In the midst of heavy fighting half way around the world, it would appear as if model makers, authors, gamers and others are sitting on the edge of their seats taking note of the brutal fighting occurring throughout the nation of Ukraine. Its a rather sad state of affairs that while property is destroyed, families are getting displaced and innocent people are losing their lives, many are seeing it as a golden opportunity to cash in on the heartache and brutality of war, but that’s a debate that will likely take place at another time when the fighting has subsided.

I’m not going to discuss how I personally feel about the conflict and whether or not its wise to discuss this right now when the fighting could well be entering its most ferocious stage of the war. Instead, I’m simply going to point out that you will likely see a number of models arising from the conflict, some historically accurate while others notional at best, all aimed at capitalizing on the successes of a modern day David standing toe-to-toe with a Goliath the likes of Russia.

Last week, for instance, a Ukrainian MiG 29 pilot, heretofore known as “the Ghost of Kyiv”, supposedly shot down six Russian aircraft in a little more than a day, defending the capital city when few Ukrainian aircraft were capable of taking to the skies. No one, to date, knows if the tale is actually true, particularly when the Russian Air Force has dominated the battlespace over Ukraine since the start of the fighting. Moreover, like the thirteen Ukrainian soldiers holding Snake Island in the face of overwhelming Russian firepower, it could be a story spun by the media and others to help galvanize the nation when they need it the most. It wouldn’t be the first time a tale was told in the middle of fighting to bolster a nation at its most critical juncture.

In any event, I would not be surprised if we see a bevy of new products announced very shortly by a number of manufacturers both in the scale military world and outside it. I would suggest, however, that a portion of the proceeds be donated to the Ukrainian war effort so that they at least can use the funds to purchase both lethal and non lethal aid to help them defend their land from further aggression. I think that’s the least we can do.