1/72 AML Mirage IIIC  

Israeli Recon

by Yoav Efrati

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AML's retooled their original 2004 Mirage IIIc release to accommodate a camera nose section unique to the IAF. This nose section was ironically nicknamed Tzniut which means "Modesty" in Hebrew. The camera was able to photograph sideways which enabled photos to be taken without the need to overfly the hostile area. The Tzniut was fitted to two know Mirage airframes, 498 which was always a recon Mirage and 458 which was the second IAF Mirage to attain 13 kills.

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Photo below displays three delat fighters which operated with the IAF in the second half of the 1970's, Mirage 458, Nesher 18 and the F-21 version of the Kfir, number 764. Common to them all are the Insignia Yellow and black wing and vertical fin identification triangles. These triangles were hastily introduced during the Yom Kippur War after Libyan Mirage V fighter bombers were sighted bombing IDF troops along the Suez Canal. Use of the identification triangles ended after Israel and Egypt signed a peace agreement which in turn infuriated Libyan leader Moamar Kadaffe who waged war on Egypt. To distinguish between Egyptian and Libyan Mirage fighters, Egypt adopted orange and black identification triangles on their Mirage fighters. With Egypt adopting these identification markings, the IAF removed these triangles from its Delta fighters and adopted Ghost Gray color scheme on some of its remaining Mirage airframes and the Kfir.

Use of the "Modest" Mirage ended after the introduction of the Kfir C2 and the Hiac nose F-4E(S) depicted in photo DSCN8455.

Yours,

Yoav 

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Photos and text © by Yoav Efrati