1:48 Svetlana sitting in SU-31 (Quinta Models)

A figure in the cockpit of the Su-31

An empty cockpit gives away that this is a static model faster than anything else. A seated figure, on the contrary, holds the whole impression together: the helmet, the shoulder straps and the hands on the controls say that the machine is ready to taxi out. On an aerobatic special with a well-glazed cockpit the inside is visible from every angle, so it pays off twice over.

The figure is shaped for sitting in the cockpit of this type in 1:48 scale. The civilian clothing matches the way competition machines are flown today, so the figure does not look like a military crew member and fits naturally into a scene on a grass surface.

A test fit while it can still be changed

• Put the figure into the cockpit with no glue and close the canopy; only then will you find out whether the helmet clears it.
• If the seating height is in the way, take material off the bottom of the seat rather than off the figure.
• Adapt the legs and elbows to the shape of the tub in short steps, trying the fit again between each of them.
• Glue the figure into the cockpit only once both parts are painted, or you will not reach the walls.
• Protect the canopy frame with tape while testing; a fingerprint is hard to remove from it later.

Watch the scale of the view: what looks like a small inaccuracy in the hand is invisible under a closed canopy, while an unfinished joint between the arm and the body, by contrast, catches the eye. So always work with the model dry-fitted together and look through the cockpit the way a viewer will see it. Paints and the aircraft kit are not included.