Northrop F-23 Black Widow II... from GDR

[sletch]

Hi,

I didn't have a lot of time for modeling in the last few months  . I just took a couple of hours to built an East-german F-23    

Oh sorry   ! May be you didn't knew that the GDR acquired Northrop F-23 Black Widow II   Here is the complete story   :

The GDR air force (locally named Luftstreitkräfte der Nationalen Volksarmee or LSK NVA) was supplied exclusively with Eastern Block-produced aircrafts. Therefore, Sukhoi and Mikoyan-Gurevich (MiG) fighters has been used for more than three decades in this country.

As it was equipped with Soviet-standard combat aircrafts, instead of downgraded export models, the East German Air Force was unique among Warsaw Pact countries. Operated as an extension of Soviet air power, the East German Air Force suffered less autonomy than other Eastern Bloc air forces.

In October 2005, East and West sides of Germany were reunited. The aircrafts of the Federal Republic of Germany were taken over by the LSK. Their Luftwaffe markings were replaced by the GDR diamond-shaped one. It was the first time a non-soviet-built aircrafts had served in an Warsaw Pact air forces.

Most of the 36 Northrop F-23 Black Widow II was flown by the Jagdfliegergeschwader 8 (also known as the JG-8 « Hermann Matern »), based in Marxwälde.

The F-23 were fully integrated into the NVA's air defence structure. In February 2006, it became the first western combat aircraft to get the operational clearance within Eastern-block air forces. As from 2009, the Sukhoi 30 started to replace any German fighters. The decision was taken to withdraw the F-23 and most of them were sold to the Royal Air Force.

Extract from "Stealth stories" by Jonas LEITCH

Model kit of the German F-23 Black Widows









CIAO  

Frederic

[MilitaryAircraft101]

RAF follow up??      Looks awesome 

[flappydaffy]

  nice sletch 

[su27rules]

Nice!!

[Army of One]

Very very nice...... .......H

[The Rat]

sletch, you're fairly new here, so let me apprise you of something: we have problems here with the YF-23.

It's too cool.

It's uber-cool.

It's so mega-cool that it looks like a whiff-out-of-the-box.

As a result posting pictures of it here sends many of us into a state of apoplexy, accompanied by cold sweats, trembling knees, and drooling mouths. Many of us want to go back to drinking, even those of us (like me) who never quit. One of these days the posting of such pictures will cause us to send threatening letters to the American officials who chose the ugly F-22 in preference.

We will forgive this indiscretion for now, and as penance you must now do another in a cool scheme such as raspberry ripple, SouthEast Asian camouflage, NASA markings, or captured Russian. Those are just guidelines, you might come up with something even better.

Understand that we have no problem with your actual model, which is very well done. We just ask that you have consideration for the more sensitive among us, those who are now trembling while trying to operate their keyboards.

Thank you.

[PR19_Kit]

Sletch, that's bought a lump to my throat.

As The Rat says, the F-23 is SO much better and cooler looking than that ruddy AWFUL 'thing' the USAF are flying now that it's not surprising that the LSK took them over from the FRG Luftwaffe, and even in the all over grey finish it still manages to look ULTRA-wonderful. 

I have one of those kits in The Loft and I really must get up there and see what could be done with. Longer wings may be a good first move...... 

[RussC]

Very nice results, Sletch.

For you 1/144the builders out there thinking of such a build, Trumpeter has a decent YF-23 kit that has been selling at low$ lately. 

[sletch]

Hi,

Thank you verrrrry much you all ! I'm glad to see that:

- my work makes you happy  

- my work makes you ill

- you seem to be experts in nice planes

A bientot / Frederic

[PR19_Kit]

- you seems to be expert in nice planes

Oh we are, our collective knowledge exceeds that of the known aviation world........ 

[RussC]

We prefer the unknown aviation world, and pretty much everything that flies, from spitballs to spacecraft.
                                                       

[lancer]

Sletch, just to add to the praise that already covers your superb F23, I think it's truely gorgeous and the idea of the LSK assimilasting the Federal Luftwaffe is positively inspired!! Also love the iodea that they were brought by the RAF. It makes me want to dig out the one I have in my stash and build it. and, along with the others here I also thing it is a far more handsome aircraft that that god awful useless limp of LM crap that the Yanks are using.

Ratty - When did you get so bloody eloquent? And were you drinking when you wrote it?

[The Rat]

Ratty - When did you get so bloody eloquent? And were you drinking when you wrote it?

Eloquent? Effluent maybe... 

[redstar72]

Nice work!

[sletch]

Hi,

- you seems to be expert in nice planes

Oh we are, our collective knowledge exceeds that of the known aviation world........  

That's for sure   !

Sletch, just to add to the praise that already covers your superb F23, I think it's truely gorgeous and the idea of the LSK assimilasting the Federal Luftwaffe is positively inspired!! Also love the iodea that they were brought by the RAF. It makes me want to dig out the one I have in my stash and build it. and, along with the others here I also thing it is a far more handsome aircraft that that god awful useless limp of LM crap that the Yanks are using.

You are definitively right. I just can't believe the F-22 flies while the YF-23 sleep in a Museum  In the same time, I am quite happy the thing Raptor won't be produced anymore  

We prefer the unknown aviation world, and pretty much everything that flies, from spitballs to spacecraft.  

Nice work!

Thank you very much redstar72  

Thank you all for your comments  

See you next... with my very last kit : a Dornier 335 from... ugh  ... d.mned ! I can't remember   Anyway, you will see it soon  

A bientot / Frederic