Sukhoi Su-27SM Flanker-B – Red 06, Russian Air Force 2013

Hobby Master 1/72 scale HA6017: Sukhoi Su-27SM Flanker-B Red 06, Russian Air Force 2013. Production run of 700 models.

Length 12 inches Wingspan 8 inches

The Falcons of Russia (Sokoly Rossii) are one of the Russian Air Force aerobatic display teams and belong to the 4.GTsPAP I VI MO. The team was established in 2006 at the Lipetsk Air Base. They normally use the Su-27 but occasionally use the Su-30SM jet and previously were equipped with MiG-29s. Between August 27 and September 1, 2013 the team took part in the International Air and Space Salon (MAKS) 2013 held at Zhukovsky near Moscow. One of the team’s aircraft is 06 RED RF-92210 c/n 36911018618.

Designed by the Soviet Union to challenge the superiority of fourth generation US fighters such as the F-15 Eagle, the Su-27 was first flown on May 20, 1977. This one seat Mach-2 fighter had the Soviet Union’s first operational fly-by-wire system. The aircraft is very large compared to the MiG-29, its closest Soviet counterpart, but it is built with a high percentage of titanium, which helps minimize its weight. It is exceptionally agile and is perhaps most famous for its “Cobra” maneuver, which is a short, sustained level flight at a 120 degree angle of attack, often performed at air shows.