Saturday, July 27, 2013

Kit review vol.8: Bristol Bloodhound



Subject:
Bristol Bloodhound
Scale:
1/72 (76?)
Manufacturer:
Airfix
Price
US$ 15,00
Construction:
Out-of-the box
Extras:
Optional display in launching platform or in transport configuration with a Land Rover truck
Paints:
Missile: Suggested colors would be XF58 Olive green for the missile body and wings; nose cone XF1 Black; ramjets painted with Aluminium with intakes in black or orange; auxiliary rockets in olive green or black; launching station in olive green. Below you have two examples of painting schemes. Also refer to aircraft walkaround vol.24: Bristol Bloodhound SAM.



The sprues:





Friday, July 26, 2013

Aircraft walkaround vol.24: Bristol Bloodhound

Subject: Bristol Bloodhound Surface-to-air missile.
Location: Royal Air Force Museum, London, United Kingdom, 2013
Comments: The Bristol Bloodhound is a British surface-to-air missile developed during the 1950s as the UK's main air defence weapon, and was in large-scale service with the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the forces of four other countries. The Bloodhound Mk. I entered service in December 1958 and the last Mk. II missile squadron stood down in July 1991, although Swiss examples remained operational until 1999.
The main missile is a long cylinder of magnesium frames and aluminium alloy skin with a prominent ogive nose cone at the front and some boat-tailing at the rear. Small aluminium-covered wooden cropped-delta wings are mounted midpoint, providing pitch and roll control by pivoting in unison or independently with additional steering provided by differential fuel feed to each of the ram jets. Two smaller rectangular fixed surfaces were mounted in-line with the main wings, almost at the rear of the missile.
The boost engines are held together as a single assembly by a metal ring at the rear of the missile. Each motor has a small hook on the ring as well as similar one at the front holding it to the missile body. After firing, when the thrust of the rockets falls below the thrust of the now-lit ramjets, the boosters slide rearward until the front hook disengages from the missile body. The boosters are then free to rotate around their attachment to the metal ring, and are designed to rotate outward, away from the fuselage. In action, they fold open like the petals on a flower, greatly increasing drag and pulling the entire four-booster assembly away from the missile body.
Small inlets on the roots of the stub wings holding the engines allow air into the missile body for two tasks. Two ram air turbines driving turbopumps generate hydraulic power for the wing control system, and a fuel pump that feeds the engines. Smaller inlet tubes provide ram air to pressurize the fuel tanks. Kerosene fuel is held in two large rubber bag tanks in bays either side of the wing bay where the wings are attached. Electrical power was provided by a molten salt battery ignited at launch.
Although in tests the Bloodhound had executed direct hits on target bombers flying at 50,000 ft, Mark II production models had proximity fuzed warheads designed to fire a hoop of metal rods and so destroy attacking aircraft without needing this degree of accuracy.










Sunday, July 21, 2013

Aircraft walkaround vol.23: Sukhoi SU-22M4 Fitter-K




Subject:
Sukhoi SU-22M4 Fitter-K
Location:
Flugausstellung L.+P. Junior, Hermeskeil II, Germany, 2012
Comments:
The SU-17M4 (SU-22M4) was the final production version with considerably upgraded avionics, including RSDN navigation (similar to LORAN), beacon navigation, inertial navigation, a more powerful (Klyon) "Kлён-54" laser rangefinder, radio compass, and SPO-15LE ("Sirena") radar-warning system, additional fuselage inlets (including ram-air inlet at the base of the fin) to improve engine cooling airflow and fixed air intake shock cone. Many aircraft were equipped for the use of TV-guided missiles and BA-58 Vjuga pod for anti-radiation missiles. The engine was the AL-21F-3. Export version was designated Su-22M4 (factory S-54K). The first flight was on 19 June 1980 with Yu. A. Yegorov at the controls. Su-17M4 was manufactured from 1981 to 1988, and Su-22M4 from 1983 to 1990.