Early Su-27S/P/UB "Flanker-B/C" paint set

Early Su-27s in their original finish

The heavy twin-engine Su-27 came about as an answer to the new generation of American fighters, and its early form differs from today's machines more than one would expect. The set aims at exactly this first appearance: at the single-seat Su-27S intended for frontal aviation, at the Su-27P of the air defense force and at the two-seat combat trainer UB. In Western designations these are the Flanker-B and Flanker-C types.

The finish of that period rests on a blue-gray range. The lower surfaces and the base of the fuselage are covered by a pale blue, the upper surfaces by two different cool tones that blend into irregular fields on the spine. The effect is subtle and treacherous on a model: the difference between the individual fields is small, so it is easily lost under a heavier coat of clear or, on the contrary, overwhelmed by exaggerated contrast.

The details that date the machine

It pays to work from the lightest tone to the darker one and to keep the boundaries of the fields soft; a sharp transition looks foreign on this generation of machines.

You can tell early production by the greenish radome and by wheel hubs in the same tone; later machines were given a white radome. Anyone building a specific aircraft from a photograph should check this detail before reaching for the paint, because it is precisely this that moves the model by several production batches.

The rich red then belongs to the inner surfaces of the landing gear doors, the hatches and the airbrake. The range to which this shade belongs is, according to the manufacturer, intended for the brush; on extensive areas that means working in thin coats and letting each one dry properly.