Impala Mk II no 1085 in scale

This is the Esci Aermacchi MB-326K in its Impala MkII version. The Impala MkII was a single seat development of the two seat MB-326 trainer aircraft produced by Aermacchi. The Impala MkII (and its two seat counterpart, the MkI) were produced under licence in South Africa by the then Atlas Aviation.

Flare dispenser housing

Approximately 100 MkII were produced to provide the South African Air Force (SAAF) with a light strike aircraft. These aircraft saw extensive combat operations in the “bush” war on the border of Namibia (South West Africa) and Angola in the 70’s and 80’s. One of the most famous stories is of a flight of Impalas ambushing several Angolan Air Force Mi-8 and Mi-24 helicopters and in the process scoring 5 kills. The Impala MkII has now been retired from SAAF service and replaced by the Hawk Mk120 LIFT. I decided to model an aircraft in the final colour scheme used by the SAAF (as represented in the beautiful book Soaring with Eagles). The Impala MkIIs received an upgrade during the bush war to provide improved defence against SAMs – this consisted of an RWR system with prominent antennae on each wingtip fuel tank’s leading and trailing edge as well as beneath the nose. The aircraft was also fitted with chaff / flare dispenser pods beneath each wing just aft of the main landing gear wells. These were scratch built and added to the basic Esci kit. The Esci kit is actually a peach with finely recessed panel lines and a reasonable level of detail.