Soko NJ-22 Orao
First Impression
ModelFan

Litaki
72002
Scalel 1/72
Injection moulded.
Price euro 34,95

The Soko J-22 Orao (Serbian: Oрао, literally 'eagle') is a Yugoslav twin-engined, subsonic ground attack and aerial reconnaissance aircraft. It was developed and built in collaboration by SOKO in Yugoslavia and by Avioane Craiova in neighboring Romania, the latter known as the IAR-93 Vultur.

The Orao was designed to function as a single-seat version for main assault or as a combat-ready two-seat version, the latter being primarily intended for advanced flight and weapons training tasks. It was developed in the 1970s as a joint Yugoslav-Romanian project, known as YuRom. Early ambitions to produce a supersonic fighter were thwarted by Britain's reluctance to allow the desired engine to be produced under license in Eastern Europe. Further problems in fitting an afterburner to the older Rolls-Royce Viper also hampered the development and performance of early versions.

The aircraft first flew in November 1974 and would equip the air forces of both Romania and Yugoslavia, as well as several successors to Yugoslavia. On November 22, 1984, the Orao became the first Yugoslavian-designed aircraft to exceed Mach 1, albeit during a shallow dive. In the 1990s, the type saw action during the Yugoslav wars, mostly conducting ground-attack missions against breakaway military factions such as the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA). As of July 2019, the Serbian Air Force and Air Defense is the only entity still in service with the type.
The J-22 Orao is a twin-engine fighter designed to conduct close air support (CAS), ground attack and tactical reconnaissance missions, and also had a limited air defense capability. The two-seat version, the NJ-22, was primarily used for various training purposes, including the advanced flight and weapons training programs, but could also be used for combat missions.

The Orao was equipped with standard communication and navigation equipment, the latter including a Honeywell-built SGP500 twin-gyroscope navigation system. It featured a fire control and weapons management system that used the Thomson-CSF-built VE-120T head-up display (HUD) (which replaced the original Ferranti ISIS D-282 gyro sight). In terms of defensive sensors and systems, it was equipped with an Iskra SO-1 radar warning receiver (RWR) and provision for up to three chaff/flare dispensers, as well as a P10-65-13 passive jammer pod. Optionally, additional pods can be mounted, including an optical/infrared reconnaissance pod or an optical reconnaissance/jammer pod.

In the 1990s, several upgrade programs for the J-22 had been proposed; Reportedly, such efforts would have focused on the aircraft's avionics. However, such ambitions were severely undermined by the dismantling of the Mostar plant in Bosnia-Hercegovina during the Yugoslav Wars and the Romanian Revolution. In the late 2010s, Serbia launched a major modernization program involving both its J-22 and NJ-22 fleets. Unofficially referred to as Orao 2.0, this work included the installation of a new navigation and targeting systems, including Safran's Sigma 95 inertial navigation system, a mission computer and multifunction displays in the rear cockpit of the NJ-22 that, along with new armament, is intended to make the type more effective in ground attack missions. A more comprehensive second phase is to achieve the "full digitalization" of the aircraft's cockpit.
The first unit of the Yugoslav Air Force to receive the J-22 was the 351st (Reconnaissance Aviation Squadron) of the 82nd Aviation Brigade, Cerklje. Until the 1991 war, only three squadrons were fully equipped with J-22 attack aircraft and NJ-22 trainer attack aircraft; these are the 238th (fighter-bomber aviation squadron) of the 82nd Aviation Brigade, 241st and 98th Aviation Brigade and 242nd and 127th Fighter-Bomber Regiment, Golubovci Airbase. There were also about three squadrons partially equipped with J-22s.

At the beginning of the Yugoslav wars, J-22s flew over Slovenia for a show of force, but did not drop bombs. In 1991, the J-22's first offensive action occurred when the Yugoslav National Army used them to attack targets in Croatia.
As a result of the conflicts of the 1990s, the majority of the aircraft of the former Yugoslav Air Force were moved to the Union of Serbia and Montenegro, with smaller forces coming under the control of the other new states created by the breakup of Yugoslavia, with the JNA leaving a squadron equipped with nine Oraos in the Bosnian Serb Republika Srpska,   with these aircraft that became part of the new Republika Srpska Air Force, stationed near Mahovljani Airport, outside the capital. The airworthiness of these aircraft quickly deteriorated due to the combination of limited funding and the impact of international embargoes. In June 2003, the Republika Srpska Air Force had a fleet of seven J-22 Oraos. These planes were eventually inherited by the unified Bosnian Air Force. By 2008, all of Bosnia's J-22s had been placed in storage, while the country negotiated with neighboring Serbia to potentially purchase them; reportedly, Serbia was seen as the only viable customer for the type. Several former J-22s of the former Yugoslav Air Force were also operated by the Air Force of the Republic of Serbian Krajina following the withdrawal of the Yugoslav National Army from Croatia.
In July 2019, the Serbian Air Force reportedly still had a fleet consisting of 10 J-22 and NJ-22 Oraos; In addition to these airworthy specimens, the Air Force also has other aircraft in storage, including the IJ and INJ reconnaissance variants. According to Flight International, the Orao's lifespan was originally expected to be around 24 years; Based on structural inspections, some aircraft are in such good condition that this prognosis could effectively be doubled; after an overhaul, individual J-22s can be approved to be able to make an additional 1,000 flight hours.

Litaki has been on the market of injection molded models since 2023 with this Soko J-22 Orao as the first model. The two-seater version of the aircraft, the NJ-22, is now the second model on the market. The model also comes in a sturdy box with a top lid with a color image of an Orao flying over a forest canopy at the front, with cluster munitions under the wings on the inner wing pylons.
Inside the box are two resealable bags with seven rectangular grey frames, some with protective foam sheets over the ends, and a separately wrapped clear injection molded frame also with foam protection.  The foam protection on the gray parts is for a number of weapon pods. These have very sharp points. Apart from the fact that they can viciously sting you, the protection serves to prevent the tips from breaking off and making them look unoriginal. Handle them with extreme caution when assembling the parts.
Another bag contains the A5 instruction booklet with a color cover and two Ziploc bags with decals, pre-cut gray vinyl masks (not pictured) and Photoetch (PE) brass parts that complete the package, with the exception of three sheets of glossy profiles printed on both sides, and the full-size glossy color print with the box art that you can frame.  Unlike the J-22, this print is printed on slightly sturdier cardboard so that it is less likely to wrinkle.

Most of the injection molded frames are the same as those of the single-seater (wing, tail, stabilizer etc.) of course with an enlarged cockpit space for two pilots for which the fuselage halves have been extended. The frame with the clear parts now has all the parts for a two-seater cockpit, but is of the same quality as the single-seater. Because the designers have already taken this two-seater version into account from the start, the panels and panel lines are also incorrect. The layout on the two-seater is identical to that on the single-seater (one of the reasons why LITAKI sacrificed the details of the panel lines on the side to preserve the panel lines of the openings on the upper and lower parts of the fuselage).
As with the J-22, the NJ-22 is also a tail-sitter. So make sure you have enough weight in the nose. Litaki indicates this in the building instructions. The missing panel lines are easy to apply given the relatively soft plastic. If you can find Luka Midić's scale drawings, you're in for a treat, unfortunately I haven't been able to find them. Optionally, you can also purchase the Soko NJ 22 ORAO Two-seater panel lines scribing set for LITAKI kit from Aeropoxy as a tool. These are vinyl molds for the panels.

The photoetch set is exactly the same as for the J-22. So, when you built the J version you have left overs, now, with the NJ version you use almost everything. A bit of forethought and planning from Litaki.

Significant downside of this model is the lack of location pins and other forms of guiding the assembly of parts. Simple example; The two hull halves have to be glued completely without any mounting aid (male/female). As a result, things went very wrong for me when building the single-seater because I exerted so much force that the two halves were well on top of each other but were pushed all the way in because there was no support. So apply support on the inside, see photo.
The landing gear is a puzzle for me and I have read in other reviews that I am not alone in that. The description here is not clear and could certainly be better. Speaking of the building instructions, they are of the same size as the J-22 and of course only differ for the two-seater part.  Not only with regard to the landing gear, but as a whole, the description could be clearer. Sometimes it's a real puzzle.

There are a generous six decal options included on the decal sheet, and the separate color profile sheets have an additional page devoted to the location of the many stencils on the airframe.  Colors are called out in letter codes throughout the instruction steps, which correspond to a table at the rear of the booklet, giving codes for Mr. Color, AMMO, AK Interactive, and Tamiya, which should be sufficient to convert to your preferred paint system if the brands mentioned aren’t in your collection.  From the box you can build one of the following:
S/n: 25504, Yugoslav Air Force, 242nd Fighter-Bomber Sqn., Golubovci-Podgorica Air Base, 1989
S/n: 25504, Republic of Srpska Air Force, Banja Luka, 1996
S/n: 25526, GTA-002, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, 1999
S/n: 25525, Serbian Air Force, Batajnica Belgrade Air Base, 2007
S/n: 25528, Serbian Air Force, Batajnica Belgrade Air Base, 2012
S/n: 25528, Serbian Air Force, Batajnica Belgrade Air Base, 2023
The decals (screen printing) look neat and I couldn't find a mistake. According to the statement, they were printed by Decograph from Switzerland.

Also in this case, Litaka supplies the cockpit masks.

A few more loose remarks;
Think of pre-drilling any holes in time for, for example, the weaponry under the wings and under the fuselage. These are indicated in the construction instructions and because they are often on the inside of the parts, they cannot be found later.
With regard to the weapons, Litaki indicates the suspension points of the 128 mm lightnings on the inner wing pylons. That's not correct, these are always the outer ones for operational use! So, the description and diagram are not correct.
The included ejection seats can certainly be used with the necessary modifications, but a nicer alternative is the Reskit RSU72-0198 (MB MK.100).
The aileron controls on the wings are clearly oversized and you can decide to add new, smaller, ones for them.
Also note, just like with the single-seater, apparently an early and late version with accompanying other parts also applies here.

Conclusion
I'm also enthusiastic about this model. Litaki, from the Ukraine, is new to the model building market and has to deal with start-up costs, but also the costs for the molds and I have to say I am impressed with the quality delivered for a "newby". The choice of subject is a specific one, the fact remains that there is not yet a single model of the aircraft on the market.
The quality of the parts is fine and what I quickly tried on fits without any problems provided you take care of "assembly aids" where Litaki has not applied them.
The model certainly has its faults, especially the panel lines, but if you want to correct them or apply new ones it can be done. The manual should have attention. Still, I consider the model a welcome addition to the "cold war buffs" and the following conflicts and the Small Air Forces freaks, but is certainly also a special item in every collection. The price is firm and at the top end of the market. Often this is not such a problem for the specific fancier.
Definitely recommended.  

Thanks to Litaki for providing a review copy