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BASE AÉREA DE MORÓN (LEMO) SPAIN / BOEING B52H STRATOFORTRESS (MSN 464439) USAF (61-0012) / BOMBER TASK FORCE DEPLOYMENT
B-52H Stratofortresses, assigned to the 2nd Bomb Wing, Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, depart out of Morón Air Base, Spain, in support of Bomber Task Force Europe May 19, 2021. Strategic bomber missions enhance the readiness and training necessary to respond to any potential crisis or challenge across the globe.
The Power Miner's mini base opening up ready for play. It can be transported on a trailer attached to the Thunder Driller and dropped off when the Power miner's need a forward operating base in a hurry. Built in 2011 when we didn't have very many tiles!
The Power Miner's mini base in opened out ready to play mode. It can be transported on a trailer attached to the Thunder Driller and dropped off when the Power miner's need a forward operating base in a hurry. Built in 2011 when we didn't have very many tiles!
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska (July 10, 2020) - U.S. Army paratroopers from the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, U.S. Army Alaska, jump from an Air Force C-17 Globemaster III over Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson, Alaska, July 10, 2020, as part of JBER Salutes, a two-day event to show appreciation to service members and nearly 100 Anchorage-area “COVID Heroes†and their guests. The service members and COVID Heroes, nominated for their support to the community during the COVID-19 pandemic, toured various areas of the installation, viewed exhibits and static displays of aircraft, and watched demonstrations by Explosive Ordnance Disposal, military working dog teams, and Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear experts. (U.S. Air Force photo by Angela Earle) 00710-F-RN387-0014
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Tyseley based Class 122 DMBS 55006 working the BR Table 71 14:55 Leamington Spa to Stratford-upon-Avon passes Bearley West Junction signal box in January 1983.
Bearley West Junction signal box was a Great Western Railway Type 7D box and was opened in 1907. Closure came in October 2010, when control was passed to Landor Street, Birmingham panel.
All images on this site are exclusive property and may not be copied, downloaded, reproduced, transmitted, manipulated or used in any way without expressed written permission of the photographer. All rights reserved – Copyright Don Gatehouse
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!
In the period immediately after the Second World War the world found itself with hundreds of thousands of surplus aircraft and just as many surplus aviators. Most aircraft would meet the salvage blade and the smelter’s fiery furnace. Most pilots would return to civilian life, the bulk of them never to fly again.
With the plethora of military aircraft languishing in desert lots awaiting a certain fate, some of those disenfranchised aviators and aircraft designers would look to new growing markets for salvation. One of these emerging markets was the new-found requirement for fast and capable business transport aircraft for executives looking to link business interests across the vast distances of the nation. With few purpose-built business aircraft available for executives, medium bombers became the drug of choice for high flying big shots—fast, powerful and, with the right interior appointments, a visual statement of their success and power.
In early variants like the Executive, On Mark simply removed military equipment and replaced them with fairings and civil avionics, sealed the bomb bay doors, soundproofed the cabin, and added additional cabin windows. Later models had special wing spars designed to give more interior room, pressurization and equipment from bigger surplus aircraft such as DC-6 brakes and flat glass cockpit windows. It was an elegant mashing together of equipment, but it was not a true business aircraft.
In the Sixties, Jet Craft Ltd. of Las Vegas, Nevada, went for a different interpretation of the same topic: The company had purchased a number of former Royal Australian Air Force Vampire trainers and RCAF single-seaters, which were to be converted to a new design for a business aircraft called 'Mystery Jet', offering 4-8-seats.
Jet Craft worked with stellar British conversion experts Aviation Traders to do the structural design work. Aviation Traders Limited (ATL) was a war-surplus aircraft and spares trader formed in 1947. In 1949, it began maintaining aircraft used by some of Britain’s contemporary independent airlines on the Berlin Airlift. In the early 1950s, it branched out into aircraft conversions and manufacturing.
Aviation Traders worked on the drawings and the structural mock-ups. A full-scale mock-up of the Mystery Jet languished at Southend airport for a decade, trying to lure owners and operators into buying it. And this actually happened: about twenty former Vampire airframes were converted into Mystery Jet business aircraft, tailored to the customers' needs and desires.
The Mystery Jet was just what it looked like: a former De Havilland Vampire with a new, roomy nose section grafted onto it. The cabin was pressurized, and was available in two different lengths (130 and 160 inches long, with two or three rows of seats and reflected in the aircraft's title) and several window and door options - the most exotic option being the "Landaulet" cabin which featured a panoramic roof/window installation over the rear pair of seats (or, alternatively, a two-seat bench).
The original Goblin engine was retained, CG was retained due to the fact that the new cabin was, despite being considerably longer than the Vampire's nose, the biggest version being more than 8 feet longer. The new front section was much lighter, though, e. g. through the loss of the heavy cannons and their armament, as well as some more military avionics. The loss of fuel capacity through the enlarged cabin was compensated through fixed wing tip tanks, so that range was on par with the former military jet, just top speed and ceiling were slightly inferior.
Anyway, prices were steep and from the United States more modern and economical offerings ruled the market. Maintaining a former military jet was also a costly business, so, consequently, after a slight buzz (more of a hum, actually) in the early Seventies, the Mystery Jet and Jet Craft of Las Vegas, also fuelled by some dubious business practices by the company's owner, disappeared. Even further developments of the original concept, e .g. with a wide body for up to 14 passengers and two engines, would not save the Mystery Jet from failure.
General characteristics:
Crew: 1 pilot plus 5-7 passengers
Length (Mystery Jet 160): 38 ft 5 in (11.73 m)
Wingspan incl. tip tanks: 39 ft 7 1/2 in (12.09 m)
Height: 8 ft 10 in (2.69 m)
Wing area: 262 ft² (24.34 m²)
Empty weight: 7,283 lb (3,304 kg)
Max. take-off weight: 12,390 lb (5,620 kg)
Powerplant:
1× de Havilland Goblin 3 centrifugal turbojet, rated at 3,350 lbf (14.90 kN)
Performance:
Maximum speed: 516 mph (832 km/h)
Cruising speed: 400 mph (644 km/h)
Range: 1,220 mi (1,960 km)
Service ceiling: 37,700 ft (11,500 m)
Armament:
None
The kit and its assembly:
The first finished work in 2017 is a different kind of whif, one of the few civilian models in my collection. This conversion looks sick, but ,as weird as it may seem, the Business-Jet-From-Vintage-Vampires idea was real. For more information, and the source from where some of the backgound story was gathered, please check:
www.vintagewings.ca/VintageNews/Stories/tabid/116/article...
Anyway, my build is just a personal interpretation of the original concept, not a true model of the Mystery Jet. In fact, this was limited through the donor parts for this kitbash.
The rear end was the smaller problem: Airfix offers a very good Vampire T.11 trainer with excellent detail and fit - the passenger cabin was the bigger challenge. Finding "something" that would fit in shape and especialsl size was not easy - my first choice was a nose section from a vintage 1:100 Antonow An-24 from VEB Plasticart (still much too wide, though), and the best solution came as an accidental find in a local model kit shop where I found a heavily discounted MPM Focke Wulf Fw 189 B-0 trainer.
The reason: the kit was complete, but the bag holding the sprues must have been heated immensely during the packaging process: the main sprues were horrible warped - except for some single parts including the canopies and the sprue with the cabin! Height wind width were perfect, only the boxy shape caused some headaches. But I guess I would not find anything better...
That said, the transplantation mess started. I never built any of the two donor kits before, so I carefully tried to find the best place where to cut the Vampire's nose - I ended up with a staggered solution right in front of the wing root air intakes.
The Fw 189's cabin was bit more tricky, because I had to get rid of the original wing roots and wanted to use as much space as possible, up to the rear bulkhead and together with the rear cabin window. The idea was to blend the Fw 189's roof line into the Vampire's engine section, while keeping the original air intake ducts, so that the overall arrangement would look plausible.
The result became a pretty long nose section - and at that time the tail booms were not fited yet, so I was not certain concerning overall proportions. The cabin's underside had to be improvised, and blending the boxy front end with a flat underside into the tubby, round Vampire fuselage caused some headaches. I also had to re-create the lower flank section with styrene sheet, because I had originally hoped that I could "push" the new cabin between the wing roots - but that space was occupied by the Goblin's inlet ducts.
Inside of the cabin, the original floor, bulkheads and dashboard were used, plus five bucket seats that come with the MPM kit. In order to hide the body work from the inside, side panels from 0.5mm styrene sheet were added in the cabin - with the benefit of additional stability, but also costing some space... Since the machine was built with closed cabin, a pilot was added - actually a bash of a WWII Matchbox pilot and a German officer from an ESCI tank kit. Looks pretty good and "professional". ;-)
Once the cabin was in place, lots of PSR followed and the tail booms could be fitted. To my relief, the longer nose did not look too unbalanced (and actually, design sketches for the original Mystery Jet suggest just this layout!) - but I decided to add wing tip tanks which would beef up wingspan and shift the visual mass slightly forward. They come from an 1:100 Tamiya Il-28, or better the "R" recce variant.
The only other big change concerned the nose wheel. While the OOB wheel and strut were used, the well is now located in front of the wheel and it would retract forwards, giving the nose a more balanced look - and the cabin arrangement made this change more plausible, too.
Another addition were three small porthole windows in the solid parts of the cabin flanks - one of them ending up in the middle of the cabin door on starboard, where a solid part of the canopy roof lent itself for a good place just behind the pilots' seats.
Painting and markings:
I cannot help it, but the thing looks like a design from a vintage Tintin or Yoko Tsuno comic! This was not planned or expected - and actually the paint scheme evolved step by step. I had no plan or clue what to apply - the real Mystery Jet mock-up in silver with blue trim looked sharp, but somehow I did not want blue. So I started with the interior (out of a necessity, as the fuselage had to be closed before any further work progress at some point) and settled for plushy, British colors: Cream (walls and roof) and Claret-Red (carpet and seats).
I tried to find something for the outside that would complement this choice of colors, and eventually settled on Ivory and White (upper and lower fuselage halves, respectively) with some deep red trim, plus pale grey wing surfaces. I even considered some thin golden trim lines, but I think this would have been too much?
The trim was created with decals tripes from generic sheet material, the black anti-glare panel was painted, though. As a color contrast I painted some of the upper canopy panels in translucent, light blue, and this looks very good.
The wings received a lightb treatment with thinned black ink, in order to emphasize the engravings. No post-shading was done, though, for a rather clean look.
Most markings were puzzled together; the registration G-AZRE actually belonged to a Vickers Vanguard (from the 1:144 Airfix kit), the large letters above and under the wings were created with single 45° letters (USAF style). Most stencils come from a Vampire trainer aftermarket sheet from Xtradecal, from the OOB sheet only the "No step" warnings on the wings were used.
Finally, the kit was sealed with a semi-matt coat of varnish, except for the anti-glare panel, which recived a matt coat. The three small windows received artificial panes made from Clearfix, after their rims had been painted black.
A messy project, and you better do not take a close look. But the overall elegance of this creation surprises me - the real Mystery Jet already looked sleek, and this model, despite a more blunt nose, confirms this impression. The colors work together well, too - and the thing has a dedicated retro feel about it. Tintin might be on board, as well as Elton John, both sharing a cigar on the rear seats... ;)
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George Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located within city limits, 8 miles northwest of central Victorville, California, about 75 miles northeast of Los Angeles, California. The facility was closed by the Base Realignment and Closure (or BRAC) 1992 commission at the end of the Cold War. It is now the site of Southern California Logistics Airport.
An airplane carrying U.S. Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo prepares to depart Joint Base Andrews, January 7, 2019. Secretary Pompeo will travel to Amman, Jordan; Cairo, Egypt; Manama, Bahrain; Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Doha, Qatar; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Muscat, Oman; and Kuwait City, Kuwait, January 8-15. [State Department photo by Ron Pryzsucha/ Public Domain]
© photographer : Tanguy van Eeckhoudt - Tanali Photography
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EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska (May 4, 2022) - An F-16 Fighting Falcon assigned to the 36th Fighter Squadron, takes to the air in participation of RED FLAG-Alaska 22-1 at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, May 3, 2022. RF-A 22-1 is a Pacific Air Forces-directed field training exercise for U.S. and international forces flown under simulated air combat conditions primarily out of Eielson Air Force Base and Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. (U.S. Air Force photo Senior Airman Megan Estrada) 220504-F-WE075-1008
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Strobist info: 3 Bare flashes. 1 camera left near me. 1 camera left behind model (stand visible). 3rd flash...well...
Sample pic, no photoshop, no RAW, jpg straight from camera.
A childhood dream come true: This is the Moon Base I would have loved to have when I was a kid: 9×3 baseplates filled with stations, vehicles and spaceships.
20/20: Details (9/9)
That’s it, my Lego Classic Space Generation 1 Moon Base with 27 baseplates. It’s my biggest Lego project so far and really a childhood dream come true :-))
PictionID:54056191 - Catalog:14_032956 - Title:Schilling AFB Details: LCC with Forms Removed Date: 11/16/1960 - Filename:14_032956.tif - - - Images from the Convair/General Dynamics Astronautics Atlas Negative Collection. The processing, cataloging and digitization of these images has been made possible by a generous National Historical Publications and Records grant from the National Archives and Records Administration---Please Tag these images so that the information can be permanently stored with the digital file.---Repository: San Diego Air and Space Museum
Creeping over Ferme Park flyover is Class 92 No. 92033 leading 5M43 the empty sleeper stock move from Kings Cross to Wembley. The train was initially pulled by 87002 to Hornsey sidings on the down lines, at which point 92033 took over to pull the train across the Ferme Park flyover to the up lines and onwards to Copenhagen Junction and the spur to the North London Line.
Expecting and nursing mothers require social protection but workers in the informal economy are often not covered. Maternity protection has been a primary concern of the ILO since its creation in 1919. Workplace support for mothers who are breastfeeding has been a basic provision of maternity protection. The Philippines expanded maternity leave benefits in 2019 to align with international labour standards. The ILO also promoted exclusive breastfeeding in the workplace to advance women’s rights to maternity protection and to improve nutrition security for Filipino children.
Photo : E. Tuyay / ILO
Date : 2011/11
Country : Philippines
Latest addition to my Echo Base diorama, the rebel trench. This is the first of several modules that will span the front to the base and integrate with the wall sections.
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
The Dassault/Dornier Alpha Jet is a light attack jet and advanced trainer aircraft co-manufactured by Dassault Aviation of France and Dornier Flugzeugwerke of Germany. It was developed specifically to perform the trainer and light attack missions, as well as to perform these duties more ideally than the first generation of jet trainers that preceded it.
Following a competition, a design submitted by a team comprising Breguet Aviation, Dassault Aviation, and Dornier Flugzeugwerke, initially designated as the TA501, was selected and subsequently produced as the Alpha Jet.
Both the French Air Force and German Air Force procured the Alpha Jet in large numbers, the former principally as a trainer aircraft and the latter choosing to use it as a light attack platform. In July 1978, Dassault signed an agreement with American aircraft manufacture Lockheed to market the Alpha Jet in the US market, the arrangement included provisions for Lockheed to manufacture the Alpha Jet under license. The Alpha Jet was considered as a candidate for the US Navy's VTXTS advanced trainer program, which was eventually won by the McDonnell Douglas T-45 Goshawk, a modified version of the Hawker Siddeley Hawk. Proposed modifications included undercarriage changes for nose-tow catapults and a stronger arrestor hook, as well as various US-sourced avionics and other equipment.
The Alpha Jet program remained prolific, though. During the early 1990s, the French Air Force investigated the “Alpha Jet 3” program, which involved installing a fully digital cockpit, a modernized communications suite, and a full navigation/attack and sensor training system.
Another development line was the Alpha Jet Lancier (Lancer), which would enable the trainer to act as a light, all-weather multi-purpose attack aircraft. The most obvious modification was the addition of an Anemone radar in an extended nose section with a radome, similar and shape and size of the Super Étendard’s nose section. The Anemone radar was an improved and very compact derivative of the Super Étendard’s Agave radar, weighing only a mere 60kg.
The Anemone would provide the weapon system (based on the developments for the Alpha Jet 3) with all the data required for firing air-to-sea AM39 missiles, and the data needed for air-to-ground fire control. It could also be used for aircraft self-protection, as it could also handle the fire control of air-to-air weapons.
Dassault had high hopes in export sales for the Alpha Jet Lancier (e. g. to Egypt, Qatar and Nigeria), but interest was lukewarm since the Alpha Jet was a design that had been superseded by more modern constructions, and its operation costs were relatively high.
However, in 1991, when the Alpha Jet Lancier was still on the drawing board, the French Aéronavale was looking for an advanced trainer that could also be used for carrier start and landing training – basically as a replacement for the outdated Fouga CM.175 Zéphyr. The Alpha Jet offered several benefits, including its two engines for improved operational security and the fact that the type had already been in use with the French Air Force, so that the maintenance infrastructure and experienced mechanics were readily available. Even the demand for a maritime variant could be quickly realized – thanks to the VTXTS engagement in the late Seventies.
The result was the so-called “Alpha Jet Lancier M”, which incorporated all the aforementioned elements. An order for 31 aircraft (one prototype plus 30 serial aircraft) was placed in early 1992. The prototype was ready in May 1993 and incorporated further changes like uprated engines (delivering 10% more thrust than the former Larzac turbofans used on the land-based variants) or foldable outer wing sections, a reinforced arrester hook and a fixed (but detachable refueling probe).
The landing gear was also modified for carrier operations, with a bigger spring deflection and a more rigid, twin-front wheel that also featured a launch hook.
The Anemone multi-mode radar was augmented by a lightweight Ferranti Type 105 laser rangefinder, mounted in a fairing under the port side cockpit flank, leaving space for an optional gun pod that could be carried under the fuselage. A Doppler radar for navigation purposes was added in a shallow fairing under the cockpit, too. Mission avionics were further enhanced by a helmet-mounted sight, improved cockpit displays, a datalink, and improved night vision goggles compatibility.
The Alpha Jet Lancier M’s most powerful weapon was the AS.39 Exocet missile. Two of these weapons (weighing 670 kg each) could be carried on the inner pylons, even typically only a single one was carried with a drop tank as counterbalance and range compensation on the opposite pylon.
The relatively compact missile is designed for attacking small- to medium-size warships (e. g. frigates, corvettes and destroyers), although multiple hits are effective against larger vessels, such as aircraft carriers. Its rocket motor, which is fueled by solid propellant, gives the Exocet a maximum range of 70 km (43 mi; 38 nmi). It is guided inertially in mid-flight and turns on active radar late in its flight to find and hit its target. As a countermeasure against air defense around the target, it maintains a very low altitude during ingress, staying one–two m above the sea surface. Due to the effect of the radar horizon, this means that the target may not detect an incoming attack until the missile is only 6,000 m from impact. This leaves little time for reaction and stimulated the design of close-in weapon systems (CIWS).
Trials of the Alpha Jet Lancier M prototype lasted until 1994, when serial production eventually started – just in time for the Zéphyr replacement, the trainer had been in service since 1960. The first machines arrived at the operational units in early 1995, though. Dassault still had high export hopes, but despite having an official operator now no further orders were coming forth – the Alpha Jet Lancier was simply too expensive. Plans for upgrading the land-based Alpha Jet fleet were also ultimately abandoned as being too expensive. In 1998, France's defense ministry examined prospective upgrades focused on the Alpha Jet's cockpit, such as the installation of a new Head-Up Display (HUD) and multifunction displays, though.
In June 2003, Dassault revealed its plans for an Alpha Jet upgrade to potentially meet the French Air Force's long term training requirements. This upgrade was similar to that which was performed for the Belgian Air Force's Alpha Jet fleet, involving the installation of a glass cockpit, increasing cockpit compatibility with frontline aircraft such as the Dassault Rafale and Dassault Mirage 2000, as well as a structural overhaul.
As a result of post-Cold War military cutbacks, Germany already elected to retire its own fleet of Alpha Jets in the 1990s and has re-sold many of these aircraft to both military and civilian operators. The Alpha Jet has been adopted by a number of air forces across the world and has also seen active combat use by some of these operators.
General characteristics:
Crew: two
Length: 13.23 m (43 ft 5 in)
Wingspan: 9.11 m (29 ft 10¾ in), folded:
Height: 4.19 m (13 ft 9 in)
Wing area: 17.50 m² (188.4 ft²)
Empty weight: 3,515 kg (7,750 lb)
Loaded weight: 5,000 kg (11,000 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 7,500 kg (16,535 lb)
Powerplant:
2× SNECMA Turbomeca Larzac 04-H-20 non-afterburning turbofans,
delivering 4.12 kN of thrust (3,173 lbf) each
Performance:
Maximum speed: 1,000 km/h (540 kn, 621 mph) at sea level
Stall speed: 167 km/h (90 knots, 104 mph) (flaps and undercarriage down)
Combat radius: 610 km (329 nmi, 379 mi) lo-lo-lo profile with full ordnance
Ferry range: 2,940 km (1,586 nmi, 1,827 mi)
Service ceiling: 14,630 m (48,000 ft)
Rate of climb: 57 m/s (11,220 ft/min)
Armament:
1× optional 30 mm (1.18 in) GIAT 30/M791 autocannon with 125 rounds in a centerline pod
Four underwing hardpoints for a total load of 2,500 kg (5,506 lb), including up to six Matra rocket pods
with eighteen SNEB 68 mm rockets each or six CRV7 rocket pods with nineteen 70 mm rockets each;
Two AIM-9 Sidewinders or two Matra Magic IIs air-to-air missiles
Up to two AM.39 Exocet anti-ship missiles, or four AGM-65 Mavericks
or other TV-, laser or IR-guided Smart Weapons
The kit and its assembly:.
Another entry for the “Old Kit Group Build” at whatifmodelers.com, #4 to be precise. The basis for this conversion is the venerable Heller Alpha Jet in 1:72 scale from 1979, even though in a much more recent Revell re-boxing as a Belgian aircraft with a black/yellow/silver anniversary paint scheme.
Anyway, the moulds must have suffered a lot in the meantime, because the Revell offering comes with lots of flash, ugly ejector pin markings and even some sinkholes. I have built an old, original Heller kit a while ago, and this was much more crisp and defined!
However, the conversion of the kit was only cosmetic, including:
• A new, longer and more massive nose– actually the front end of a Tornado drop tank
• A completely new twin front wheel, including the well in the nose section
• Modified main landing gear with new wheels and a higher stance
• Engraved seams for the wings’ folding mechanism
• Appropriate ordnance, including…
- an Exocet missile (Academy Super Étendard)
- a drop tank (Academy OV-10 Bronco)
- a Barracuda 2 ECM pod and a Matra Phimat flare dispenser (Heller SEPECAT Jaguar)
• Some new antennae and pitots, and a more massive arrestor hook
• The laser rangefinder in its unusual (but correct!) fairing
• Some chaff/flare dispensers at the tail
Building the fuselage was no fun – nothing would fit, and the kit’s construction is really complicated. O.K., the Alpha Jet’s shape with its engine nacelles and the curved belly is complex, but the kit’s solution is far from perfect.
Another true weak point are the air intakes: they end after 3-4mm in a staggered, vertical wall. Really ugly, so I drilled the intakes open and moved the still necessary view blocker (black foamed styrene) a bit further back.
Painting and markings:
IMHO, the only potential operator for this fictional yet rather complex and expensive Alpha Jet variant would be France, and so the Lancier M ended up in the hands of the Aéronavale.
Consequently, I gave the aircraft a Nineties paint scheme inspired by the two-tone grey livery of the late Super Ètendard – also a bit of an unusual, yet familiar, touch. The basic colors I used are Humbrol 164 (Dark Sea Grey) and 165 (Medium Sea Grey), because I wanted to prevent a US look – and the frequently recommended tones of FS36118 and FS35237 are IMHO just wrong, Gunship Grey being too dark, and the grey blue being …simply much too bluish. The British tones work quite well, though, even though I still wonder about the “true” colors of this paint scheme?
The cockpit interior was painted in very dark grey (Humbrol 67) for some contrast to the outside, the landing gear wells and the struts became Aluminum (Humbrol 56), as well as the air intakes. The interior of the landing gear covers was painted in chrome yellow primer (Humbrol 81), for some more color contrast.
The Barracuda 2 pod was painted in dark green, while the chaff dispenser became dark grey – as a small color contrast to the grey aircraft. The Exocet missile became white with a light grey radome, according to the real thing, but as another disruption the single drop tank received the old Aéronavale scheme in dark bluish grey and white, together with a red tip (marking the flight the aircraft belongs to).
The decals come mostly from a Berna Decals aftermarket sheet for French Bréguet Alizés. The sheet features, among others, a late, dark grey aircraft, and this option provided the small roundels and the grey codes. Escadrille 59S was chosen, since it was available in the sheet (with the squadron’s emblem) and originally a unit for night/all-weather training, disbanded in early 1997.
A simple conversion, yet very thorough and surprisingly convincing. The Lancier’s longer and more massive nose changes the character of the sleek Alpha Jet a lot, and the grey-on-grey paint scheme with the toned-down markings adds a unusual touch to the normally much more colorful aircraft. The scheme looks very natural on the Alpha Jet, too.
Backstory of this imperial base is a Dark Jedi idolizes Darth Vader, took control of an Imperial base, and added a temple where he/she could worship the Dark Lord of the Sith. Hence the giant statue of Vader.
I originally was going to use that large flashlight of Vader (That's where the idea came from in the first place) but then this guy came out.
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
Slovenian contact with military aviation began during World War I, when the army and navy air services of Austria-Hungary conscripted large numbers of personnel from throughout the Empire. As the Empire began to collapse during 1918, Slovenian aircrew and ground crew switched their allegiance to the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. Aircraft found on Slovenian territory were taken over by the Slovenian authorities and formed into a fledgling air arm. The new air arm was soon involved in the conflict with Austria over the border provinces of Carinthia and south Styria. Later in 1919, the Slovenian air units were absorbed into the Royal Yugoslav Air Force.
In 1968 a reserve volunteer force, the Teritorialna Obramba (Territorial Defence of the Socialist Republic of Slovenia), was established to defend local key locations in time of crisis. The Slovenian Territorial Defence HQ had a small auxiliary aviation unit stationed at Ljubljana-Polje airfield by 1969, when Government Factories Type 522 advanced trainers were being operated. These aircraft were borrowed from the Yugoslav Air Force and not owned by Slovenia. Slovenian Territorial Defence ceased to be a part of the Yugoslavian auxiliary forces on 21 June 1991, (four days prior of the proclamation of independence), when the Yugoslav army seized 12 Soko J-20 Kraguj aircraft from them.
On 28 June 1991 a Yugoslav Air Force Gazelle defected to Slovenia, providing the first helicopter for the Territorial Defence Force. During the war, it also was equipped with three ex-Police Bell 412s and an Agusta A-109A. On 9 June 1992 the Air Force Unit of the Slovenian Army was renamed into 15 Brigada Vojaskega Letalstva. The 15 Brigada was divided into two squadrons, one fixed-wing and one helicopter squadron, flying from two bases, Brnik airport and Cerklje ob Krki.
Slovenia’s independence and the aftershock of the war in Yugoslavia soon led to a major expansion of the Slovenian Air Force’s capabilities through the acquisition of 18 former East German MiG 21M and MF fighters, which had recently been retired as a consequence of the re-unification of Germany and the dissolution of the NVA-LSK. As armament, Wympel R-60 (NATO reporting name AA-8 “Aphid") IR-guided short range AAMs were bought from German surplus stock, too.
The machines were disassembled and transported by train to Romania in 1995, where 12 of them were re-built and outfitted with modern avionics from Israel, bringing them more or less to the Romanian Air Force’s “Lancer C” standard and capable of carrying Western weapons like the AIM-9 Sidewinder or the Rafael Python (even though the Wympel R-60, also procured from ex-East German stocks, was the interceptor’s prime weapon. The rest of the airframes were kept as spares and for potential replacements.
In Slovenian service, the MiG-21 became, under the newly introduced military serial number system, designated “L21” (L for Letalska = Aircraft). The first machines were delivered in 1996 and exclusively operated as interceptors. In this role, they were allocated to the newly founded Slovenian Air Force’s interceptor squadron, which was at that time still part of the 15 Brigada. In 1997, this new unit made its first deployment outside of the country: two aircraft were sent to the Mildenhall Air Fete in the UK.
When Slovenia joined NATO in 2004, the country took over most of the responsibility for protecting Slovenian airspace from other NATO units, even though foreign forces’ deployments were still frequent. In order to prolong the L21’s service life and ensure interoperability with friendly, foreign forces, the Slovenian Fishbed fleet was overhauled and updated by Aerostar in Romania in 2003 with NATO-compatible avionics (primarily communication and IFF systems), similar to the Croatian Air Force’s MiG-21BisD/UMD standard.
On 8 November 2004 the 15 Brigada was officially disbanded, and four new units were formed in its place: the 15 Helicopter Battalion, the Air Force School, the Air Force Base and the Interceptor Squadron.
The 151st Rotary Wing Squadron is located at the Brnik air base and the unit is equipped with eight Bell 412 helicopters as well as four AS-532 Cougar helicopters. The unit’s duties are to organize training courses for pilots and technical staff, to organize search and rescue missions and operate within the System of Civil Protection, Help and Rescue, to secure cargo transportation to mountain areas, to extinguish fires, and to provide air support for SAF units.
The Air Force Military School is located at the Cerklje ob Krki air base. The school conducts the basic and advance training programs for future air force pilots in two Zlin 142L and eight Zlin 242L planes and four Bell 206 Jet Ranger helicopters, organizes practices for air force pilots, provides fire support, and carries out various tasks for other branches of the armed forces by using the two PC-9 and nine PC-9M planes. A part of the Air Force Military School is also the parachute squad, located at the Brnik air base, which organizes basic and advanced parachute training for SAF members.
The Air Force Base, located at the Cerklje ob Krki air base and designated 152nd Fixed Wing Squadron, carries out logistic support, such as fuel supply. The unit is equipped with two PC-6 planes and one L-410 plane. The Air Force Base unites the air supply squad and the technical support unit whose main tasks are to plan and conduct the second stage of aircraft maintenance, carry out technical personnel training, update aircraft documentation, etc.
Finally, Cerklje ob Krki also became the home of the country’s sole jet fighter squadron, officially the 154th Fixed Wing Squadron, but semi-officially and more commonly dubbed “Letalska Lovec Eskadrila” (= Interceptor Squadron). From Cerklje ob Krki, the Slovenian Air Force conducts airspace patrols in close collaboration with and support from Italian and Hungarian air forces, since the Slovenian fleet of twelve L21s is not big enough to ensure an independent 24/7 fulfillment of this task.
In 2014 the Slovenian MiG-21s were refurbished again, after two of the original machines had been lost in accidents. They were replaced with material from the mothballed airframe stock and the L21 fleet will probably remain in active use until 2019/2020, when they will be replaced by a new 4th generation fighter – candidates are F-16C/Ds, bought from US surplus stocks, or leased Saab Gripen (JAS 39C), similar to the Czech and Hungarian Air Force.
General characteristics:
Crew: 1
Length: 15.76 m (51 ft 7½ in) incl. pitot
Wingspan: 7.15 m (23 ft 6 in)
Height: 4.13 m (13 ft 6½ in)
Wing area: 23.0 m² (247.3 ft²)
Empty weight: 6,000 kg (13,215 lb)
Gross weight: 8,200 kg (18,060 lb)
Max. TOW: 9,400 kg (20,700 lb)
Powerplant:
1× Tumansky R-13-300 turbojet, rated at 40,30 kN (9,040 lbf) dry thrust
and 60,70 kN (13,650 lbf) with afterburner
Performance:
Maximum speed: 2,230 km/h (1,385 mph/1,205 kts) at 11.000 m
1,300 km/h (807 mph/702 kts) at sea level
Cruising speed: 1,200 km/h (745 mph/650 kts)
Landing speed: 350 km/h (217 mph/190 kts)
Range: (internal fuel) 1,210 km (751 miles)
Combat radius with two AAMs and three drop tanks: 465 ml (750 km)
Service ceiling: 19,000 m (62,200 ft)
Rate of climb: 180 m/s (35,375 ft/min)
Thrust-to-weight ration: 1.03 maximum
Armament:
1x internal 23 mm GSh-23 cannon with 200 rounds
5x hardpoints for a wide range of ordnance of up to 3.310 lb (1.500 kg);
Typically, the Slowenian L21 carried a pair of Wympel R-60 IR-guided short range AAMs
and 1-3 supersonic PTB-490 drop tanks.
The kit and its assembly:
A relatively simple project, just a cosmetic whif. It is actually based on a CG skin, created by user “Thor77” and posted at digitalcombatsimulator.com, upon which I came across when I was browsing for the Slovenian Air Force’s current paint scheme and information concerning its colors. Among several whiffy creations (including an A-10 and a Mirage 2000) there was a MiG-21MF, and it caught my attention because it appeared very plausible. Since I was curious about the “new” Kopro MiG-21 with modernized molds from the company’s era under the KP label, I used this inspiration for a build.
The vintage KP MiG-21MF was/is actually a very good model of the aircraft, even though the production finish has never been very good and the original kit came with raised surface details, (lots of) flash and sinkholes here and there.
In order to see how the modernized Kopro kit compares, it was built mostly OOB with just minor changes or additions (air scoops, antennae, canopy cut into two pieces for display).
The “new” kit is really nice – its sprues and parts are virtually identical with the old KP molds, and you still get raised panel lines, what might let certain people wrinkle their noses. But these details are very fine and crisp, no more sinkholes - but there’s still a lot of flash that calls for careful and thorough cleaning. And even though the fuselage halves did not match properly (one half turned out to be 0.5mm wider than the other), the Kopro kit is a noticeable step forward and IMHO the best of the many incarnations of this MiG-21MF kit that I have come across so far. It reminds me very much of a classic Heller kit! Just with flash, though.
The ordnance consists of a PTB-490 drop tank (OOB) on the ventral hardpoint, and I gave the Slovenian MiG-21, inspired by Croatian machines, an armament consisting of R-60 AAMs carried on the inner underwing pylons. As a personal twist, however, I increase the missile number to four (all of them taken from an ESCI Ka-34 “Hokum” kit) on double pylons, inspired by real world NVA-LSK equipment. The new launch rails were scratched from styrene profile material.
Painting and markings:
Well, the original reason for this build was the pretty unique paint scheme of Slovenian military aircraft: a rather murky three-tone camouflage, consisting of a deep red brown, forest green and a dull olive green, paired with light grey undersides. This does not sound spectacular, but, like the Austrian two-tone green scheme, it is pretty characteristic.
My build was inspired by a concrete flight simulator skin, but I did not adopt this CG pattern because it looked too “simple” for my personal taste, with only a few bands of different colors that were also extended at right angles from the fuselage onto the wings. Instead, the applied scheme is a personal, more sophisticated guesstimate, based primarily on Slovenian PC-6 transport aircraft and on PC-9 trainers.
My choice for the basic colors fell on Humbrol 170 (Brown Bess), 195 (Satin Dark Green, actually RAL 6020; Chromoxidgrün) and Modelmaster 2015 (Faded Olive Drab), plus Humbrol 129 (FS 36440) for the undersides. The Faded Olive Drab tone turned out to be too light, but I stuck with it since I found the bigger contrast between the upper colors to be quite attractive.
A black anti glare panel was added in front of the cockpit and, instead of the classic bright green, the air intake shock cone became black, too – inspired by the CG benchmark. Other dielectric panels were painted very dark grey, or in the case of the fin, in a slightly different brown tone, matching the surrounding camouflage.
The cockpit interior was painted in an individually mixed greenish-blue tone (great contrast to the murky exterior!), with some dashboards in medium grey.
The landing gear wells were painted in zinc chromate yellow (Humbrol 81), while the legs became light grey (Humbrol 167, Barley Grey) and the wheel discs bright green (Humbrol 2).
The markings come mostly from a very nice Blue Rider Publications sheet for various aircraft in Slovenian and Macedonian service. The booklet that comes with it yields some valuable information about other markings – e.g. the fact, that most Slovenian military aircraft carry city names and their respective crests. While I had to rely on the sheet’s material for this detail, I adopted it for my L21, and my choice fell on the town of Celje, primarily because of its blue and yellow crest.
In communist times it was a place of radio monitoring, also used for the purposes of counterintelligence. All facilities were built in 1962, currently object lose the fight against time and nature. Most of the 'valuables' were robbed or taken after the liquidation of the object, it did immediately after the fall of communism in Poland. Interestingly the military facility was used by the Interior Ministry in the fight against Solidarity.