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The Beriev Be-12 ( NATO code name Mail ) maritime patrol amphibian is an aircraft that fascinated me when I first saw one illustrated in the 1968 Observers Book Of Aircraft when I was eight years old. I still have the book and this is the actual page from it. I wanted a model of this aircraft but none was available, or so I thought, until I stumbled upon a 1/144 scale injection moulded kit of one at Scale Model World about ten years ago, made by a manufacturer called Masterkit who I had never heard of before. It came in a box like this and luckily I was not put off by the illustration or the basic contents and bought it there and then. At the time I was going through a phase of building Russian aircraft and also wanting to build subjects that I had not seen built up before......... so a double thumbs up then. It was a very basic kit, no interior or windows, just a solid shell which was moulded in a thick soft dark grey plastic with huge trenches for ' panel ' lines. The nose and cockpit glazing was represented by decals. But I was younger and keener then. So in 2011 I started building this model. I cut out all the windows individually using a very fine sharp modelling knife, I even left the window frames of the cockpit and nose glazing in situ while I removed the window parts. And then if this was not enough, I decided to build a full interior with reference to a cut away I had in a magazine and as many internal views I could find, and try and make some sense of it all in 1/144 scale. I took a small number of photos during the construction which I will share. Scratchbuilt interior complete and ready for painting. I also decided to open up the weapons bay both at the top and bottom and also the two crew access doors The two pilots sat on ejector seats in these aircraft believe it or not. Interior now painted. Time to join fuselage together. I cut open a number of hatches in the fuselage. Loading hatch above weapons bay can be seen. Good progress had been made here. Scratchbuilt undercarriage and cockpit glazing installed. I am also tackling the scratchbuilt engine housings. Scratchbuilt weapons bay doors and tailwheel doors. Also water rudder and MAD probe strakes. At this time I had not realised that the span of the wings and tailplanes would require increasing. So here we have the wingspan increased with plastic card fillers and the tailplane span has been increased with new scratchbuilt ones. Soon be ready for painting. And after a coat of brush painted Humbrol 140 it was complete. Scratchbuilt sonar buoys and ladders. Loading hatch closed. Loading hatch open. Nose glazing and portholes glazed with Humbrol Clearfix. Note ejection seat hatches above cockpit. I wonder what is for dinner comrade ? Sonar buoys in ordnance bay. Close up of loading hatch. The glazed blister had to come from my spares. Scratchbuilt tail wheel. That has been my Masterkit 1/144 scale Beriev Be-12 Mail completed in February 2012, a number of years before the Amodel kit appeared. regards, adey