TB.2 UAV
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Clear Prop!, 1/48 scale

Reviewed by Brett Green

The Bayraktar TB2 is a medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) capable of remotely controlled or autonomous flight operations. It is manufactured by the Turkish company Baykar Makina Sanayi ve Ticaret A.?., primarily for the Turkish Armed Forces.

The aircraft are monitored and controlled by an aircrew in a ground control station, including weapons employment. The development of the UAV has been largely credited to Selçuk Bayraktar, a former MIT graduate student.

By November 2021, the TB2 drone had completed 400,000 flight-hours globally.

The largest operator of TB2 drones is the Turkish military, but an export model has been sold to the militaries of a number of other countries.

Turkey has used the drone extensively in strikes on Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and People's Protection Units (YPG) targets in Iraq and Syria.

Bayraktar drones were later deployed by a number of other nations around the world in various wars, such as by Azerbaijan in the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, by the Armed Forces of Ukraine during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, as well as by the Ethiopian National Defense Force during the Tigray War.*

*Historical summary courtesy of Wikipedia - folloe this link for more details

As far as I am aware, we have never seen a TB.2 UAV in any scale or in any medium.

This is a very timely subject with the TB.2 being used in front line service by the Ukrainian Air Force.

Clear Prop's 1/48 scale TB.2 UAV Starter Kit comprises 122 parts in dark grey plastic, five parts in clear and four decal sheets with seven Ukrainian marking options.

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"Starter" simply indicates that the kit does not include photo-etch, resin parts or masks. This, however, is the only meaning - the kit is quite luxurious in every other respect.

The model is packed in a stout carboard box with a lid and a heavier cardboard box underneath.

The parts are moulded in dark grey plastic. The texture of the plastic is very smooth and sprue attachments are narrow.

Surface details are fine, crisp and consistent.

Wings are broken down into upper and lower, port nd starboard parts with separate wing tips.

Control surfaces ae separate parts. It looks like it would not need much work to pose these deflected.

Four hard points are included, in addition to two MAM-L bombs on the inner and a MAM-C bomb on the outer hardpoints.

The nose landing gear bay is nicely detailed, as are the three wheels.

The clear sprue offers parts for the Multispectural Targeting System Ball and wing tip navigation lights.

Instructions are clear and well laid out in a 12 page, folded A4 paper booklet.

The marking guide is in full colour and colours are called out throughout using Mr Color and MIG paint numbers. It might have been nice to have a few other paint brands cross-referenced too.

Markings

The colours and registration of the decals look good.

Seven marking options are offered, all in overall grey and in Ukrainian Air Force service.

A small separate errata sheet is also included.

Clear Prop! has delivered an impressive model of this very timely subject.

Detail is excellent and I like the crisp, fine surface textures.

This is another impressive effort from Clear Prop!

Thanks to Clear Prop! for the sample

Text and Images Copyright © 2023 by Brett Green
Page Created 23 May, 2023
Last updated 23 May, 2023

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