The Yak-38 (Forger-A) was a Russian attempt to give its navy a vertical take off and landing fighter. Although it entered service it proved to be a serious disappointment and was taken out of service in 1991.

Yakovlev began development of an operational vertical take-off and landing fighter for the Red Navy in 1967.

The first Yak-38 made a hovering flight in September 1970 but development was slow so the first carrier flight did not occur until 1972.

About 150 entered service from October 1976 but they proved disappointing with very limited range and payload.

They were also difficult to fly and a third were lost in accidents. Nobody was sad to see them grounded in 1991.

This model represents a Yak-38 in service around 1980.

Ace 1/72 kit completed by Leigh Edmonds in February 2005.