YK GOH

Presenting a pair of 1/48 scale Airfix DHC-1 Chipmunk T.10s in the markings of the Malayan Auxiliary Air Force (MAAF) and the Kenya Air Force (KAF). In choosing the subject to display at a local Military Hobby Fest, which was held last weekend (7th – 8th Sep 2024), I decided to pay tribute to Singapore's pioneer military pilots who flew with the Singapore Squadron of the Malayan Auxiliary Air Force (MAAF). The MAAF was formed in 1950 to train local volunteers to fly military aircraft and to assist in the defence of the colony. It has three squadrons. One in Kuala Lumpur, another one in Penang and the third in Singapore, based at RAF Tengah. The Singapore Squadron was initially equipped with four Tiger Moths and four Harvards, and for a brief period with three Spitfires. These were replaced by four DHC-1 Chipmunks in 1957, which by then the Squadron had moved to RAF Seletar. I was honoured to have met the late Jimmy Chew K.T. who was the first Singaporean to be awarded the MAAF Wings. Jimmy flew all the three types (Tiger Moth, Harvard and Chipmunk) which were recorded in his Flying Log Books. Chipmunk WD338 was one of the four operated by the Singapore Squadron and was flown by Jimmy on many occasions. After MAAF was disbanded in 1960, WD338 was transferred to Kenya Air Force where it continued to serve with its Flying Training School. The two models depict WD338 in both MAAF and KAF liveries, reflecting its distinguished service history. These two models followed closely to the Vampire which I completed couple of months earlier (after a 30 year drought ! ) There were some mistakes made along the way and some heartaches in applying the dayglo decals from aftermarket decal sheets. The Kenya AF roundels and fin flash were printed by a friend. Overall, the completed pair is not perfect and not competition standard, but I am quite satisfied with the outcome in my tribute to the MAAF pioneers and the history of WD338.

Found the article that the photos of the Spanish SH-3D with AS.11 missiles came from. https://www.outono.net/elentir/2022/08/31/el-arma-aerea-de-la-armada-espanola-en-viejas-fotografias-de-los-archivos-nacionales-de-eeuu/ There is another slightly forward view of the AS.11 armed SH-3D with a Bell 47 in the foreground. Unfortunately, not frontal enough to see how the missile arm structure is mounted.

Finally completed my 1/48 Airfix Vampire kit with the bomb carriers modified from the kit's droptanks.

After a long, very long hiatus, I finally completed my first model kit in 30 years, so pardon the standards in finishing. The Airfix 1/48 Vampire was a joy to build, though it was challenging to get the nose weighted down. The kit comes with a pair of droptanks. As I wanted to build an aircraft based at RAF Tengah that participated in the Malayan Emergency, I modified it into bomb carriers, using photos as references. The bombs and rockets came from the Trumpeter 1/48 Wyvern kit. The 60 Sqn markings came from the Aims decal sheet, AIMS48D038. I have several other WIPs over the years and hope the completion of this kit will move them towards completion!

There are more recent photos of Islanders with tanks that seem to be bigger than the 50-gallon tanks. https://www.airliners.net/photo/Untitled/Pilatus-Britten-Norman-BN-2T-4S-Defender-4000/2471249/L?qsp=eJwtjEEKwkAMRe%2BStS5EcNGdXkAXXiDOfMZi64QkoEPp3RsHd4/34C2U6tvx9XsT0EAG1vSkHQkrz0bDQi%2B0T9UcTGVfZnlEtap%2BaWEyO84pQRz576%2Baob8ES31UYnwIgN460/EUPo8mE/cHnMeJ1nUDT6Mu1Q%3D%3D Perhaps Valom kit's tanks are for this bigger capacity tank.

Thanks @Work In Progress for the mathematical approach. The capacity of the tank was taken from a page in the Britten Norman's Defender brochure.

https://abpic.co.uk/pictures/view/1654745 I had an early release of the Valom 1/48 Islander kit and wanted to include the pylons and droptanks, seen on the prototype Defender G-AYTS and many military operators, which was not supplied in the kit. Using the Airfix 1/72 Defender kit 's pylons and droptanks as a reference. I scaled up the dimensions of the Airfix parts to 1/48 scale and scratched built both the pylons and droptanks. Recently Valom issued the RAF Defender with pylons and droptanks. I compared them and it is obvious the Valom's droptank parts are much larger than Airfix's dimensions to the same 1/48 scale. Will be most grateful if anyone can advise on the full-scale dimensions or have scale drawings of the 50-gallon droptank to confirm which one is correct. In determining the correct position for the pylons, I realised that the underwing fairing (I believe it's for the fuel sump) is in the way. This is confirmed from photographs and the 1/72 scale drawings in the Aug 1975 edition of Airfix magazine, which has a front view showing the positions of the fairing and pylons. The fairing need to be removed and shift about 5mm towards the fuselage to make way for the inboard pylons. YK Goh

Having failed to find any information on the dimensions of the bomb carrier for the Vampire, I was pleased to see a posting by @canberra kid in this thread which included a side view of the Vampire with bomb carrier attached. Vampire weapons loads? - Aircraft Cold War - Britmodeller.com I know it will not be accurate, but it gives some idea of the estimated length of the bomb carrier to 29mm in 1/48 scale. Using the photo and drawing as a reference, I decided to use the kit's droptank upper halves to modify it into a bomb carrier. Main reason is I want the contour of the mating surface with the lower wing and location pins intact. The first task is to cut off the drop tank from its pylon. Then the following steps to reshape it to the likeliness of the bomb carrier. I took the sway brace (aka crutch assembly) part from the Trumpeter Wyvern kit to integrate with the bomb carrier. Guess this will do for now until Airfix decides to include the bomb carrier in future releases, or the aftermarket manufacturers will take it up. I also realised that the 2-tier rockets in the Trumpeter Wyvern kit can also be used for the Vampire. That solved the loadout for the Vampire during the Malayan Emergency. Note: I have corrected the title of this thread from DH Vampire Pylon to DH Bomb Carrier as advised by @Selwyn. YK

alt-92: Thank you! Thanks Graham for your insights. I also realised that the photo I posted from the Facebook posting is in Pg.88 of "Bloody Shambles".

I am just wondering whether those 27 Sqn Blenheims beautifully captured by LIFE's photographer Mydans in 1941 at Kallang would carry these Type A1 roundels.

Saw this photo of a 27 Sqn Blenheim Mk.I posted in the Roundels of the World Air Forces Facebook. Not sure it has been posted in any of the threads on Singapore Blenheims before as most of the photos are now not accessible. This photo shows the Type A1 roundels with yellow ring on the wing upper surface. Would this mean that the other 27 Sqn Blenheim Mk.Is would also have these roundels or there are variations?

Thank you very much for the links!

Came across this photo on IWM website. https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205207741 Interesting scheme on the Harvard. Would there be anymore photos to show the overall scheme of this aircraft?

Yes, apparently the Vampire trainer use the same pylon/bombrack as the fighter. Here's a scan from the "Profiles Publication No.48 - Vampire Mk.5 & Mk.9".

Have seen photos of 60 Sqn Vampires loaded with bombs during the Malayan Emergency. Found this close up of the pylon. None of the 1/48 Vampire kits from Airfix, Hobby Craft nor Classic Airframes has this pylon. Looks easy to scratch build but would there be any drawings or aftermarket parts available for this pylon? YK