[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

1:72 Sikorsky MH-60L Black Hawk "DAP" 91-26363 "Gunslinger", 160th SOAR "Night Stalkers", Operation Gothic Serpent, Mogadishu, Somalia, 1993

Excellent model and writeup! The model looks very realistic with subtle hints of weathering.I remember seeing Black Hawk down decades ago and the researching the events. A much more balanced movie unlike the regular Hollywood Rambo movies

Coincidentally a USAF HH-60G Pave Hawk just flew by as I typed this. There is a Navy base nearby and I see a lot of military aircraft flying by including sometimes F/A-18s.

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Another sixer to the boundary by Sandesh. Congrats. A winner. A beauty. And as always excellent photographs.

Thank you Sir.

Originally Posted by Foxbat

Excellent model and writeup! The model looks very realistic with subtle hints of weathering.I remember seeing Black Hawk down decades ago and the researching the events. A much more balanced movie unlike the regular Hollywood Rambo movies

Thank you. Yes, a very nice model but very fragile, especially the main rotor blade spindles - scary and difficult to attach.

And yes, a great movie, very realistic, one of my favorites. They touched on nearly all the important events of that day. In fact, there would have been far more casualties had it not been for the AH-6 Little Bird mini-gunships which kept going all night long, carrying multiple strafing runs to provide Close Air Support to beleaguered US troops that night.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovRhLzL_ZHQ

Originally Posted by Foxbat

Coincidentally a USAF HH-60G Pave Hawk just flew by as I typed this.

Signs!! Time to switch to the Light Side, Comrade Foxbat

1:72 Folland Gnat F.1 Yugoslav Air Force (Aviation72)
Datewise, Yugoslavia was the second country to operate the Folland Gnat F.1 (Finland being the first, India being the third). The RAF only operated the trainer T.1 version.
Two Gnat F.1s, serial numbers 11601 & 11602, were sold by UK to Yugoslavia for evaluation and possible license production in Yugoslavia. The two examples were delivered in June and July of 1958. Yugoslav pilots were impressed with the Gnat’s maneuverability and handling but its short range and inability to carry substantial armament made the Yugoslavs to opt for the Sabre instead. One Gnat was written off in a belly landing after hydraulic failure and Yugoslavia went on to buy second-hand F-86 Sabres instead of proceeding with more Gnats. Yugoslavia also bought F-86D-45 Sabre Dogs. The Sabres remained in service until Mig-21Fs arrived in Yugoslavia.















All three Gnat F.1 Operators: Air Forces of Finland, India and Yugoslavia

[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

1:72 Folland Gnat F.1 Yugoslav Air Force (Aviation72)
Datewise, Yugoslavia was the second country to operate the Folland Gnat F.1 (Finland being the first, India being the third). The RAF only operated the trainer T.1 version.

Interesting bits of trivia, I never knew Yugoslavia operated Gnats, and you managed to get a rare model of it !

Are all three Gnats of the same make? Looks like it from the pictures and all have similar levels of detail.

Originally Posted by skanchan95

Signs!! Time to switch to the Light Side, Comrade Foxbat

Loyalty to the Motherland, The Motherland calls!

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by Foxbat

Are all three Gnats of the same make? Looks like it from the pictures and all have similar levels of detail.

Yes, same make - Aviation72. They are the only brand that made Gnat (F.1 & T.1).

Hope they make "THE NAVY"'s Oscar Phallus Tactical Fighter bomber that flew of the S S Essess in the old Top gun spoof and comedy movie - Hot Shots (Gnat T.1s)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgYGbR8f1PA&t=7s

There was an ex-IAF Gnat that made an appearance in the movie as well.

Originally Posted by Foxbat

Loyalty to the Motherland, The Motherland calls!

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

1:72 Folland Gnat F.1 Yugoslav Air Force (Aviation72)
Datewise, Yugoslavia was the second country to operate the Folland Gnat F.1 (Finland being the first, India being the third).
All three Gnat F.1 Operators: Air Forces of Finland, India and Yugoslavia

A true connoisseur's collection my friend. Really admire your passion here. Congratulations. Your dedication to this hobby is laudable.

Originally Posted by skanchan95

Hope they make "THE NAVY"'s Oscar Phallus Tactical Fighter bomber that flew of the S S Essess in the old Top gun spoof and comedy movie - Hot Shots (Gnat T.1s)

Interesting!!! A factoid -- In the late 1960s we evaluated the Gnat for the old INS Vikrant. The aircraft was too light for the steam catapults. The catapults needed a minimum laden weight of 10,000 lbs {~4500 kgs} and the Gnats' maximum was around ~3900-4100 kgs. By 1969 we desperately needed a replacement for the old Hawker Sea Hawks but could not get one till 1982 which came in the form of the Sea Harrier! I do not know why we did not try the Marut HF-24 in some modifed form.

[skanchan95]

1:72 Curtiss P-40B Warhawk USAAC 15th Pursuit Group, 47th Pursuit Squadron, White 316 (41-1456), 2nd Lt. Ken Taylor, Haleiwa Field, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, December 7th 1941

On December 7th, 1941 at 7:48 a.m. Hawaiian Time, the US Naval base at Pearl Harbor was pre-emptively attacked by the Empire of Japan to prevent the US Pacific Fleet from interfering with planned Japanese military actions in Southeast Asia. The attack was carried out by 353 fighters, bombers and torpedo planes, launched in two waves from a task force of six IJN aircraft carriers (Akagi, Kaga, Soryu, Hiryu, Shokaku, and Zuikaku) northwest of Hawaii. The damage inflicted was massive. All eight U.S. Navy battleships were damaged, with four being sunk, in addition to damaging or sinking three cruisers, three destroyers, an anti-aircraft training ship and one minelayer. 188 U.S. aircraft were destroyed; 2,402 Americans were killed and 1,282 wounded. Japanese losses were light: 29 aircraft and five midget submarines lost, and 65 servicemen killed or wounded. One Japanese sailor was captured. The attack came as a profound shock to the American people and led directly to the American entry into World War II in both the Pacific and European theaters. The following day (December 8), the United States declared war on Japan. There were numerous historical precedents for unannounced military action by Japan. However, the lack of any formal warning, particularly while negotiations were still apparently ongoing, led President Franklin D. Roosevelt to proclaim December 7, 1941, "a date which will live in infamy".

Curtiss P-40B Warhawk
Designed to meet a USAAC requirement for a pursuit aircraft, the P-40 Warhawk was first flown on October 14th, 1938. This aircraft was tough, virtually trouble-free and saw continual improvements to arms, armor and engines. The P-40 served in numerous combat areas; often outclassed by its adversaries in speed, maneuverability and rate of climb, it earned a reputation for extreme ruggedness. Its strong construction, heavy firepower, and ability to dive enabled it to compete with enemy fighters, and it was a formidable ground-attack aircraft. P-40s were also flown by the famed Flying Tigers against the Japanese in China.

Ken Taylor

Kenneth Marlar Taylor (December 23, 1919 – November 25, 2006) was a United States Air Force officer and a flying ace of World War II. He was a new United States Army Air Corps second lieutenant pilot stationed at Wheeler Field during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Along with his fellow pilot and friend George Welch, Taylor managed to get his P-40 airborne under fire. Taylor claimed to have shot down four Japanese dive bombers but only two were confirmed. Taylor was injured during the incident and received several awards for his efforts, including the Distinguished Service Cross and the Purple Heart.

For their actions on December 7, the U.S. War Department in Communiqué No. 19 on December 13, 1941, designated Taylor and his friend Welch as the first two American heroes of World War II, and awarded both the Distinguished Service Cross on January 8, 1942. The award is the United States Army's second highest honor for valor in the heat of combat. Additionally, he later received the Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, the Air Medal, and a Purple Heart for injuries he sustained. Both men were recommended for the Medal of Honor, but were turned down because they had taken off without orders

Taylor later commanded several squadrons while stationed in the United States and elsewhere, and served for 27 years of active duty. He joined the Alaska Air National Guard until 1971 and worked in the insurance industry before retiring in 1985. His Pearl Harbor experience was portrayed in the 1970 film Tora! Tora! Tora! and the film Pearl Harbor.

[skanchan95]

Mortal Combat





















A bit of Army-Navy Co-operation

[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by Foxbat

The Sukhoi Su-34 (Russian: Сухой Су-34; NATO reporting name: Fullback) is a Soviet-origin Russian twin-engine, twin-seat, all-weather supersonic medium-range fighter-bomber/strike aircraft. It first flew in 1990, intended for the Soviet Air Forces, and it entered service in 2014 with the Russian Air Force.

The Su-34 is a three-surface design having both a conventional horizontal tailplane at the rear and a canard foreplane in front of the main wings. The foreplane provides both additional lift (force) and greater manoeuvrability. It has twin tail fins like those of Su-27 from which it is derived.

This is trending online so I thought I would share, the agility of the Su-34 despite being a heavy fighter bomber has its advantages and it successfully avoids 3 Patriot missiles.

This is an encounter of a Russian Su-34 bomber (Callsign "754") and multiple launches from a Patriot SAM (Surface to Air Missile) battery over Ukraine, close to Mariupol. The Su-34 was making it's attack run when it got engaged by a Ukrainian Patriot system. The Su-34 then proceeded to evade the threat by dragging and notching the missile in different directions to deplete it's energy, however the Patriot missile exploded somewhere close to the Su-34 and knocked out it's intercom - the Pilot Commander and Navigator struggled to hear each other for the remainder of the sortie.

The original version of this audio recording was uploaded by a Russian Su-34 pilot. It shows audio coms between an Su-34 bomber crew and a controller when the Su-34 is engaged by a Patriot SAM battery whilst the aircraft is making it's attack run.

The missiles were defeated kinetically. Su-34 cranked the missiles out to their maximum range and by the time they reached him they were mostly out of energy. He was basically outrunning them by the end.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfNU1dR2kAw

Just the audio from pilot, navigator and ground controller:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLkMTDMWJyw

Digital recreation of the event on DCS:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83f00zff2K0

[FlankerFury]

Originally Posted by Foxbat

This is trending online so I thought I would share, the agility of the Su-34 despite being a heavy fighter bomber has its advantages and it successfully avoids 3 Patriot missiles.

Reminds me of that American F-16 dodging multiple Iraqi SAM launches in one of the Gulf Wars.

One question, the Su-34 has a side by side seating layout for the pilots right. Is the inside of the cockpit so noisy that pilots have trouble communicating with each other if the comms system fails.
I can see why it'd be an issue for a conventional seating layout like in a Su-30.

[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

1:72 Curtiss P-40B Warhawk USAAC 15th Pursuit Group, 47th Pursuit Squadron, White 316 (41-1456), 2nd Lt. Ken Taylor, Haleiwa Field, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, December 7th 1941

Nice model and great photography! Does it come with the extra transparent spinning propeller?

Originally Posted by FlankerFury

Reminds me of that American F-16 dodging multiple Iraqi SAM launches in one of the Gulf Wars.

Yes thats what many people are discussing online. However I think this is probably a bigger achievement. The F-16 is a lightweight(empty weight of 8,000 kg) super maneuverable single engine fighter and was being engaged with 1960s era S-125 Neva and 2K12 Kub missiles in 1991.

The Su-34 is a heavy(empty weight of 22,500k kg) twin engined fighter bomber which was being engaged by modern Patriot missiles which were fired from a Patriot battery which was recently deployed in Poland by the US military.

Originally Posted by FlankerFury

One question, the Su-34 has a side by side seating layout for the pilots right. Is the inside of the cockpit so noisy that pilots have trouble communicating with each other if the comms system fails.
I can see why it'd be an issue for a conventional seating layout like in a Su-30.

The pilots would be wearing helmets, G-suits and oxygen masks so I'm guessing it would be hard to hear someone sitting next to you with all the background noise.

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by Foxbat

Nice model and great photography! Does it come with the extra transparent spinning propeller?

Yes, the transparent "spinning" propellor is an attachment. It is transparent acrylic circle with a spinner attached to it.

1:200 Airbus A320-231 Indian Airlines(IF200)
VT-EPB was the first Airbus A320 delivered to Indian Airlines in 1989. The interesting part about these A320s delivered to Indian Airlines was that they had dual bogey main Landing Gear.

Indian Airlines received 31 double-bogied A320s between June 1989 and December 1994 and it was the only Airline in the world to operate such an A320 variant (later Air India inherited these A320s).

While the A320 is not the most heaviest aircraft, it still carries substantial weight. During landing, taxi, or takeoff, this can cause stress on the runway pavement. Some of India's runway pavements had a lower classification. The classification number gives details relating to the strength of the pavement, and the amount of weight it can handle. Due to this lower classification number, the load of the aircraft had to be distributed across multiple wheels. As such, these early A320s operated by Indian Airlines had these extra wheels. Similar issues at Sweden's Säve (Gothenburg City) Airport forced this facility to close to jetliners.

Airbus A320 VT-EPB
Manufacturer's Serial number : 45
Type : 320-231
First flight date : 30/03/1989
Test registration : F-WWDY
Engines: 2 x IAE V2500-A1
Status: Scrapped
*transferred to Air India in August 2007. Scrapped in 2021.

[skanchan95]

Airborne




















Indian Airlines A320 Fleet. Unlike Air India's Classic A320s which were powered CFM56 engines, all of Indian Airlines A320s were powered by IAE V2500 engines.

[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

1:200 Airbus A320-231 Indian Airlines(IF200)
VT-EPB was the first Airbus A320 delivered to Indian Airlines in 1989. The interesting part about these A320s delivered to Indian Airlines was that they had dual bogey main Landing Gear.

A really well detailed model, its great more companies are making Indian aircraft. I saw a diecast Indigo A320 has also been released recently. I'm sure thats you already have that one in your sights

The other IA A320s with the red tails are plastic right?

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by Foxbat

A really well detailed model, its great more companies are making Indian aircraft. I saw a diecast Indigo A320 has also been released recently. I'm sure thats you already have that one in your sights

Not really a fan of Indigo, so no won't be buying that. Besides that, I have nearly stopped collecting civilian airliners unless it's something very special like this IC double bogey A320. There were quite a few 1/200 Indian airliner releases by IF200 but it was only this A320 that attracted me.

Originally Posted by Foxbat

The other IA A320s with the red tails are plastic right?

Yes, plastic snapfit by Hogan.

[libranof1987]

Those taking an international flight out of Delhi T3, do check out the Aviator scale model shop in the shopping area (after Security). They have a really good and extensive collection of aircrafts, souvenirs and other aviation-related items. Prices seemed fair.

They have a simulator as well.

I told them that it's a pity this shop is at Departure, although the manager did say they ship across India.