Hobby Craft I-16 Type 18
Russia, Winter of 1942

The Polikarpov I-16 was the world's first operational low-wing cantilever monoplane fighter with retractable landing gear. The I-16 was introduced in the mid-1930s and formed the backbone of the Soviet Air Force at the beginning of World War II. Later variants were often used in the ground attack role as they were outclassed by German fighters.

This was a decent kit from Hobby Craft which required some scratch building in the cockpit which was quite bare. I added some side controls, a gun sight and a head rest. I also added gun barrels to the fuselage guns and the wheel retraction wires in the gear bay. I built my kit as a generic fighter-bomber with a faded winter camouflage. At this time the planes would have seen a lot of wear and tear so I did some heavy weathering as well.