A little history

This Aoshima kit represents a spacecraft that was launched at 10:31 a.m., Sept 14, 2007, from the Tanegashima Space Center. The launch vehicle was an H-IIA, the subject of another Aoshima kit, (Aoshima 151-23000). The spacecraft was named “Selene” which is a representation of the descriptive phrase, “Selenological and Engineering Explorer”.

There is no doubt that the Eduard MiG-21 family of kits sets the standard for this aircraft. The SMT variant is the ground attack version of the MiG-21. While the kit cockpit is nice and quite usable, there is room for improvement. I think it is nice that the manufacturer of the kit actually designs an aftermarket replacement set. This ensures that the resin will fit perfectly.

Inside a very sleek looking cardboard box, you are greeted by the six page color instructions. The drawings are quite impressive and should present no big problem. Below the instructions you see protective foam. This will ensure that the resin pieces will not move around and get damaged.

When I was a kid, I was always fascinated by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and his underwater exploration, so when this kit came up for review, I was interested in learning more about it and building this kit.

The submersible is named "Shinkai” and can dive to a depth of 6500 meters (ed note: 21,320’); as of 2011, it is the deepest-diving vessel of its type, having been completed in 1989 and starting operation in 1990. It is currently operated by JAMSTEC (Japanese Agency for Marine Earth Science and Technology) which was founded on April 1, 2004, as a semi-government research organization. Shinkai has a crew of two, plus one scientist, for a 3-person total complement. That sounds good until you find out they fit into a 2-meter diameter, 73.5mm-thick sphere made of titanium alloy.