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With apologies to everyone in the other two GBs I'm currently involved in (KUTA and Grumman), this is the one I've really been looking forward to since the Airfix GB finished. I think it's because the three builds I've been contemplating - a Neptune MR.1, SAAF Turbo Dakota, and this - are all exactly the models I want to be building right now. So I'm starting with this one and may well get onto one of the other two before this GB ends. In any case, my plan is to do all three within the next 12 months, since they all fit multiple GBs in the next year. Which one to start with was a bit of a dilemma for a while, until I realised that the Tu-22KD fits the bill. I've been wanting to build this kit since I bought it, but also been procrastinating over it, and this GB is the kick I needed. So it's the Tu-22 first. It's not the most obvious maritime patrol aircraft to choose. But the Tu-22KD's main role was anti-shipping warfare - in WWIII its role would have been to attack carrier groups with the Kh-22 (aka AS-4 Kitchen) missile, with either a conventional or nuclear warhead (it occurs to me this could have been a good fit for the proposed armageddon GB) and in the cold war they apparently regularly practiced targeting carrier groups in the North Sea. It also ticks a lot of my boxes - a big, idiosyncratic Soviet design, and also one of those kind of cold war designs that seems to represent a transition between the early jets and modern aviation. Here's the kit, from Modelsvit in 1/72: It's pretty typical of a modern A Model/Modelsvit kit - quite nicely detailed, some nice surface detail in particular, and most definitely short run (e.g. no locating pins and a fuselage which comes broken down into more pieces than the likes of Airfix would have. But the likes of Airfix would never give us one of these). According to the box top there are 320 parts for the aircraft and 28 for the Kh-22, which I think comes with a trolley to display it separately but mine will be semi-recessed under the fuselage (a bit like a Soviet Blue Steel). And here's the aftermarket stuff I'm going to use - Barracudacast wheels and afterburners, Amigo resin intakes, decals from Authentic Decals (sadly the most interesting markings are for other versions though), and New Ware masks: Can't wait to get into it - roll on tomorrow!

Not as good a finish as Alesha's model - but I have finally finished.... my 1/72 scale Tu-22KD Blinder from the Ukrainian firm of Modelsvit. I've replaced the kit tail cannon with a tailcone mounting the SPS-100 'Reseda' active jamming system..... I also cut the bottom fuselage panel to show the three downward opening doors for the ejection seats (which are in the kit) I added straps and altered the footrests (the pilots and WSO seats are slightly different to the Navigators kit seat - thanks Gabor). The dragon decal is from Begemot (thanks Kotey!) - and I changed the bort number to 'Red 61' to reflect the tailcone changes and markings. The kit comes complete with a Kh-22 missile and its handling dolly..... The kit is a typical short-run kit and I had a few issues with the fully-detailed interior (which can't be seen on the finished model!) - but Modelsvit are to be commended for producing a scale model of such an important and iconic Soviet warplane. More photos and WIP pics here. WIP Thread is here Ken