Bartini A-57 Soviet Seaplane Bomber (1956)

Scale: 1/144
Initial Release: 2019
Medium: Resin
Length: 18 inches
Kit Rarity: 3

About the Design

In the mid-1950s, celebrated Austro-Hungarian born Soviet aircraft designer Robert Lugvigovich Bartini (1897-1974) received Kremlin backing to develop the A-57, a massive sea-launched intercontinental bomber that would not require vulnerable land-based air fields. The A-57 was to use vertical jets to assist with lift during take-off and would be fueled by submarines.

Subsequent variations also included a twin-engine jet parasite fighter to serve as an escort over enemy territory.

In 1957, the Kremlin pulled funding from Bartini's bold project, perhaps figuring that with ICBMs now coming into their own, there would be less and less need for the kind of massive bomber Bartini envisioned.

About the Kit

This massive resin model kit was released by Fantastic Plastic Models in 2019. It received only a brief initial run before going into retirement.