Aero L-29A Delfin Akrobat, AMK 1:48
Comments
Robert PodkońskiI love this version of Delfin. Fantastic job, Ludviku! (How did you get rid of the second crew member place?)
Ludvík KružíkAt the request of some mates I am adding an album with the L-29A model completed a few years ago. 😉
Bruce HuxtableMoc elegantní! Very interesting background information - many thanks for researching and sharing 👍
Ludvík KružíkRobert, thank you for your kind comment. I followed the same procedure as the aircraft manufacturer for the second cockpit. The shape of the cockpit covers is unchanged, only the transparent rear cockpit overlay is replaced with a sheet metal cover of the same shape.
Of course I left the rear cockpit empty and used the rear cockpit overlay from the kit to cover it. I only removed the framing of the transparent part. And when painting, I painted the cover together with the plane.
Ludvík KružíkI noticed one mistake while photographing the model. The red number 804 should be on the left side of the nose only. But I'm going to leave it on both sides on my model. When I turn the model in the display case to the correct side, the number on the other side of the fuselage is not visible. 😄
Ludvík KružíkThanks Alec!
There will be some bugs in the built model, normally I wouldn't post pictures of it, but promises are meant to be kept. 😉
Alec KLooks pretty nice to me! And thanks for the pics - I always liked this plane (nostalgia from the olden days…).
Ludvík KružíkAlec, thank you for your kind comment. I too have nostalgic memories of this plane. I was a schoolboy back then when KP released their very first kit- Aero L-29 . It was in a plastic bag and in 1:72 scale. Aeronautics+Cosmonautics magazine published a monograph of the L-29 with a drawing and paint schemes. Among them was a version of the L-29A. And in the modeling section of this magazine was a description of the modifications to the model to build an aerobatic version. That's when I built my first aerobatic Delfin. 🙂
Alec KI don't remember the L+K monograph, but I remember the one in the ABC magazine. You don't happen to have the one you build back then, do you?
Ludvík KružíkUnfortunately, this model no longer exists. But it remained in my memories. Like most of the models I built at that time.
Alec KWell, you are not alone. I would give a left nut to get some of my childhood builds back.
Album info
A special aerobatic version of the L-29A, originally a two-seat military trainer, the Aero L-29 Dolphin, originally designated L-429, was built in 1969 as an employee initiative with the support of chief designer Jan Vlček at Aero Vodochody in just two units. The original factory designation of this version was L-429. The first machine, serial number 390517, was a rebuild of prototype serial number 00031, while the second received serial number 893027. The rear glass cockpit cover was replaced by a sheet metal cover. The fuel system, tanks and the entire propulsion system were modified, which subsequently enabled the aircraft to fly "on its back" for 40 seconds and perform more demanding aerobatics. The first test flight with the L-29A of the OK-05 factory designation was performed by test pilot Juraj Šouc on 19 November 1967. After landing, all aglow, he expressed his first impressions:
"The aircraft has very good flight characteristics in all flight modes. The steering forces at the elevator have decreased. It has shortened the run-up, increased the vertical climb rate and horizontal flight speed, and reduced the minimum speed. The angular velocity of the aircraft in turns has increased slightly. The working altitude for the demonstration of high piloting is 100 to 1100 m. The aircraft meets all the requirements for a very good aerobatic machine".
After the tests, the aircraft first went to the Czechoslovak People's Army, which operated it with the registration number 0517. In 1968, it was exhibited in its military form at the Brno Engineering Fair. The following year, the L-29A was shown to the public and journalists in a new livery for the Paris Air Show and under the civilian designation OK-SZA. The colour fields from the upper part were retained, but the military insignia disappeared, the lower part of the aircraft was given a white paint and the exhibition serial number 804, shown by an outline, was added on the left side of the nose. Today the aircraft is exhibited in this form at the Kunovice Aviation Museum in the Czech Republic. The aircraft was also demonstrated at various airshows at home and abroad, where it attracted well-deserved admiration as it was able to fly an almost identical aerobatic routine as the piston aerobatic aircraft of the time.
In February 1972, Juraj Šouc, an army pilot of the "A", transferred the L-29A (OK-SZA) to a new operator, which was the East Bohemian Aeroclub at the airport in Nové Město nad Metují. Here it was intended for use by the aeroclubs of Jaroměř, Nové Město nad Metují and Broumov. No one knew that clouds were gathering over his civilian career. In the post-1968 normalization period, the information came that there was a possibility for a flight to the West. The party authorities reacted immediately. The idea of a bred derivative of the most widely used Warsaw Pact trainer falling into the hands of an adversary on the other side of the Iron Curtain was downright terrifying for many of those responsible. Not to mention the risk that an aircraft with a speed of over 650 km/h would have a problem catching up with the fighter planes of the emergency squadron before reaching the state border. An order to ground the aircraft at Pardubice airport immediately followed. Next, the last technical flight to the manufacturer at Aero Vodochody was to follow, where it was to be scrapped and scrapped. However, the whole event did not settle down in the aviation environment despite all efforts. The enthusiasts from among the founders of the Kunovice museum exerted their strength, determined to reverse the decision of the higher-ups to scrap the aircraft and save it. The decision was reversed. The aircraft will be scrapped, but in the Kunovice Flight. The technical flight from Pardubice to Kunovice was performed by the company's test pilot František Srnec. Everyone hoped that the fate of the "A" was beginning to change for the better. The members of the aeroclub and the employees of Leto applied to the competent persons for the preservation of the aircraft "for the purpose of promoting socialist aviation and educating the youth." Eventually it was decided that "such measures would be taken to render the aircraft permanently incapable of further flights. Furthermore, it will be displayed on the Peace Square in Uherské Hradiště for the same purpose of promotion and education. All aggregates and instruments were dismantled from the aircraft and the engine and accessories were handed back to the Jaroměř Aero Club as agreed. In accordance with the order, the Akrobat was transported to the centre of Uherské Hradiště, where it was displayed near the main intersection by the Mír cinema. However, in a few months the machine was damaged by vandals and the aircraft was almost a wreck, dangerous especially for children. Ironically, its further public display was decided by a road traffic accident caused by the aircraft, which distracted the attention of traffic participants, located near a busy intersection.After this event, the aircraft again went to the Let Kunovice company, where a group of museum workers began to work on its repair in their spare time. After replacing all the missing parts and repairing the paint, it was finally handed over by the national enterprise Let to the members of the museum party. It thus became the first official exhibit and the imaginary cornerstone of the emerging aviation museum in Kunovice. It was exhibited in 1974 and this year is considered to be the year when the Kunovice Aviation Museum started its exhibition activities.
