New Yak-141 Freestyle in 1/72 in FSM future releases

I've but nearly every kit Anigrand has released, & AFAIK, everything he's announced has been released, & on schedule. For you guys interested in one-offs & prototypes, Anigrand & Unicraft can't be beat!

U¿ytkownik "Yuri" napisa³ w wiadomo¶ci news: snipped-for-privacy@powernews.libero.it...

There is more differences between 75 and 77 than just number.

-- Greetings Piotr

If you ask nicely, you may be able to get some decals through Aviapress; I visited the Monday evening Model Club in Moscow when I was there last year; a stall holder there had some copies of the decal sheet that was included in the hard-to-obtain vac-form kit (no kits unfortunately, though). I know the chap in question was involved with Tushino Aviapress, as it was back in 2000 when I bought a kit from him, although I don't know if he is now. I bought a sheet of the decals, but I can't seem to find them at the moment, so I couldn't say which aircraft are covered. Jon.

You're right Piotr, "White 75" had jet nozzles on tail booms, while "White 77" had a rotating nozzle under the nose, however it shouldn't be too difficult to make changes, better than completely scratchbuild it.

Anyway the only flyable Yak-141 is in fact Yak-41 "White 75" (or prototype 48-2, the one I'd like to build). "White 77" (48-3) was badly damaged in an hard landing during testing and rebuilt as a static display aircraft.

Some time ago also Linden Hill Imports had some decal sheets usually available from Moscow Model Club (I remember a MiG-29 and a Ka-27 sheet). But, as they are released in very limited numbers, seems they are now available only at the Moscow Model Club. However I'll try asking at Aviapress once I have the kit, thanks for the hint.

I posted a reply from work - but it doesn't seem to have propagated yet - so I'll repeat it here (from home).

Pending the release of a decent kit of the Yak-141 - why not have a go at scratchbuilding ??

Cue plug for my article at :-

Your article on scratchbuilding a Freestyle is great (your "soviet" articles were one of the best features of the "old" SMI), but it takes me so much to build a "normal" kit (well, sometimes with some "plastic surgery") that it would take me years to completely scratchbuild a plane. Better wait for the kit...

I don't have the Aerofax book at hand, but if I'm not wrong the difference in side numbers between the 2 Yak-141 is that "48-2" (former "White 75", the flyable one) had the 141 in white with a thin red outline while the other (former "White 77") hadn't the red outline.

When I photographed them - one was at the airshow at Zhukovsky, the other was at the 'private' museum at Khodynka.

The one at Khodynka was later removed - along with a Yak-12 and a Yak-30.

A few years later, on another visit, we went to the Yakovlev museum - a few hundred yards from Khodynka along Lenigradsky Prospekt at the home of the Yakovlev OKB.

There, hidden behind some corrugated iron sheeting, was a Yak-141 airframe plus another fuselage painted in primer yellow that looked like a tandem, two-seat Yak-141.

The museum officials would not let us take any photos - nor would they answer any questions about the two-seater.

On another visit, as we were leaving the small museum, the OKB workers were removing the Yak-141 airframe from behind its hideaway. They were literally dragging it out with a small tractor. I managed to snap off a quick photo before we were ushered away.

They did say that it was being prepared for display on the forecourt of the museum - but it has not yet appeared on subsequent visits.

Ken

ISTR many years ago in either Jane's Defence Weekly or Jane's Soviet Intelligence Review they had a sketch of the 2 seater Yak-141. Don't know if I have it in my stash or not, but I do recall something like that.

Because I got vacu kit in progress :o)

-- Greetings Piotr