Cik Mek Su!

Historical Background

In 1969, the Soviets learned of the USAF's F-X program which eventually resulted in the F-15 Eagle. They realised that this new fighter would represent a serious technological advantage over contemporary Soviet fighters. In response, the Soviet General Staff issued a requirement for a Perspektivny Frontovoy Istrabitel (Prospective/Advanced Frontline Fighter). Specifications include a long range, good short-field / austere field performance, excellent agility, heavy armament and speed in excess of Mach 2+. The Central Aerohydrodynamic Instiute (TsAGI) in collaboration with the Sukhoi design Bureau would carry out the aerodynamic design of the new aircraft. The specifications however proved too challenging  and costly for one airframe and in the numbers needed. The specifications were therefore split into two: Lyogyi (light) PFI, which eventually resulted in the MiG-29 and the Tyazholyi (heavy) PFI.

The TPFI was assigned to the Sukhoi OKB which came out as the T-10 which first flew on 20 May 1977. Spotted by Western observers, it was the NATO reporting name 'Flanker-A'. The development program however was bugged with numerous technical problems resulting in a number of crashes and extensive redesigns. Production Su-27 (NATO: Flanker-B) began to enter operational service in June 1985 although problems still persist. It officially entered service in August 1990. Su-27s served with both the Frontal Aviation and Voyska-PVO. Although possesing a good range, the Su-27 still did not have enough range for Voyska-PVO which needed to cover the vast expanse of the Soviet Union. Sukhoi hence developed the Su-27PU, an improved Su-27 capable of serving as a long-range interceptor and as a sort of an airborne command post, supporting the original Su-27, MiG-31 or other manned interceptors of the Voyska-PVO. The two-seat Su-27UB combat trainer was used as the basis as it had the performance of the single-seat Su-27 while two crewmembers were needed for long-range missions. The first Su-27PU flew on 31 December 1989 at Sukhoi's Irkutsk facility.

Known to NATO as the 'Flanker-C', the Su-27PU entered production in 1992. By this time, it was being developed into a multi-role combat aircraft with an eye towards the export market. In 1996, Russian authorities gave it a new designation, the Su-30. The new aircraft was aerodynamically and in general, structurally similar to the Su-27. A combination of low wing loading and powerful basic FBW controls make the Flankers an exceptionally agile aircraft as evidenced by the airshow maneuvers of Pugachev Cobra, tailslide and dynamic decelaration. The use of thrust vectoring exhaust nozzles and canards on some versions of the Su-30 gave even better maneuverability. Although not yet seen in combat trainings, the maneuvers mentioned above have potential combat usage as the rapidly decelerating Su-30 can cause its pursuer to overshoot, as well as breaking the the Doppler radar lock as the relative speed of the Su-30 drops below the radar detection threshold.

The Su-30 is powered by a pair of Saturn (formerly Lyulka) AL-31F low-bypass turbofans, each rated at 28,000 lb thrust. The basic Su-30MK (Modernizirovannyi Kommercehskiy = modernised commercial) is able to fly a 4.5 hour mission at a range of 3,000 km. Inflight refuelling  increases the range to 5,200 km or to a duration of 10 hours. As with the Su-27, the Su-30 is equipped a multi-mode pulse-Doppler radar with track-while-scan and look-down/shoot-down capability. It was also equipped with a OLS-27 IRST system in the nose (offset to the right) allowing an emission-free target detection at a range of 100 km. A single GSh-30-1 30mm cannon (with 150 rounds) forms the fixed armament while external stores can be hung beneath 10 hardpoints. In general, the Su-30 has two distinct versions produced by organisations under the Sukhoi Aviation Corporation. Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aircraft Production Association (KnAAPO) produces the Su-30MKK and MK2 versions tailored for both air-superiority and attack missions and generally similar to the F-15E while Irkut Corporation produces the Su-30MKI and its derivatives. Irkut-designed Su-30s have enhanced features for the air superiority role such as canards, thrust vectoring and long-range phased-array radar.

In 2003, the Royal Malaysian Air Force selected Irkut's Su-30 design to fulfil its requirement for a multi-role combat aircraft. A contract worth US$900 million for 18 aircraft was signed in August that year and the first two Su-30MKM (Modernizirovannyi Kommercheskiy Malaysia) was handed over to RMAF on 24 May 2007. Based on the Indian Air Force Su-30MKI, the MKM has the same engines with thrust vector control and digital FBW system. The MKM however incorporated canards and differs in avionics; Thales of France provided the HUD, NAVFLIR and the Damocles targeting pod. Main sensor is NIIP N011M Bars PESA radar with an aerial search range of 400 km (front) and 60 km (rear). Tracking range is 200 km with up to 15 aerial targets tracked at once and four engaged simultaneously. EW systems are Russian, including KNIRTI SAP-518 jamming pods. The Su-30MKMs are also equipped with South African SAAB Avitronics missile approach warning system (MAWS) and laser warning system (LWS). Weaponry include R-27, R-73 and R-77 air-to-air missiles, Kh-31 anti-ship / anti-radar missiles, Kh-59 Ovod TV-guided stand-off missiles, KAB series laser-guided bombs and FAB series free-fall bombs.

The Kit

Trumpeter first came up with a 1/72 Flanker family when they released the J-11 kit in 2011. This was followed by the release of the Su-27, Su-27UB and this kit in 2012. Apparently reduced in scale from their earlier 1/32 Su-30MKK kit, the 1/72 kit contains 110 parts spread among 13 light grey and 2 clear sprue trees, four decal sheets (one for the weapons, one for cockpit instrument panel faces, one for stencils and essential markings and one for distinctive markings and serial numbers). The parts are well-moulded with nice engraved lines and raised details where appropriate. The canopy and the airbrake are positionable and Sorbitsya ECM pods were provided as an alternative to the wingtip missile launch rails. Weapons fit provided the usual Russian air-to-air weaponry  (4 Archers, 4 IR Alamos, 4 radar-guided Alamos, 4 Adders). The air-to-ground-weapon is however a bit of a disappointment with just a pair of KH-31s (the box art shows a pair of Kh-59 with APK-9 datalink pod in addition to the Kryptons). Decals provide markings for two aircraft although no details were provided as to their identity.

I however intended to finish the model as a RMAF Su-30MKM. While the kit provided some basics (twin-wheel nose gear and the offset IRST ball), other, more significant features would have to be provided by the modeler him/herself. The job seemed too daunting for me and the kit were set aside for months while I tackled other projects. Fortunately, a fellow modeller, Nazaruddin Hashim owner of Naza Model Art, came up with a resin conversion set. The set consists of new LEXs with canards, extended-chord tails, TVC nozzles in 'rest' position and the various bumps and bulges. While the resin parts feature nice engraved and raised lines, there are some air bubbles and imperfections especially on the canards and the tails. Small matter though, just a short session with sandpaper and putty should solve it (the IFF aerials were not included and have to be scratchbuilt by the modeler). For markings I use a decal sheet from Fishbone Inc and the now-defunct VFA Productions.

Construction

I started by washing and cleaning up the conversion parts, removing surface blemish and any mould release agent. Afterwards, I cut out the existing LEX and part of the forward fuselage. The conversion parts follow the base kit's panel lines so knowing where to cut was not a problem especially for the upper fuselage. The lower fuselage however does not have panel lines to follow but the way NMA moulded the replacement LEX makes it easier to mark the areas to be removed. I left the LEX ('shoulders') aside for a while and I turned my attention to the cockpit. The RMAF is very secretive about the interior of its combat airplanes and photos of the interior are very rare. However, a Russian website have the photos of the cockpit during the handing over ceremony for the first two airframes completed and they were used as guides (photos of Indian Su-30MKIs are also useful). The cockpit was painted overall grey ( I'm not sure of the shade so I used Gunze H306. The dashboards are different from the kit decals so I painted (badly!) the MFD screens, cut the instrument decal and place dots of white paint to represent knobs and dials. I however used the kit's side instrument panels.

The fuselage can now be closed, but before that, holes were drilled into the lower half of the wings. While the instructions have you put the exhausts (which have the rear face of the engines moulded on), I really think that they were not needed in this build as the downward angle of the resin TVC blocked the view (not to mention the resin construction themselves). To accommodate the TVCs, the locating lips were removed from the fuselage. The new shoulders were then put in place and needless to say, putty was required to close the gap between the new parts and the fuselage. The canards were however left off at this time. The intake tunnels were next. The solid (with raised framing details) FOD guard were replaced with mesh from my still-unbuilt Tamiya Type 10. It may not look like much but I believe it was way better than the originals (I think it is the best if there is a smaller pitch mesh to represent the actual screen - the larger pitch mesh merely act as the frame). A piece containing the turbine faces was included but I did not attach it as they were quite hidden inside the intake tunnel (it would be totally invisible if the original solid FOD screens were used).

At this time, I decided to leave the tailplanes and ventral fins off to ease painting the unpainted metal areas. The MAWS and LWS antennas were cut from the casting blocks and placed on the model. The conversion kit does not include any instructions as to the placements of these items but there are plenty of photos on the internet for reference. The four LWS bulges came in two sizes : the larger pair went to the sides of the air intakes while the smaller ones went to the front fuselage. The intakes have faint engravings of something (I think it should not be there as MKKs do not have antennas or other electronic 'bumps' in the area) which helps in the placement, more or less. Before supergluing the fins, I deepened the separation line between the rudder and the fin as I think they are too shallow and being too similar with the rest of the panel lines. The fins are not interchangeable - the starboard side has bumps on both sides of the upper half. I tried to drill out the base of the fins for the heat exchanger air intakes but only managed to do so for the port fin (the starboard-side vent is quite small and I don't have a small enough drill bit to drill it out). Thin strips of plastic were cut and positioned on the radome to represent the 'bird slicer' IFF aerials. This was done before radome was cemented to the fuselage to ease handling. The TVC exhaust nozzles were superglued to the fuselage and before I forgot, RWR aerials were cemented to the wing leading edge ( I cut the aerials on the original kit fins and sanded them to size).

Painting and Decalling

I started by painting the radome first, using a mix of Tamiya XF-83 Medium Sea Grey and XF-20 Medium Grey. The unpainted exhaust areas were painted a base of Burnt Iron and the access panels were painted Silver. The front half of the bottom portion look brass-ish in photos, so Mr. Color Silver and Brass were mixed and applied. For the main colour, earlier builds of Su-30MKM models used Medium Sea Grey but a modelling friend suggests that Gunze 337 (FS 35237 Blue Grey) is a closer match. Thinking all paints are created equal (or nearly equal), I used Vallejo 71.114. It looked too bluish and I have to strip it off and used Gunze's version of FS 35237. The leading edge of the fins and the lower half of the ventral fins were painted Medium Sea Grey (Tamiya XF-83) while the dielectric fin caps were painted Medium Gunship Grey (Vallejo 71.097). The nose wheel well is of a yellowish colour which I was not able to pin down so it was simply painted H3317 like the rest of the wells.

As for the markings, I used a mix of decals from Fishbone Inc and VFA Productions and also the kit decals. The Fishbone decals only provide markings for M52-14 with its special tail colour scheme during LIMA 2017 while I wanted to do a line bird. So, the VFA bort and tail numbers were used. I however have to use the Fishbone TUDM roundel (as only they have the 'light blue outside' roundel) even though it has a slight registration problem. A number of Fishbone's stencil decals also have the same registration problems so they were substituted with the kit decals whenever possible. Also some of the decals in the Fishbone sheet were not shown in the instructions so I have to quite constantly refer to photos for the actual placement. At the same time not all of the kit-supplied decals are used on the MKM.So it kind of slowed down the decalling process.

Finishing

As usual, the final stretch started by cementing the landing gears into place. The ventral fins were next. Their tabs however did not fit into the slots, necessitating a cut and basically just butt-jointing them to the fuselage. The various pylons were then cemented to their locations. I decided to use the wingtip ECM pods for my model. They however represent Sorbtsiya, rather than SAP-518 pods used by RMAF. Apparently, the latter has a wider girth than the former (I think). While that can't be helped, the least I can do is to modify the Sorbtsiya pod to look like the SAP-518 by removing and/or relocating details on the pods. As for the weapons loadout, as I have mentioned before, the weapons selection is quite disappointing considering that the real SU-30 is an MRCA. I intended to have my model in SEAD mode with four Kh-31s. As Trumpeter provided only two of the Kryptons, I robbed the other two from my Italeri Su-34. Alas, it was in vain as the Italeri Kryptons were too large. I ended up using the kit Kryptons on the intake pylons, R-77s on the tunnel pylons and two R-27Ts, another pair of R-77s and two R-73s on the wing pylons.

The model then received highlights to the panel lines while the metallic exhaust areas received smoke- and blue-coloured washes to replicate heat staining (or something like that). The more vulnerable parts such as pitot probes and aerials were then cemented. I love having my 1/72 planes having their canopy raised. The kit doesn't allow that so I cut off part of the airbrake raising mechanism, drill a hole at the back of cockpit, stick the cut part and voila! Raised canopy! (Yes it might not be accurate I know). The canards were last and they were superglued in a canted position like can be seen on the real aircraft. 

Conclusion

Previously, modellers wanting to build a Su-30MKM (or for that matter, any canard- and TVC-equipped Su-30) would have to use the earlier Su-27UB kit from Academy plus donor parts from other kits and most often, having to scratchbuild them. The Trumpeter kit allows a basic Su-30 to be made OOB while NMA's conversion kit allows further modification into the MKM version (it can also be made into the basis for any other MKI-type SU-30). While the conversion part (probably in my copy only) suffer from tiny blisters on the surface, it still doesn't detract from the fact it was finely engraved and having a good fit (again, the bad fit which can be seen in the photos are because of my bad trimming on original parts and bad filling and sanding ops afterwards). The base kit is also OK and my criticism are reserved to just the ugly seam on the clear parts and the relative lack of external stores. The Fishbone decal is however quite a letdown with rudimentary placement diagrams and showing only the major decal locations only plus a number of registry problems. Again, my copy is a first-print edition and probably were better for the later editions.