MiG 21 11/3

[su27rules]

 

[zenrat]

Rudder now painted in the Cuban red triangle with blue/white stripes (forgot that) and i've started on the undercarriage.
I need to find some (in)appropriate weapons.

[DogfighterZen]

How about a nuke?

[zenrat]

It's an interceptor.  But maybe nuclear tipped AAMs...

[DogfighterZen]

Yeah, guess i could have specified...   i was thinking of air to air nukes, Genie type of thing.

[zenrat]

Pressing on with this despite the goalposts having been moved (in a good way).

I've built some nuclear tipped long range AAMs from a combination of Soviet and Italian parts and given it a patchy coat of white which is meant to resemble a hastily applied winter camo coat.
Over that has gone a coat of gloss clear and a very very thin black wash and finally today I just managed to get a couple of decals onto it before I had to go indoors and roast a beef.

[DogfighterZen]

YA!! 

[zenrat]

Got the rest of the decals on today and painted a drop tank & the missile rails.

[zenrat]

Satin cleared it and glued the main U/C legs on today.
I'm using Viggen main gear and MiG nose.
I have a feeling that I am going to have to cram even more fishing weights into the nose.
Lucky I didn't glue the pilot in yet.

[zenrat]

I was right.  I had to add one more weight to the nose.
Wrote some words today and attached the U/C doors and drop tank.
Painted the canopy framing as well.

[zenrat]

Complete.
Almost.
I just have to satin clear the missiles, attach them to the rails, if they upset the balance stuff more lead in the nose, glue in the pilot, glue on the canopy and then shoot some pics when the krystal clear has dried.

[zenrat]

MiG 21 11/3

{With apologies to the original authors of the Wikipedia "Cuban Missile Crisis" page}

The Québec Missile Crisis, also known as the Missile Scare, was a 13-day (October 16–28, 1962) confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union concerning Soviet ballistic missiles deployment in Canada.  Along with being televised worldwide, it was the closest the Cold War came to escalating into a full-scale nuclear war.
In response to the failed Bay of Fundy invasion of 1961, and to the presence of American Jupiter ballistic missiles in Italy and Turkey targeted against the USSR Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev decided to agree to the République Socialiste Canadienne's request to place nuclear missiles in Canada to deter future harassment.  An agreement was reached during a secret meeting between Khrushchev and Lucien Saulnier in July and construction on a number of missile launch facilities started later that summer.
An election was underway in the U.S.  The White House had denied charges that it was ignoring dangerous Soviet missiles 90 miles from Maine.  These missile preparations were confirmed when an Air Force U-2 spy plane produced clear photographic evidence of medium-range (SS-4) and intermediate-range (R-14) ballistic missile facilities in Québec.  The United States established a military blockade to prevent further missiles from entering Canada. It announced that they would not permit offensive weapons to be delivered to the RSC and demanded that the weapons already in Québec be dismantled and returned to the USSR.
As a sign of solidarity with their Northern comrades the people of Cuba dispatched aircraft to Canada to aid their defence against any aggression from South of the border.
After a long period of tense negotiations, an agreement was reached between Kennedy and Khrushchev. Publicly, the Soviets would dismantle their offensive weapons in Canada and return them to the Soviet Union, subject to United Nations verification, in exchange for a U.S. public declaration and agreement never to invade the RSC without direct provocation. Secretly, the US also agreed that it would dismantle all U.S.-built Jupiter MRBMs, which were deployed in Turkey and Italy targeted against the Soviet Union but were not known to the public.
When all Soviet offensive missiles and Cuban military aircraft had been withdrawn from Canada, the blockade was formally ended on November 20, 1962. The negotiations between the United States and the Soviet Union pointed out the necessity of a quick, clear, and direct communication line between Washington and Moscow. As a result, the Moscow–Washington hotline was established and a series of agreements sharply reduced U.S.-Soviet tensions for the following years.
MiG 21 11-3 8 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr
Cuba sent Il-28 bombers and MiG 21 11/3 interceptors to Canada.  The aircraft were flown to Nova Scotia where they were given République Socialiste Canadienne Air Force markings and temporary winter camouflage.  Cuban tail markings were retained.
MiG 21 11-3 1 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr
The MiG 21 11/3 was the Soviet answer to the Saunders Roe SR177.   Nicknamed Queso Grande by it's Cuban crews due to the wedge shaped profile it was a tail-less delta with a Tumansky RB-209 rocket motor installed in addition to the Tumansky R-11 Turbojet.  The liquid fuelled rocket was installed above the jet exhaust to boost climb to altitude.  No internal guns were fitted although there was provision for internal ammunition storage with scabbed on gun packs.
MiG 21 11-3 9 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr
The aircraft modeled is carrying a pair of UMC Andouillette AAM missiles.  Colloquially known as Les Grosses Saucisses these were medium range radar guided missiles armed with a 2 kiloton nuclear warhead.
Standard Operating Procedure for nuclear armed Cuban Quesos was a rocket boosted take off and climb cutting off the rocket when they reached either their target height or 5% rocket fuel.  This reserve being retained for getting out of range of the missile warheads as fast as possible.
MiG 21 11-3 5 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr
Considered by many to be the best handling of the MiG 21 series the 11/3 remained in service with the Cuban Air Force until the late seventies playing their role in preventing overflights by US reconnaissance aircraft.   Photos of a U2 being escorted back to Florida by a Queso Grande were regularly printed in the Cuban press.
MiG 21 11-3 6 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr
The RSC withdrew Andouillettes from active service in 1988 but there is no record of them having been destroyed and it is thought they are still stored at the back of an underground armourery "just in case".
MiG 21 11-3 12 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr
The Model.
KP MiG 21 MF fuselage and nose wheel with Airfix Saab Viggen Wings and mainwheels.
Rocket booster scratchbuilt from tube.
Lots of Tamiya Polyester Putty.
Missiles built from ICM Soviet AAMs (Alamo 10s IIRC) and Italeri Italian bombs.
Camo hand painted with Vallejo acrylics, cleared, masked, hair sprayed and airbrushed patchily with Vallejo white acrylic.  When dry I then rubbed it off in places with rags, cotton buds and toothpicks and then gloss cleared it.  Then I gave it a wash of black oil paint in lots of turps before putting on the home made decals.  Finally it got a coat of satin clear.
In retrospect the camo is a bit bright and could have done with a pale filter to tone it down a touch before doing the white.
Lets just say they were freshly painted when they left for the North.
MiG 21 11-3 2 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr

[ChernayaAkula]

Wicked! 

[DogfighterZen]

Excellent work! Love the backstory and model but the names of both the aircraft and missiles are the best part!!

[Old Wombat]