Break of Dawn - Early days of Ukrainian Jet fighters on display

[0viking0]

Hello everyone

Here is something new from PaulusVictor in 1/72 and 1/48 scale.

I thought for a long time whether to do anything at all related to this current conflict between Ukraine and Russia, but I decided not to. I turned to brighter topics from a different time of hope.

 

BREAK OF DAWN - Early days of Ukrainian Jet fighters on display

This future decal set will be based on two stories.

 

One story is about two Ukrainian MiG-29s that toured North America in 1992. They came disassembled in a large Antonov to Canada where they were assembled. After that, they visited many Air shows in Canada and the USA.

 

Another story is about two Su-27s that flew at the famous Royal International Air Tattoo Airshow in 1996.

 

I don't have an exact release date, but this will be available somewhere next year, probably during spring.

 

As always this will be a very limited edition.

 

Wish you all happy modelling.

http://paulusvictor.com

 

[0viking0]

Hello dear friends.

Break of Dawn (PV-005-72/48) test prints are done. I still want to work on some details, but this is it. This set will be ready somewhere during late April.

I will give you more data when ready...

Thanks to many good people who helped me with this project.

Enjoy

http://paulusvictor.com/

 

 

 

 

[0viking0]

Hello Everyone...

here is something new from PaulusVictor

BREAK OF DAWN - Early days of Ukrainian Jet fighters on display

Since the beginning of this War between Russia and Ukraine I’ve been getting a bunch of emails and photos with suggestions of subjects for new sets, however from the beginning I decided that I would never do anything related to this Conflict - neither Ukrainian nor Russian. However, several interesting subjects unrelated to the Conflict have emerged. Subjects from another time when it seemed that some things would go differently. Subjects from the time of hope for a bright future.

 

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐞𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐔𝐤𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐉𝐞𝐭 𝐟𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐲. Although they look simple, these subjects are not really for the novice modelers. Painting and application of decals require a lot of attention and masking, especially in the case of the su-27 which hides a few tricky steps in making and painting. I will explain in future posts.

 

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗼𝗳 𝗨𝗸𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗽𝗶𝗹𝗼𝘁𝘀

After the world witnessed the emergence of an independent state of Ukraine, the people in North America generally considered everything east of the Iron curtain to be strange and unfamiliar.

The idea to invite the pilots of the Air Force of Independent Ukraine to participate in the air shows belonged to aviation fans – the leaders of the Ukrainian Flying Club in Canada Mikhail Bien and Taras Tatarin. They proposed to the national government of Ukraine a plan to advertise themselves and show the world how an independent country’s air force performs. A tour to Canada and across the United States was proposed, to which the Ukrainians agreed, and in 1992. the Ukrainian Air Force received an official invitation to a series of air shows where they were to be represented by a MiG-29 fighter jet.

The MiG-29 was chosen because it could perform various tricks and acrobatics which the other planes at the air show could not and due to this nature of the plane it would naturally draw the crowd’s attention to it.

During the evening of May 8, 1992, a giant An-124 transport plane bearing the flag of Ukraine landed at Canadian Forces Base Namao. Inside the aircraft were two disassembled MiG-29 fighter jets. The MiGs had only recently been re-painted in Lviv in blue and yellow colours with a trident insignia on their tails. The two MiGs were reassembled in record time over the next two days as the ground crews worked until 2 or 3 AM to finish a job that normally takes four days. After engine tests and flight maneuvers, the aircraft were ready.

This was the start of a three-month tour of air shows in Canada and the U.S. for the Ukrainian MiGs. This is a shorter version of a somewhat more complex story that I will try to tell in some future posts

 

𝗨𝗸𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗦𝘂-𝟮𝟳𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝗥𝗜𝗔𝗧 𝟭𝟵𝟵𝟲

During 1996, it was decided that two aircraft were going to travel to Fairford, one being the Su-27, with bort number 48. This Su-27 would participate in an aerial display. The second aircraft was another SU-27, with bort number 57, this aircraft would be part of the static display on the ground.

When it came to camouflage, #48 and #57 were different from the rest of their Ukrainian counterparts. Standard service Su-27s in Ukraine were painted in the Splinter camo, first introduced on Su-27a #36 in 1996 – and subsequently repainted onto every Su-27. However, for the purposes of RIAT and their exhibition, #48 and #57 got their own special painting, which included yellow and blue stripes on the aircraft.

 

WHAT IS IN THE ENVELOPE:

– Decal sheet for 4 Ukrainian Air Force aircraft options

   MiG-29 (9-13) Fulcrum-C, “01 White” “Dawn of Freedom” tour / North America, 1992.

   MiG-29UB (9-51) Fulcrum-B, “02 White” “Dawn of Freedom” tour / North America, 1992.

   Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker-B (early), Fairford RAF, RIAT96, 1996.

   Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker-B (late), Fairford RAF, RIAT96, 1996.

– Background stories, history and details

– Photo quality profiles and instructions

– Aircraft detail guide

– Colors and painting guide

– Small Ukrainian flag sticker

– Recommended video links

– Personal notes area

 

Very limited edition

Find out more: http://paulusvictor.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

[0viking0]

 

You must be wondering why on Earth these two strangely painted MiG-29s deserve so much attention and a separate decal set. The story behind them, although old, is still very active today. Like any story, this one isn't always pretty, and since this is a story about two planes, I won't mention the people who were part of the story.

Back in 1991, representatives of the Ukrainian diaspora in Canada approached the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine with a proposal to conduct an air tour to various cities of North America during 1992. The idea to invite the pilots of the independent Ukrainian air force to the air show belonged to aviation enthusiasts - leaders of the Ukrainian flying club in Canada. Since that was a significant financial expense, sponsors and donations were required because the Ukrainian aero club alone could not financially ensure the participation of military aviation from Ukraine. The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine welcomed the idea of this air tour, the purpose of which was to promote independent Ukraine. Agreements were reached with the ministries of defence of the United States of America and Canada on the permission to fly Ukrainian military aircraft over the territory of those countries. The Canadian side was obliged to organize full support for the stay of the Ukrainian delegation in North America.

It was decided that Ukraine will be represented in the skies of North America by fighter pilots in two MiG-29 aircraft, the MiG-29 9-13 and the MiG-29UB. The technical characteristics of this aircraft made it possible to perform a lot of aerobatics, which could only be repeated by a limited number of types of foreign aircraft. Their display at an air show would immediately draw attention. Specialists of the Lviv Aircraft Repair Plant in a short period of time developed a version of the appearance of the aircraft. There was only one condition: everyone who sees the plane in the air or on the ground must understand that it is a winged combat vehicle of independent Ukraine. And for the first time, the small coat of arms of Ukraine – the Trident, was depicted on the MiG-29. Since then, a trident has been preserved as an identification mark of the Air Force of Ukraine to this day, only now the trident is depicted on the shield, and not inscribed in a circle. The name "Tridents" for this group came about after the London, Ontario show, when an aviation magazine titled their article "Tridents on Tour'', so the team received an unofficial temporary name of "Ukrainian Tridents''

Interesting fact: in the first approved version for this team, it was planned to depict a sign in the form of a swallow, like the one depicted on civil aviation aircraft.

After several weeks of special training, the designated team, together with two partially disassembled MiG-29 aircraft, flew to Canada aboard the big Antonov from the Stryi airfield. They landed near the city of Edmonton in Canada where they were supposed to make their first performances. The preparation of aircraft for departure by technical personnel of ten servicemen was carried out in two days. During their stay on the territory of North America, Ukrainian pilots conducted more than 30 performances with practical flights, the total flight was 103 hours, 207 flights were made on MiG-29 and MiG-29UB aircraft. In Canada: Edmonton, Windsor, Chatman, London, Abbotsford, Trenton, Alberta and in the USA: Oklahoma City (Oklahoma), St. Louis (Missouri), Scranton (Pennsylvania), Rockford (Illinois), Minot (Northern Dakota), Spokane (Washington), Columbus (Ohio), Lincoln (Nebraska), Salt Lake City (Utah), Mojave (California).

To cover the very high costs of the flight of Ukrainian fighter planes, as well as the staff's stay, a company was established that collected donations and payments. Unfortunately, the company was closed, and the money collected was stolen, so Ukrainian personnel decided to end the tour earlier, and since they didn't have money to go home, the Canadian government donated the fuel for the big Antonov. Instead of staying on the base or hotels the Ukrainians stayed with Ukrainian families in Edmonton. The team had to end the tour fending for themselves.

In the future, the fate of the two MiG-29s diverged.
MiG-29 No. 01 was returned to the 114th IAP. In 1995, this MiG became one of the aircraft of the Ukrainian Falcons aerobatic team, where it received tail number 101. It repeatedly performed from 1996 to 2000, with one accident. After the disbandment of the Falcons, it was sent for storage to the Kirovskoye airfield. In May 2014, all fighters from Kirovskoye, including board number 101, were transported by trucks to the Kulbakino airfield, where they were included in the 204 BrTA. The aircraft was in storage for two years, waiting in line for repairs. In 2016, board No. 101 was sent for repairs to Lviv, where it received a “pixel” camouflage, and on October 14, 2017, it went to serve in the 40th brigade (Vasilkov) with a new tail number No. 06. It was probably still active during early 2020s.

MiG-29UB "02" remained in Ivano-Frankivsk and became the "workhorse" of the 114th Aviation Regiment, and then the 114th Tactical Aviation Brigade. In 2003, this UB underwent a major overhaul in Lvov, where it received a standard green-grey camouflage. In 2007, the aircraft was again sent to the Lvov plant, where, after repairs, it was painted in the standard grey-blue camouflage. The machine took part in various aviation exercises. It's fate today is unknown.

RELATED VIDEOS:
https://youtu.be/3OrzUmrEwhc
https://youtu.be/s_LntFaeqbs > 15:30
https://youtu.be/5xZG3owvThY > 13:50
https://youtu.be/5HCJ3c6p3KE > 7:55

RELATED LINKS:
http://ukrweekly.com/archive/1992/The_Ukrainian_Weekly_1992-29.pdf page 29
https://armyinform.com.ua/2020/05/07/pershe-mizhnarodne-aviashou-ukrayinskyh-lotchykiv/
https://wetwing.com/aerobatics/ukraine/index.html

https://www.flickr.com/photos/164658904@N04/albums/72157679012632908

NOTES:
Somewhere during the tour, it seems that it was probably concluded that the Ukrainian trident on MiG-29s was poorly visible, and apparently a thin outline was added. It was impossible to find information on the exact date when or how this happened, but both options are in this set, so choose the appropriate one. Use reference photos and literature.

Be careful and choose the correct version of the kit for your MiG-29. Some model kits have these markings in their boxes with the wrong variants. Also, there are many inaccurate drawings.

Do not put drop tanks, weapons or any kind of weapon pylons on your kit. These MiGs were transported with Antonov heavy transport plane, and were in clean configuration during this time.

Do not use any stencils on this MiG-29

paulusvictor.com

 

Edited June 13, 2023 by 0viking0

[0viking0]

Hello

this is cover art made for the PaulusVictor "Break of Dawn" decal set.

 

Enjoy and wish You all the best.

http://paulusvictor.com/