Syria acquired a total of 55 L-39ZO and 44 L-39ZA armed trainers from Czechoslovakia in the 1970s and 1980s. Both variants boast four underwing hardpoints for light bombs of up to 250 kilograms, or pods for unguided rockets. The L-39ZAs also have a twin-barrel 23-millimetre cannon installed under the fuselage. Around 50 were operational with the Kweres-based 77th Training Brigade and the Advanced Flight School at Ksheesh in 2011. Attrition during the first years of the war was heavy, but about 22-24 L-39s were rushed through overhauls by The Works at Nayrab in 2015-2016 and by 2017 the type remained the principal fighter-bomber of the SyAAF. Meanwhile, all wear a genuine camouflage pattern, consisting of orange-sand and blue-green on top surfaces and sides, and light blue or blue colour on undersurfaces. The principal armament consists of B-8M pods for 80mm unguided rockets, here shown on the L-39ZO serial number 2062. (Artwork by Tom Cooper)