<The following was posted at 23:45 on 06:12:25.>

Jofra Root Aviation Blog 6th December 2025.

Sukhoi Su-34 - 1 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr

News from the Victoria!  Photos have been discovered by "A Reliable Source" in a filing cabinet at the back of a hanger.  Stamped "Classified - Not for Release", they record the time a Sukhoi Su-34 was test flown by the PDRV Republican Guard.  Something we had suspected happened but which has been denied in recent weeks by the Minister.

Sukhoi Su-34 - 3 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr

Apparantly the aircraft was on loan for a year during the early 2010's during which time it retained its Red Army Air Force camouflage and serial/bort numbers but had its red stars overpainted with Low Viz PDRV Vee Roundels.

Sukhoi Su-34 - 16 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr

My source tells me that following twelve months of trials which included simulated combat, live weapons exercises, and (illegal!) long range overflights across hostile territory to our North, White 45 was handed back to the USSR and the trials reports were sent to committee.

Sukhoi Su-34 - 7 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr

The decision of the committee is not recorded but given there is no record of any further Su-34s in PDRV service it is assumed that purchase was denied.
Or, as has happened in other cases (see my earlier blog posts 23:10:2003, 26:04:2007, 09:12:2017 et al) aircraft were acquired covertly by those parts of the military/security services that we the people are not supposed to be aware of.

Sukhoi Su-34 - 21 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr

Sukhoi Su-34 - 13 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr

I hesitate to mention this, but surely there has been no-one in the aviation blogosphere who has not heard the continued rumours relating to the continued existence of the Southern Air Patrol.  The privately run Anti Piracy air wing which was supposedly shut down in the early seventies when it was exposed as a front for a multitude of shady international undemocratic covert operations both legal and illegal.  I personally have been shown photographic evidence of a Sukhoi with that well known "Z" logo on it's tail loaded with anti pers...

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The Model

Sukhoi Su-34 - 23 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr

Italeri Su-34 built OOB (including the weapons loadout).
Paint scheme is a RW one found on line.  I used Hataka paints from their "SU-34" set.
Transfers are from the kit with the exception of replacing Russian stars with my own home printed PDRV roundels.

It is obviously Italeri plastic in a Tamiya box.  Detail is on the soft side and there is minor flash.  Fit is acceptable but not up to normal Tamiya standard.  Some PSR was required.  All very similar to the MiG 29 in the background which is also an Italeri kit reboxed by Tamiya.
The Sukhoi's weapons are slightly crude with their bodies lacking in roundness and many ejector pin marks (four on each R73 AAM!).
However, it scrubs up alright and i'd build another.

It does look very smart, but I'm amazed it could actually fly with that VAST weapons load!   

  

Looks good, Fred.  

Marvellous stuff Fred 

Looks gorgeous in that scheme   

Nice one Fred - like the "found fragment" backstory too.

Thanks folks, glad you like it.

That is beautiful

Thanks bruv.