It snowed last night and enough of it fell that some of it stuck. It was also cold today, so I didn't really feel like going out in the cold again. But I figure that I could give my camera some work and take a picture of one of my diecast models.
I will have to say that diecast models have come a long way since the diecast models from Matchbox and Corgi. The Corgi models aren't too bad but sometimes they have seams and stuff that distract from the looks.
This particular model is from a company called Hobby Master. When the Russians invaded Ukraine earlier, I decided that I wanted a model of a Ukrainian MiG-29. Especially after I heard the story of the Ghost of Kiev. Sadly, it turns out that the story was not true but it sounds like Ukraine still has an air force, which is amazing after all of this time. The story went that the Ghost of Kiev took down five Russian planes in the early days of the war. That alone with have made him (or her. Later it was revealed it might have been one of their female pilots).
At the beginning of the invasion, it looked grim for the Ukrainians. The Russian army was bearing down on Kiev and it looked like they were going to take over the city and decapitate the country. But through some pluckiness on the part of Ukraine and some help from the west, the invasion was stalled. It also helped that the Russians weren't prepared for the undertaking. Recently, the Ukrainians have been able to take back some ground.
The MiG-29 was developed as a counter to the F-15 and F-16 coming out of the United States and some of the advanced fighters that were coming out of Europe. It was developed as an air superiority fighter. It has since been developed as a multi-role fighter and has seen a number of upgrades. It has been sold to many of the former Warsaw Pact countries and India. Over 1,600 have been produced.
In capable hands, it is a pretty capable fighter but in many cases it is not in capable hands. One of the neater features is that one of the versions has an integrated helmet which will aim weapons in the direction the pilot is looking.
Again, while not as advanced as its western counterparts, it is still a fairly capable aircraft.
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