1:32 MiG-21 / MiG-23 - Late Version Ejection Seat (MiG KM-1M Type)

The seat on which the pilot's survival depended

Ejection seats of eastern design went through rapid development in the 1960s. The original solution, in which the pilot was shielded on leaving the machine by the raised canopy, proved a dead end and was replaced by a separate seat able to save the crew even just above the ground. The type marked with the additional letter represents a later, more elaborate stage of this family and found use both in the younger batches of the single-engine fighter and in the machine with variable wing geometry.

Why replace it. In 1:32 scale the cockpit is open to view from every side, and an injection-molded part with blunt edges and no straps shows on a finished model at first glance. The casting carries sharply drawn padding, handles, the firing mechanism and other small features that simply cannot be worked into a mold for a plastic kit.

The procedure. The part is cut from the casting block with a fine-toothed saw, the surface is sanded and it has to be washed before spraying, because traces of mold release agent are left on it. It is glued with cyanoacrylate glue (super glue); ordinary cement for plastic will not hold here.

The scope of the delivery. The box holds the seat, not the whole cockpit nor the aircraft. It is worth matching the shade of the padding with the interior color you already have finished on the model. Anyone who wants to go into detail can add a drawn cable to the safety handles after gluing; at this scale such a small thing shows well.