I had the chance to examine some Russian farm equipment.I left shaking my head.
But what else could you fix with some Roosky duct tape and bubble gum?
I traveled a lot around Russia and a great deal of Georgia.
Worst thing was finding the courage to cross streets in Tbilisi.
Planes in Rostov on don were shakier than you can imagine in the late 90’s.
During the Cold War, the then state of the art MIG-29(?) was something of a mystery to the US because the planes sent to the USSR’s eastern satellite nations were “monkey models,” inferior to the craft making up Soviet air forces.
Finally, a Soviet pilot defected with his plane. The lack of sophistication in the plane’s manufacturing came as a shock. They bolts that held the metal skin in place still had their heads intact, increasing drag. Grinding off the bolt heads was a no-brainer, but there you go. The rest of the plane was similarly poorly done.
If this was the best they could do, imagine how crappy the monkey models were.