Zvezda 1/72 Russian MiG1.44 Multi-Role Fighter of the New Generation Kit

Even the most jaded booster of American fighter aircraft has to admit that, for the past twenty years, the ex-Evil Empire's really been "getting with the (fighter) program." They had to, of course, because since 1976 the F-15 in the hands of not only the hometown boys but also the Israelis had been beating the performance of existing Soviet/Russian fighters like a drum. First came the Fulcrum, and then its bigger, badder brother, the Flanker, which offered the first serious threat to Western fighter supremacy. As in the game of Poker, the F-22 Raptor "saw" the Flanker and "raised" the stakes considerably, as has European development of the Eurofighter and Rafale.

Russia's answer to the American ATF program which spawned the F-22 was the development (started in 1986) of a fifth generation, Multi-role fighter (MFI) which has since morphed into the Mig 1.44, a fly-by-wire, fire-and-forget, vectored thrust weapon system. Although F-22 development and production funding have, and will continue to be a problem, it pales in comparison to the gigantic financial obstacles facing Russia's post-1991military structure. Accordingly, the secretive Mig 1.44's first flight, originally planned for 1996, didn't occur until 2000. Further development and series production is cloudy to say the least.