Box and contents
The Revell box artwork is usually impressive enough and that’s the case here – an image of a Mil Mi-24D Hind D marked in East German AF markings.
Let’s go inside
The grey sprues are packaged well and no damage is apparent. Taking the main components first, they are well tooled, raised panel line detail may not suit everyone but it has a quality feel. Some of the detail looks a little soft around the edges and unsurprising given the age of this kit. No distortion was apparent and a dry fit of the main fuselage promises a decent fit; the initial impression is one of a lot of detail parts that will go to make up a nice representative model in 1:48 scale.
Cockpit and interior
Decals are available on the decal sheet to add to the instrument panels in the cockpit, although you could simply paint the raised detail on the cockpit panels instead. The other internal details are well detailed too as you can see from the attached photos and will add a fair bit to the eventual look.
Engines
This area of the model is extremely well detailed allowing you to display your model with the engine cowls open to reveal the engines within. They will look good under some Alclad2 metallic paint and a good opportunity to add some of their ‘Hot Metal’ colours in the process; an impressive area of the package.
Undercarriage units
Impressively detailed units are supplied that will be highly visible on your finished model – as is typical of the type. The hydraulic lines are moulded there too and some simple cleaning up should see them usable as is.
Options and stores
Options in your box and includes:
- Various antennae
- 2 crew figures – seated position
- Ordnance:
4 X rocket pods
4 X Swatter air-to-surface missiles
nose-mounted rotary cannon.
Nose weight
It’s worth adding a little to make sure your model doesn’t sit on its tail!
Clear parts
The clear parts look clear and the canopy / windscreen is provided as a multi-piece moulding; this is often necessary for replicate the complex shape but a dry fit and photos from Revell of the finished model suggest all will go together well.
Instructions
Decals
Options for three different aircraft are included:
- Mil Mi-24D Hind-D, 414 – East German Army (NVA), KHG-3 Cottbus AB, 1985
- Mil Mi-24D Hind-D, 98+31 – German Air Force, WTD-61 Manching AB, 1995
- Mil Mi-24D Hind-D, 457 – Polish Air Force, 56.KPSB, Inowroclaw – Latkowo 2006
These are good schemes with plenty of variety – just look at the photos of the decal sheet in the Gallery!
Looking at the manufacturer’s completed model (above) the decals will look good when carefully applied.
Conclusion
This is a good subject and will provide all modern military fans with an opportunity to expand their collection; especially if you like your aircraft colourful or are creating a collection of rotary or ‘Special’ aircraft. The inclusion of quite different colour schemes on Revell’s decal sheet is attractive and the model itself looks to be well engineered and from the dry/test-fit. Moulding is good and the raised panel detail perfectly ok in my opinion, especially given the subject that has raised rivets and other detail all over the fuselage!
Geoff C.
SMN Quick summary Star rating out of 5
| FEATURE | STAR RATING (out of five) |
|---|---|
| Quality of moulding | *** |
| Accuracy | **** |
| Instructions | *** |
| Level of detail | **** |
| Decals | **** |
| Subject choice | **** |
| Overall | *** |