Avia Decals 1/144 Tupolev Tu-144 Decal First Look
By Michael Benolkin
| Date of Review | December 2014 | Manufacturer | Avia Decals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subject | Tupolev Tu-144 | Scale | 1/144 |
| Set Number | 14407 | Pros | Nine colorful options for the ICM kit |
| Cons | None noted | Skill Level | Novice |
| MSRP (Euro) | TBA |
First Look
Avia Decals is a decal line associated with Begemot Decals from Russia and this release covers the 1/144 scale Tu-144 airliners in service with Aeroflot. As with Begemot's decals, these are really nicely laid out and printed, and this set also includes a set of vinyl masks to help with painting the landing gear wheels as well as the windscreen.
This release covers nine aircraft with great notes on the differences in color schemes between many of these aircraft. The ninth subject is the distinctive flying laboratory used with NASA for supersonic research:
- Tu-144S, 77106, Aeroflot, USSR
- Tu-144S, 77107, Aeroflot, USSR
- Tu-144S, 77108, Aeroflot, USSR
- Tu-144S, 77110, Aeroflot, USSR, on display at Le Bourget 1977
- Tu-144S, 77144, Aeroflot, USSR, on display at Le Bourget 1975
- Tu-144D, 77112, Aeroflot, USSR
- Tu-144D, 77115, Aeroflot, USSR
- Tu-144S, 77102, Aeroflot, USSR, crashed at Le Bourget 1973
- Tu-144LL, 77114, Moscow Flying Laboratory, Russia, Zhukovsky Air Development Center
This set will provide you with a nice cross-section of operational examples including two display aircraft at the Paris Airshow, the aircraft that crashed at the Paris Airshow in 1973, and the flying laboratory at Zhukovsky. This decal set is designed for the ICM kit in 1/144 scale.
For more information about this set and the other releases from Avia Decals, check their website at http://www.aviadecals.com
My sincere thanks to Begemot Decals for this review sample!