During a bombing raid on a North Korean Air Base in November of 1950, an American B-29 was badly hit by cannon shells from a high-speed aircraft that flashed by. Due to the immense speed of this aircraft, gunners of the B-29 had no chance of returning fire. Resulting damages saw the mission cancelled and the American B-29 had to return to base. Escort F80C fighters failed to engage these aircraft and the opponent remained unidentified. All that was known is that is must have been a jet aircraft.

As the Korean War progressed, the Mikoyan MiG–15 jets became notorious for matching the abilities of any fighter plane at the time, including early versions of the United States’ renowned North American F-86 Sabre. Used by the North Korean Air Force, the MiG-15 was fast, agile, well armed and an extremely dangerous opponent when flown by experienced pilots. Among these skilled pilots was Russian Major Anatoly Mikhailovich Karelin who flew with the 351 Squadron in February of 1953. Earning his Ace status, he shot down 6 B-29s (5 B-29A and 1 RB-29A) during night sorties. For this build, I used Trumpeter’s 1/32 scale model kit in the markings of Russian ace Anatoly M. Karelin. I also used Aeromaster’s decal sheet to build Karelin’s famous Fagot “300”.

Above Photo: Russian Major Anatoly Mikhailovich Karelin