Guideline Publications Mikoyan-Gurevich Mig-3 Warpaint #129

[Mike]

Mikoyan-Gurevich Mig-3 Warpaint #129

Guideline Publications

 

 

This book is originally by author Nikolay Yakubovich, translated by Kevin Bridge, and covers the birth and extensive development of this troubled aircraft that showed some promise at higher altitude, but was never to see service in optimum conditions, relegated to low and medium altitudes where it was sluggish, and as one pilot summed up “like flying an iron”.  There were many attempts to improve it by fitting different engines from the original AM-35A that was installed when the intended AM-37 was unavailable.  No matter what they fitted, it just didn’t give it the performance it needed at the altitudes that it would actually be used for under the circumstances.  Furthermore, it was initially considered under-armed with a trio of machine guns, only one of which was of larger calibre, and despite numerous weapons configurations they never seemed to address the problem adequately, just adding weight to an already heavy aircraft, making the agility predicament worse.  It saw service nevertheless, and carried out a number of combat trials in its alternative various guises, gaining the reputation of being a difficult aircraft to fly, particularly for pilots that didn’t have the necessary experience or skill.  A few determined pilots managed to wring out enough from the airframe to hold their own against the Nazis, but the general consensus was a hearty thumbs-down, although you’d have to be careful who you said that to for fear of getting purged.

 

 

 

The book is in the usual Warpaint format of portrait A4(ish) with a soft card cover but has an increased page count from the norm and utilises a perfect binding instead of the usual pair of staples to accommodate the total of 68 pages plus content printed on the four sides of the glossy covers.   A long section details the birth of the type, the subsequent variants and history carries on throughout the book, incorporating a summary of the combat experiences of the Mig-3 and its various incarnations. 

 

 

 

The pages include a lot of useful pictures with informative captions of aircraft on the apron, on the field, in the air, during trials, crashed and under maintenance with panels missing, plus appropriate photos and drawings dotted around, but the engineering-type drawings have Cyrillic text, so you'll have to rely on the captions unless you read Russian.  The Colours & Markings section shows the narrow range of official schemes that the type was painted, but the many profiles illustrate the variety of schemes that were applied in the field.  The "In Detail" section has many numbered close-up photos with matching captions providing excellent information that will be a boon to modellers as well as people that just like to know what everything does.

 

 

 

The final small section entitled Modelling the Mig-3 confirms that there are just a small range of kits available in 1:72 and 1:48, with only Trumpeter servicing the 1:32 modellers, but the shortage of alternative modern toolings leaves an opportunity for some company or other if they deem it profitable.  It is fairly popular with many modellers due to being a sleek, attractive aircraft with a low-profile canopy that was actually a downside for the pilots because it restricted their view and was often left open by pilots as a result both for visibility, and in case they needed to leave rapidly.

 

Conclusion

The Warpaint series always gets a thumbs-up due to their inability to produce a bad one.  This is an excellent book that will see plenty of use by anyone interest in, or building this fairly “meh” aircraft that is still pretty attractive.

 

Very highly recommended.

 

 

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