I bought this kit new, from a seller on Yahoo Auctions Japan, using Buyee.com, in July 2021. It was fairly priced - no more than the same kit was when new, so it was a good deal since it was out of print at the time.
The Altair is a space/flight version of the Großer Hund. They are both autonomous (read: computer controlled) interception units, designed by the Strahl Democratic Republic to hunt out and destroy enemy Mercenary fighting suits (the AFS and SAFS designs).
The Altair has a space capable flight pack and additional sensors compared to the ground based Großer Hund, but shares the powerful left-arm laser cannon. Both are more powerful and taller than the average powered-suit designs, making them extremely effective hunters.
I love the space versions of most of the SDR suits and the flight pack added to the Großer Hund is no exception - while it has a vaguely humanoid appearance, there's no mistaking that it's a cold, computer-controlled robot. Plus the semi-exposed innards and parts use the Ma.K aesthetic of dangling cables, hoses and pipes to great effect.
The grey/yellow paint scheme of the Altair is something I wanted to replicate across most of the SDR forces.
Like the base Großer Hund kit that this is based on, it's a big kit with many runners and over 200 parts in total. If you've put together anything more than a basic kit before you should be okay, but I wouldn't recommend this one for someone just starting out.
Box art:
Instructions:
Waterslide decal instructions:
Painting guide:
Waterslide decals:
Parts sprues:
Multimedia parts: