The SU-27 flanker B is a long-range fighter much in the same field as the F-15C. It is considered as one of the best fighters to be produced today, with its remarkable flight characteristics, especially at high angle attacks. It is currently upgraded with bomber & navalized versions, and is currently used by Russia, the CIS, Vietnam, India & China
For some years now, the only SU-27 available is the 1/72 offering by zvezda, and the academy 1/48 scale, both of which are huge if placed aside aircraft of the same scale (
EDITOR NOTE: these are actually not all Flanker models available in these two scales. See this list: http://www.flankerman.fsnet.co.uk/su27surv.htm.) Trumpeter has finally released the SU-27 at a whooping 1/32 scale, measuring at least 70 cm in length (at least 2 ft) with a wingspan of 46 cm (18 in). Compared to a Academy hornet (the bottom one, in dark grey plastic), it gives you a general idea of how huge this baby is. It has a total of 350 pcs, including clear parts, photoetched parts, rubber tires & metal landing gears. You can have it in at least 15 subassembly.
The first is the cockpit, which has excellent details, with the instrument panel built like any other trumpeter kits with the sandwich method. The K-36 ejection seat of this kit is the 1st of it's kind for plastic models; I usually see this as a aftermarket accessory. The seat has nice details, with photoetched buckles, although you have to supply your own belts & slings for this. You a nice HUD with the clear parts included.
The next are the landing gears assembly. They each have wires included in the gear assembly, and it appears they also have the landing gear struts working much like the real thing, were you place springs inside the metal struts.
The fuselage is much like the Revell MiG-29, were you have an upper & lower fuselage. The large air brake is fully functional in which you can have it deployed or not, depending on your mood, I guess. You have screws to help you assemble the 2 fuselage together, a nice touch. The nose cone doesn't have any details like a radar assembly so I guess somebody's gonna have to come up with one. The intakes have the FOD covers, but there is no jet engine supplied.
The wings have photoecthed parts included to make them work like the real thing, although you guys know that that's not usually the case (example in point-the F4 corsair with 'folding' wings).
You get at least 10 air-to-air missiles, the R-73 and the R-27, with a rather soft detail. I'm not sure about the accuracy but my Mk I eyeballs say they look fine (and mean looking too)
The burner cans seems to be a bit soft on details.
You have decals for one aircraft only, for the 582 Fighter Regiment, located at Poland during 1992, which is a bummer since Russia isn't the only one who uses this aircraft. Also included are stencils for the air-to-air missiles.
You get to paint in FS colors, and you have to paint the monster in air superiority blue.
There you go. Another amazing model from trumpeter. I can't say anything about the accuracy of the kit, although I'm betting that it's pretty accurate because the country who made the kit operates the aircraft (if you think about it, trumpeter's east bloc aircraft kits are pretty accurate). This kit will surely be a showcase in any modelling event, and with the release of tons of aftermarket goodies in the near future, you can pretty much build the different versions of this aircraft.
