Trumpeter 1/35 SAM-6 Antiaircraft Missile Reviewed by Chris Banyai-Riepl

Overview

The SA-6 antiaircraft missile was developed in the Soviet Union during the 1960s, and, after some initial teething problems, entered service in 1966. With a top speed of Mach 2.8, the SA-6 has both an optical and a radar tracking mode, making it a very effective antiaircraft weapon. The probability of kill for a single missile ranged from .8 to .95 for a non-maneuvering aerodynamic target, to .5 to .7 for a maneuvering high-speed target. These numbers increase dramatically with more than one missile, a fact driven home during the 1973 Yom Kippur war, where the SA-6 performed admirably against Israeli forces. During that conflict, 64 Israeli aircraft were shot down by 95 fired missiles, an impressive tally. The SA-6 was exported to many Central European nations, as well as the Middle East, and can still be found in operation today.

The Kit

I believe that this is the first time the SA-6 has been kitted in 1/35, and Trumpeter has done a great job of it. The kit comes molded in a light gray plastic, with a handful of photoetch, vinyl tubing, and spring parts. A small decal sheet provides markings for several vehicles, including vehicles from East Germany, Poland, and Czechoslovakia, as well as the Soviet Union. The detailing throughout is nicely done, although it is restricted to the exterior. For those wanting to detail out all the hatches and interior, you will either have to wait for the aftermarket detail sets, or scratchbuild.

The instructions start out with building up the lower hull. The lower hull has great detail molded in place, including all the underside hatches. The road wheels all have separate suspension arms, and the track is all plastic, made up of sections and individual links. Separate pieces for the rear face and transmission housing allow for crisp detailing.

Moving to the upper hull, there are quite a few extra pieces fitting onto this solid piece. There are quite a few separate hatches, which will make adding interior detail a bit easier, but the instructions have you glue all these in the closed position. A piece of brass wire gets a couple of plastic ends to make the loop of tow cable on the front, while the back end gets a plastic log. Another nice photoetch piece is a saw for the side, with the teeth sheathed. General construction, though, should be simple and quick.

Next up are the missiles, the most visible portion of this vehicle. The kit comes with three missiles, all split into upper and lower halves. Onto the main body fit the separate fins. Once those are finished, the last step is the missile launcher assembly. This is also fairly basic in assembly, but that does not mean it is not detailed. The instructions provide options for either a stowed or a launching position missile turret.

For colors and markings, the options are presented on a color insert, with three of the five options illustrated. To the best of my knowledge, the Soviet ones are finished the same as the East German one, that being overall green. The Polish example is in a three-color camouflage of brown, medium green, and dark green. Similarly, the Czech option is likewise in a three-color camouflage, this time being medium green, light green, and brown. All three have different missile markings, so check your sources to see which missiles fit your particular vehicle.

Conclusion

This is a great kit of an interesting weapons system. While it is lacking in interior detailing, what is presented is very well done and should pose no problems for the average modeler. My thanks to Stevens International for the review sample.