T-50 No.1 or 51 Blue' is one of five development aircraft currently participating in the PAK FA programme, and a total fleet of fifteen development aircraft are planned by the end of 2015. The T-50 is Sukhoi s response to a requirement for a fifth-generation multi-role fighter that will form the core of the future Russian fighter fleet. Whilst a fifth-generation platform would imply stealth design it is clear that some compromises have been made in favour of enhanced manoeuvrability; a good example of this being the leading edge vortex controllers (vorcons) above the engine inlets. It will be interesting to see what blend of stealth and performance the production variant will deliver compared to its stealth centric' counterpart, the F-22 Raptor. Inside the box, the kit itself is very uncomplicated consisting of three grey-coloured styrene sprues and one clear. The kit is dominated by the two fuselage/wing assemblies that come pre-moulded and fit together like a clamshell. I was pleased to note a small photo-etched sprue, which furnishes the cockpit consoles and details for the air data sensors. Eduard now do a nice aftermarket photo-etched set for this kit, which I believe will enhance it greatly. The T-50 reportedly uses a K36D-5 seat and whilst this is new to me, the supplied seat parts looked to be a fair representation of something in the K36DM series, with one exception: scale. The supplied seat if extrapolated to 1:1 would resemble a comfy sofa. It simply isn't realistic.
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