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Mi-24 in Angola


Madmax

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 7/7/2019 at 1:40 PM, crobinsonh said:

Love your build. I really like this model and have one in the stash so this will provide a great tutorial for me.

 

You really are in for a treat, it is a lovely kit.

 

On 7/7/2019 at 3:39 PM, brahman104 said:

Nice work! I really like how you’re depicting the offset by changing the appearance and stance, very clever way to avoid a lot of surgery!

 

craig

 

 

Thanks Craig. I also think things will get really complicated the minute one starts cutting - the most difficult part probably being the levelling of the cabin and cockpit floors.

 

On 7/7/2019 at 5:20 PM, Out2gtcha said:

Lovely work for sure!

 

Thanks Brian, and a belated congratulations on your getting married!

 

On 7/7/2019 at 6:00 PM, Mistral said:

Hey Sean, that's looking really great so far. :thumbsup:

I'm with Greg - where's the 32nd Impala - Italeri ????

 

Hello Malcolm! Do you mean this kit?

 

IMG_0522-XL.jpg

 

I'm afraid it isn't a new tooling, just a re-boxing of the Tameeyah I made for Greg. :whistle:

 

On 7/7/2019 at 10:19 PM, Marcel111 said:

The adveture continues! Loving this build and I am usually not into choppers.

 

Cheers,

Marcel

 

Hey Marcel,

 

I'm also not much into choppers - but this one is something else!

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Having been away for a while, not much has happened with the model. I have however had a chance to contemplate the colour scheme.

 

Scheme-L.jpg

 

It would appear that this Mi-24 was rushed into Angolan service straight from a Russian unit. It still wears the Russian tail rotor warning and the remnants of the red star. It also has the lovely organic "three leafed" dark camouflage pattern in the colours referred to by some sources as an "alternate desert" scheme (green over light stone and blue/grey undersides). I would love to know more about this scheme.

 

It seems that it was extensively used in Afghanistan, and that each Hind was painted individually (judging by the vast differences in style and position of the "three leafed" patterns).

 

afgan-XL.jpg

 

cam-XL.jpg

 

Does anyone out there know what the origin of this wonderful camouflage pattern is?

 

The Angolan scheme eventually evolved into this, and sadly the leaves disappeared...

 

camo-XL.jpg

 

Years later one can still see the original "alternate desert" colours showing through underneath the brown paint.

 

faded-L.jpg

 

fade-L.jpg

 

Hopefully some model building will happen soon.

 

Cheers,

 

Sean

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On 7/20/2019 at 2:12 PM, Madmax said:

 

You really are in for a treat, it is a lovely kit.

 

 

Thanks Craig. I also think things will get really complicated the minute one starts cutting - the most difficult part probably being the levelling of the cabin and cockpit floors.

 

 

Thanks Brian, and a belated congratulations on your getting married!

 

 

Hello Malcolm! Do you mean this kit?

 

IMG_0522-XL.jpg

 

I'm afraid it isn't a new tooling, just a re-boxing of the Tameeyah I made for Greg. :whistle:

 

 

Hey Marcel,

 

I'm also not much into choppers - but this one is something else!

 

 

You are killing me here....:rolleyes:

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On the 30th of September the Angolans were ready to try again - but this time with support. A pair of Angolan Su-22's were to fly a diversionary attack as the helicopters arrived at the front-line, while Cuban pilots in their MiG-23's provided top cover. They still didn't know what had happened to the Mi-24's three days before, but were now ready to defend the mixed group of Hips and Hinds heading towards the Lomba.

 

Back in Rundu, the SAAF had six Impala's on standby. The 32 Battalion reconnaissance team let them know that a group of helicopters was airborne from Cuito. At a predetermined interval three pairs of diminutive fighters got airborne and routed low level to their allocated patrol areas.

 

Tension and anticipation was running high on both sides as they closed in on each other. The Su-22 callsign was "Cognac", the MiG-23's were "Rum" and the party was about to begin...

 

 Mk2-S.jpg

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The fuselage interior is incredibly cleverly engineered, and once all the bits and pieces are painted all you have to do is push the components into their support brackets, glue where appropriate and then mate the two fuselage halves.

 

IMG_0529-XL.jpg

 

As you can imagine however, it is quite a tight fit and seems best "massaged" together from the tail forward. Beware of the undercarriage legs! I did my usual trick with any pre-installed gear  - I broke it. :wacko:  No biggie, but they stick out quite a way so, just saying.

 

IMG_0536-XL.jpg

 

There is obviously a seam that now runs all the way around the chopper, and it will need some filling and sanding. The lower half is more difficult to line up than the top, but in the end it all works out fine.

 

IMG_0542-XL.jpg

 

IMG_0545-XL.jpg

 

After joining and filling, there are a whole bunch of parts that fit on the seam-line, and help it look a bit less like two halves. To be fair,  this kit fits together remarkably well!

 

IMG_0547-XL.jpg

 

I did feel that these intake louvres could be better represented, and resorted to my thin styrene and toothpick trick. Malcolm mentioned in his build that it would actually be nice if this model had "positive" rivets, and I have to agree. I was tempted to try applying positive rivets, but my order from the UK hasn't arrived in time, so it may just stay as it is.

 

IMG_0539-XL.jpg

 

IMG_0553-XL.jpg

 

As you can see, I couldn't resist changing this area a bit...

 

IMG_0549-XL.jpg

 

The engine cowls are clear plastic, and primed on the inside. They fit very well, given how complex the shapes are. There are little overlaps here and there however, which I like - more realistic.

 

IMG_0557-XL.jpg

 

The canopy sill needed a bit of extra work, so I scraped a slight recess on the port side to help seat it properly, and add to the fuselage twist illusion.

 

IMG_0552-XL.jpg

 

Here the canopy is in place, and if you look VERY carefully, you can see the the little offset of the apex to port :fight:.

 

IMG_0570-XL.jpg

 

Rotors are new to me, but I like the look of what is provided in the kit. Here the tail rotor with a little bit of wiring added.

 

IMG_0564-XL.jpg

 

Looking forward to the main rotor, and the weapons.

 

Cheers,

 

Sean

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Great build you have going on.  The background story is just icing on the cake.   This is a conflict that I know very little about and I find it to be fascinating.   Keep up the good work!

 

 

Edited by John1
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