posted by Foxbat

I wonder how to they assign a 1:18 Scale/Size to a fictional vehicle?

Actually, they didn't.

The X-Wing's Dameron Poe pilot figure is about 9.5 cms in height, which is approximately four times the size of 1:72 pilot figure. So taking an educated guess, I can safely say that the Pilot figure is nearly in the 1:18 scale and thus the X-Wing too.

[libranof1987]

Ladies and gents, presenting a model I've lusted after for long. Thanks to selfdrive for finding and bringing it from a land far away.

The Qantas Lockheed Super Constellation (L-1049G-82-153) flying as VH-EAP "Southern Zephyr", a 1:200 kit by herpa.

Here's a short history on this specific plane:

First flown - November 08, 1957
It was accepted by Qantas Airways at Burbank - November 19, 1957
Operated its final revenue service Sydney - Johannesburg - Sydney - October 03, 1959
Sold to Lockheed Aircraft Corporation - October 23, 1959
Had flown 5,765 hours 16 minutes with 916 cycles to date

http://www.aussieairliners.org/l-1049/vh-eap/vheap.html

I've been in awe of this plane (the first plane family to have wide spread use of a pressurised cabin on civil airliners) and was looking for one for a lwhile. dbjets has one in Air China livery, which wasn't preferred so when selfdrive mentioned this, jumped at it!

General characteristics

Crew: 5 (Pilot, Copilot, Navigator, Flight Engineer, Radio Operator)
Capacity: 47-106 Passengers
Length: 113 ft 7 in (34.62 m)
Wingspan: 123 ft (37 m)
Height: 24 ft 9 in (7.54 m)
Wing area: 1,650 sq ft (153 m2)
Airfoil: root: NACA 23018; tip: NACA 4412[5]
Empty weight: 69,000 lb (31,298 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 120,000 lb (54,431 kg)
Powerplant: 4 × Wright R-3350 972-TC-18DA-1 Duplex-Cyclone 18-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engines, 3,250 hp (2,420 kW) each
Propellers: 3-bladed constant-speed feathering propellers
Performance

Maximum speed: 330 mph (530 km/h, 290 kn)
Cruise speed: 304 mph (489 km/h, 264 kn)
Range: 5,150 mi (8,290 km, 4,480 nmi)
Service ceiling: 25,700 ft (7,800 m)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockhe..._Constellation

This model misses out on the wires? atop the fuselage; might just add threads (if it is appropriate for this model).

















The hangar now.

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

The Quantas Lockheed Super Constellation (L-1049G-82-153) flying as VH-EAP "Southern Zephyr", a 1:200 kit by herpa.

Beautiful as beautiful can be. Those curving fuselage lines and those triple fins is what made the L-1049 so gracious in its looks like a long necked swan flying through the air. QANTAS and Air India were among the few Asia-Pacific airlines to embraced the Constellation wholeheartedly. The -G was the penultimate passenger variant developed followed briefly by the -1649 which came in time to get eclipsed by the arrival of the Boeing 707. the Indian Navy took over the Constellations from Air India (via the IAF) and used them for maritime patrol. In one of the stations we lived in circa 1975-1976 these huge machine would thunder over our roof at a low altitude as a part of their flying circuit. Few things could be more exciting for me than to hear the thunderous roar of those 4 piston engines.

Congratulations @libranof1987. An apt gift to yourself for your promotion to Moderator.

Spitfire! Hmmm. Comrade Foxbat may not approve of you pandering to the colonial types.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Beautiful as beautiful can be.

Thank you, Mr. Narayan!

Could you help with what these are please? Hydraulic controls? Why were they mounted like this (from the cockpit to the each tail fin); no other aircraft seems to have such an arrangement. And did this come standard on all versions of the Constellation - because my model doesn't have them, but a 1:100 model does.

Spitfire! Hmmm. Comrade Foxbat may not approve of you pandering to the colonial types.

Haha. Hence, closely guarded/watched by the Sukhoi.

But the Spitfire - what a plane! And so aptly immortalised in the movie Dunkirk.

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

Ladies and gents, presenting a model I've lusted after for long. Thanks to selfdrive for finding and bringing it from a land far away.

The Quantas Lockheed Super Constellation (L-1049G-82-153) flying as VH-EAP "Southern Zephyr", a 1:200 kit by herpa.

Superb model of a very graceful aircraft!!! Is it metal or plastic? Did it come with a stand in the box?

Aeroclassics recently released a 1:200 L1049 in Air India livery. I have stopped collecting civilian airliners now, else I would have gone for it blindly.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

Superb model of a very graceful aircraft!!! Is it metal or plastic? Did it come with a stand in the box?

Thank you! This is metal, very superbly build. It is quite sturdy (and heavy). The rotors and wheels move. And yes, comes with a plastic, transparent stand.

I'd have loved to get one in AI livery but didn't find one, and then selfdrive happened to come across this.

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

Could you help with what these are please? Hydraulic controls? Why were they mounted like this (from the cockpit to the each tail fin); no other aircraft seems to have such an arrangement. And did this come standard on all versions of the Constellation - because my model doesn't have them, but a 1:100 model does.

These were radio communication antennae to support the valve tube radios and radio-navigation equipment of those days. On flights over the North Pole aircraft of the 1950s carried 2 navigators to cope with the workload created by compasses going AWOL as the machine got closer to the Pole. The 1:200 may not be carrying the wires because as the scale gets smaller details get lesser (more difficult to put together)

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

Ladies and gents, presenting a model I've lusted after for long. Thanks to selfdrive for finding and bringing it from a land far away...

This model misses out on the wires? atop the fuselage; might just add threads (if it is appropriate for this model).

Glad to be useful

For the wires, I was suggesting the 1:100 air france

[V.Narayan]

MiG-29 :: IAF, Sqn Nos 28, “The First Supersonics”:: Plastic model assembled from kit made by the Trumpeter brand :: 1:72

Model has a wingspan of a little over 6”and a length of a bit over 9”. Model assembled and hand painted by member Basu Roy giving the machine a well used weather beaten look. A big round of applause to Masu Roy for this excellent piece of hand painting.





The IAF was the first air arm to receive the MiG-29 as an export. India currently has 65 MiG-29UPG versions i.e. with the full upgrade in service. A further 29 are on order to be built from the unfinished aircraft stored in Russia. This scale model is of the MiG-29 as originally delivered to the IAF.


The wing planform - large LERX (Leading Edge Root Extensions) that scrub fast flowing lift inducing air in a cohesive stream over the middle and outer wings at speed and at high angles of attack retaining lift & stability that pushes the outer limits of the flight envelope. The moderate sweepback of 40 degrees and that large 410 sq feet wing. The large tail planes not only served manoeuverability but also added lift at the rear with the weight of two reheat engines.




Over head view showing the large upside air intakes to good effect. When taking off the air intake was from these dorsal louvres with the main air intake shut off as seen in the bottom most picture. This prevented ingestion of mud, sand, ice and other debris when taking off from rough airstrips or those with snow & mud. In later upgrades this feature was deleted and the internal volume released by the extra air trunking used for enhancing internal fuel capacity.



RD-33 afterburning Klimov turbofans developing 5040 kgf dry and 8320 kgf wet giving the MiG-29 a power to weight ratio of 1.09 clean



Three pylons on each wing and one centreline. 2 x R-27 BVR AAMs on the inners and 4 x R-73 heat seeking AAMs on the middle and outers. {one of my R-73s has probably fallen off inside the box and hidden in the packaging! It awaits retrieval} The MiG-29UPG can carry a warload of 4000 kgs. In the air to air mode it could comprise of a mix of R-27, R-73, R-60 and our own Astra.


Giant centreline fuel tank to augment the sparse internal fuel. Unfortunately, this was an afterthought and led to fitting an exhaust in the tank to allow the auxiliary turbine to have an outlet. Fuel capacity was the MiG-29’s Achilles heel. Its internal fuel was only 3500kgs versus 2200 kgs of the MiG-21bis which had 40% of the dry power or 3000 kgs of the Mirage 2000 with 65% of the dry power. The MiG-29 UPG address this problem to an extent with increased internal fuel capacity.

Note the realistic oil streaks, weathered dirty wheel well, the well used look of the engine reheat exhaust sections.



My MiG fleet as of now. A picture of how aircraft size and wing planform evolved to suit the specs of different eras. Each wing here reflects the aeronautical thinking and technology of its time. And as I have said before, so far as flying per se goes, an aircraft is its wing.


An aeronautical beauty. If the USSR had survived, who knows this machine and its evolved variants would have been the mainstay of the Indian skies today. I have always held that the MiG-29M was a superior machine to the Su-27/Su-30.

[libranof1987]

Lovely model, and superbly painted!

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

member Basu Roy

Incidentally, there's a feature on him in today's HT Mint Lounge (pg 2) titled Scale Model Maestro. Very fitting! Can't find an online copy to share.

[V.Narayan]

Here is the article on member Basu Roy.....

Congratulations Basu Roy

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

MiG-29 :: IAF, Sqn Nos 28, “The First Supersonics”:: Plastic model assembled from kit made by the Trumpeter brand :: 1:72

Such a beautifully made model!!! Loved the exquisitely detailed weathering and wear & tear effects on the model. Congratulations on the acquisition and great to see your MiG collection grow. Add a MiG-19 and your post Korean War era MiG collection will be complete.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

{one of my R-73s has probably fallen off inside the box and hidden in the packaging! It awaits retrieval}

You might have to look for the nose antenna too.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

A further 29 are on order to be built from the unfinished aircraft stored in Russia. This scale model is of the MiG-29 as originally delivered to the IAF.

There are rumours floating around that the plans to acquire the MiG-29s have been shelved and the Ka-225s too. If it had anything to with pressure from the Big Uncle, we will never know.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Here is the article on member Basu Roy.

Congratulations Basu Roy

Good to see his talent getting recognized. Keep going Basuroy.....sky is the limit

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

Such a beautifully made model!!! Loved the exquisitely detailed weathering and wear & tear effects on the model. Congratulations on the acquisition and great to see your MiG collection grow. Add a MiG-19 and your post Korean War era MiG collection will be complete.

Thanks Sandesh. I am aiming for a MiG-19, MiG-27 and MiG-31. But all will have to wait till I can build a new set of enclosed shelves in my study. Wifey has approved.

You might have to look for the nose antenna too

Good catch. Sharp eyes!

There are rumours floating around that the plans to acquire the MiG-29s have been shelved and the Ka-225s too. If it had anything to with pressure from the Big Uncle, we will never know.

This would be terrible. As it is we are desperately short of fast combat aircraft.

Good to see his talent getting recognized. Keep going Basuroy.....sky is the limit

Basu is really top class. I have decided for the time being to focus on growing my IAF/IN/Indian Army collection. So many more ordered.