1:72 SEPECAT Cheetah GR.2; “ZA124/33” of 2 Squadron Royal Air Force Germany, Laarbruch Air Base (Weeze, Germany), 1988 (Whif/Heller kit conversion)

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!

 

 

Some background (including material from fellow modeler Devilfish at whatifmodelers.com):

The SEPECAT Cheetah was a more sophisticated variable geometry wing derivative of the Anglo-French Jaguar attack aircraft, similar to the Su-7 and later Su-17/2022 evolution.

 

The Jaguar programme began in the early 1960s, in response to a British requirement for an advanced supersonic jet trainer to replace the Folland Gnat T1 and Hawker Hunter T7, and a French requirement (ECAT or École de Combat et d'Appui Tactique, "Tactical Combat Support Trainer") for a cheap, subsonic dual role trainer and light attack aircraft to replace the Fouga Magister, Lockheed T-33 and Dassault Mystère IV.

 

Cross-channel negotiations led to the formation of SEPECAT (Société Européenne de Production de l'Avion d'École de Combat et d'Appui Tactique – the "European company for the production of a combat trainer and tactical support aircraft") in 1966 as a joint venture between Breguet and the British Aircraft Corporation to produce the airframe.

 

Though based in part on the Breguet Br.121, using the same basic configuration and an innovative French-designed landing gear, the Jaguar as built also incorporated major elements designed by BAC – notably the wing and high lift devices. Production of the aircraft components would be split between Breguet and BAC and these would be assembled on two production lines; one in the UK and one in France.

 

The first of eight prototypes flew on 8 September 1968, a two-seat design fitted with the first production model Adour engine. The second prototype flew in February 1969; a total of three prototypes appeared in flight at the Paris Air Show that year. The first French "A" prototype flew in March 1969. In October a British "S" conducted its first flight.

 

A navalized "M" prototype flew in November 1969. The "M" had a strengthened airframe, an arrester hook and different undercarriage: twin nose wheel and single mainwheels. After testing in France it went to RAE at Thurleigh for carrier landing trials from their land based catapult. In July 1970 it made real take offs and landings from the French carrier Clemenceau.

 

The RAF accepted delivery of the first of 165 single-seat Jaguar GR1s (the service designation of the Jaguar S) in 1974, and it remained in service until 2007. Anyway, the Jaguar's all-weather capacity was limited and the airframe still offered development potential, so that from 1976 on the Anglo-French SEPECAT consortium looked at improved versions with radar, more powerful engines and improved avionics and aerodynamics.

 

This led in late 1975 to the Cheetah project, which incorporated a variable geometry wing that could be mounted to the Jaguar's airframe without major structural modifications.

 

The Cheetah was designed as a multirole, twin-engined aircraft designed to excel at low-level penetration of enemy defences, but also for battlefield reconnaissance and maritime patrol duties, and both naval and land-based versions were developed.

 

The Cheetah’s primary mission envisaged during the Cold War was the delivery of conventional and nuclear ordnance on the invading forces of the Warsaw Pact countries of Eastern Europe. Advanced navigation and flight computers, including the then-innovative fly-by-wire system, greatly reduced the workload of the pilot during low-level flight and eased control of the aircraft.

 

Compared with the Jaguar, the Cheetah’s nose section was widened to carry an Ericsson PS 37 X-band mono pulse radar, which used a mechanically steered parabolic dish housed in a radome. This radar performed several functions, including air-to-ground telemetry, search, track, terrain-avoidance and cartography. Air-to-air telemetry was also provided. This capability was not the system’s functional focus, but allowed the Cheetah to engage in all weather air-to-air combat and to act as a point defense interceptor with short range AAMs (e. g. up to six AIM-9 Sidewinder).

 

Honeywell provided an automatic digital flight control system for the Cheetah, one of the first such systems in a production aircraft. To assist low altitude flight and navigation, a Honeywell radar altimeter with transmitter and receiver was used, and the aircraft was also fitted with a Decca Type 72 Doppler navigation radar. TILS (Tactical Instrument Landing System), a landing-aid system made by Cutler-Hammer AIL, improved landing accuracy to 30 m.

 

From this basis, the Cheetah’s airframe was adapted to a naval version first, which featured a more rigid structure, a beefed-up landing gear for carrier operations and other suitable modifications. This evolved into the Cheetah FRS.1 for the Royal Navy. The FRS.1 was a separate development from the Jaguar, and catered to a very different specification. By the late 60's the Royal navy knew that their big carriers were due for scrapping and that plans for the proposed CVA 01 carrier were already being shelved. In a desperate attempt to hold on to naval air power, the Admiralty put forward a plan to buy two ex-US Navy Kittyhawk class supercarriers and refit them with British equipment (mostly salvaged from the outgoing carriers, Ark Royal and Eagle).

 

Because of the cancellation of TSR.2, the treasury, in a strange turn of events, agreed that air power at sea was definitively needed. They approved the acquisition of at first one, then later a second US carrier. To supplement them, two Centaur class carriers were to be retrofitted to act as tactical carriers to aid in smaller conflicts.

 

As these were not big enough to carry and deploy the larger American types being used on the supercarriers, a smaller multi-purpose aircraft was needed. With the Cheetah, BAC offered a version of the Jaguar, fitted with the variable geometry wing, then being designed for the MRCA, to aid with slower and shorter take offs and landings. Renamed the Cheetah, the FRS.1 entered service aboard the HMS Hermes in 1978, seeing service during the Falklands conflict in 1982.

 

The land-based Cheetah differed in many details from the naval version, though, the first prototype flew in early 1977 and the RAF’s GR.2 was primarily designed for the RAF Germany forces, since the continental theatre of operations was regarded as the most critical NATO flank of that time. The RAF Cheetahs were supposed to carry out conventional and nuclear point strikes against targets in the GDR, Poland and Czechoslovakia, and defend coastal lines against fast invasion fleets, esp. in the Baltic Sea.

 

The biggest visible difference to the FRS.1 was a different variable wing geometry mechanism and a modified wing shape with a dog tooth close to the pivot section and an extended leading edge fairing at the wing roots. The GR.2’s VG mechanism was more compact than the Tornado structure originally used in the FRS.1, but also simpler in order to save as much weight as possible.

 

The GR.2’s wings could be swept backwards between 16° and 72°, and the horizontal stabilizers were adapted in shape to form a quasi delta wing when the wings were fully swept back, allowing for minimal drag during the critical low-level dash towards a well-prepared enemy. The sweep angle could be altered manually by the pilot, but also automatically. The different VG wings basically improved low altitude aerodynamics and handling of the Cheetah, as well as its STOL capabilities. With its rugged undercarriage, lent from the Jaguar, the Cheetah GR.2 was, more than the bigger and heavier Tornado, suited for tactical front line service from improvised airstrips, together with the RAF’s Harrier fleet.

 

The Cheetah FRS.1 and the GR.2 carried the Jaguar’s pair of 30mm cannon, but due to the different wing structures the hardpoints for external ordnance differed. The Cheetah was typically equipped with a total of seven hardpoints: three underneath the fuselage, and more under the wings. The FRS.1 had four wing pylons which could, thanks to the Tornado ancestry, be swept together with the wings.

The GR.2’s capacity was more limited, as it carried two large tandem pylons under each wing root, each also carrying a launch rail for defensive AAMs, and a further pair of optional wing-mounted, fixed hardpoints. This facility was rarely used, though, and they were basically reserved for drop tanks for ferry flights, but could also take weapon racks. External ordnance capacity was similar to the original Jaguar, with 10,000 lb (4,500 kg).

 

The first Cheetah GR.2 entered RAF service in 1980, and replaced basically the RAF Buccaneers as well as an early part of the Jaguar GR.1 fleet (the Jaguars kept in service were later modernized to GR.3 standard).

 

The RAF Cheetahs served together with the Jaguar Force until 2007, when both types were retired. Following their retirement from flying service, some Cheetahs continue to serve as ground instructional airframes, most notably at RAF Cosford, used in the training of RAF fitters.

 

 

General characteristics:

Crew: One

Length: 16.83 m (55 ft 2½ in)

Wingspan: 13.97 m (45 ft 10 in) spread 16°, XXX swept 72°

Height: 4.89 m (16 ft 0½ in)

Wing area: 37.35 m² spread, 34.16 m² swept (402.05 ft² / 367.71 ft²)

Empty weight: 7,848 kg (17,286 lb)

Loaded weight: 12,200 kg (26,872 lb)

Max. takeoff weight: 15,700 kg (34,612 lb)

 

Powerplant:

2 × Rolls-Royce/Turbomeca Adour Mk 105 turbofans

with 24.50 kN (5,508 lbf) dry thrust each and 35.5 kN (7,979 lbf) with afterburner

 

Performance:

Maximum speed: Mach 1.8 (1,870 km/h, 1,161 mph) at 11,000 m (36,000 ft)

Mach 1.1 (1,350 km/h, 839 mph) at sea level

Combat radius: 908 km (490 nmi, 564 mi) (lo-lo-lo, external fuel)

Ferry range: 3,524 km (1,902 nmi, 2,190 mi)

Service ceiling: 14,000 m (45,900 ft)

Rate of climb: 200 m/s (39,400 ft/min)

Climb to 9,145 m (30,000 ft): 1 min 30 sec

 

Armament:

2× 30 mm (1.18 in) DEFA cannons in the lower front fuselage, 150 RPG

7 hardpoints; 1× center-line pylon stations Fore & Aft plus a pair of pylons in front of the main landing gear wells; twin inner pylon (Fore & Aft) plus launch rails for AAMs, and single Outer Pylon pair under the wings, non-moveable. Total capacity of 10,000 lb (4,500 kg) for a wide range of guided and unguided ordnance, including:

- Matra rocket pods with 18× SNEB 68 mm rockets each (up to seven at once)

- AS.37 Martel anti-radar missiles

- AS-30L laser guided air-to-ground missiles

- Various unguided or laser-guided bombs of up to 2.000 lb (907 kg) caliber

- 2× WE177A nuclear bombs

- 1× AN-52 nuclear bomb

- ECM protection pods

- Reconnaissance pods

- ATLIS laser/electro-optical targeting pod

- External drop tanks for extended range/loitering time

 

 

The kit and its assembly:

The final contribution to the “Cold War” Group Build at whatifmodelers.com, and another realization of a plan from the long agenda – and triggered by a similar build at the board from fellow modeler Devilfish who built a naval VG Jaguar with Tornado wings in 1:48. I took the opportunity and inspiration to build my interpretation of that theme, lending the Cheetah designation from Devilfish’s build, though, and some of the naval version’s background.

 

Anyway, my conversion plan had been different. I wanted to create an RAF aircraft, true to the Jaguar’s strike/recce role, and the VG mechanism and wings would come from a MiG-23 – inspired by a similar transplant with a Mirage F.1C I saw many moons ago (and a beautiful result, I want to try that stunt, too!).

I also had the donation kits stashed away: a Heller SEPECAT Jaguar A (actually, I had already piled up four kits for this task…) and an Academy MiG-23S.

 

Wing transplantation went straightforward and with surprisingly little difficulties. The MiG’s wings were cut out together with the spinal section and the lower wing gloves, so that the VG geometry remained unchanged. On the other side, this package went into a shallow gap that I carved out from the Jag’s ventral section. Some putty and body sculpting merged the parts, easier than expected.

 

The rest saw only minor modifications. A radome was implanted (from an Italeri F-18 Hornet), which needed some body sculpting around the nose and the MiG-23’s stabilizers were used, too, in order to form a clean wing shape. I tailored their trailing edges a bit, so that the shape would not remind too much of the MiG heritage.

 

An RAF style radar warning receiver, scratched from 1.5mm styrene, was installed into the French version’ fin. Under the wing roots a pair of pylons from a Matchbox F-14 were added, together with Sidewinder launch rails from a Tornado ADV (Italeri). The jet exhausts were drilled open for more depth, and some sensors/pitots added to the nose, made from wire. Cockpit and landing gear were taken OOB, even though I used a different ejection seat and faired the original dashboard over with a piece of styrene.

 

The BL 755 bombs and their twin racks come OOB from the Heller kit, the Sidewinders from an ESCI kit, IIRC.

 

 

Painting and markings:

The RAF was settled as an operator, but for a whiffy twist I applied the all-green scheme that the RAF’s Harrier GR.5 carried in the late Eighties – exclusively, AFAIK. While the all NATO Green upper side appears a bit dull, the Lichen Green underside and the very low waterline look rather psychedelic and unique. Anyway, it works well on the Cheetah, and I can imagine that other RAF aircraft would also look cool in this simple scheme?

 

The basic colors I used are Humbrol 105 (Army Green) and 120 (Light Green, FS 34227), both are pretty approximates. The basic paintwork was later panel-shaded with lighter mixes of these two tones – actually brightened up with RAF Cockpit Green (Humbrol 78). In fact, the Heller Jaguar is almost totally devoid of any surface detail... A light black ink wash was also used to emphasize edges and deepen the contrast. The wings’ leading edges were painted in a very dark green (Humbrol 91) and the cockpit interior was painted in dark grey (FS 36076 from Model Master). The landing gear struts were painted light grey, while the wells and covers became Zinc Chromate Yellow.

 

The decals are a mix of the OOB Heller sheet and aftermarket sheets for RAF Jaguars, an Italeri Tornado and a Harrier GR.5. A coat of matt acrylic varnish finally sealed everything and the ordnance was mounted.

 

 

An interesting conversion, and the result looks very plausible! I am certain that this thing would make people seriously wonder and think when displayed on a convention. The VG Jag looks very natural – but not much sexier than the original? Anyway, the transplantation does not look out of place, because the Jaguar’s layout is very similar to the Panavia Tornado, so that the VG wing does not appear like the total fake it actually is. ^^

Done