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South African Mirage F1AZ Colours


Doug

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Hi all, I am wanting to convert a Hasagawa/Airfix Mirage F1C to Mirage F1AZ, I have a number of detail photo's for this conversion, but I am confused by the colours. I have two sets of advice, one is Light Earth/Dark green over Blue/grey, the other is earth brown/Dark green over PRU blue? can anyone help me with the correct paint colours (FS or BS) numbers Please.

Mirage%20F1AZ%200001_zps4xsterj9.jpg

TIA. Doug S

Edited by Doug
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According to IPMSSA, the latest paint scheme of the Mirage F1AZ is made with Dark Green, Dark Earth and Mirage Grey... Theoretically the same colors as used on the Impala !

But if Dark Green still exists in BS381c color chart, the two latter don't ! Dark Earth was a RAF color in WWII and Mirage Grey seems to be a specific South African color...

IPMSSA matches Dark Green with FS Dark Green (but there is several 'Dark Green' in Federal standard color chart...).

For the Dark Earth, no more informations...

For IPMSSA, Mirage Grey is very similar to RLM 75... which seems too light to me...

Hope that helps, but not sure... :unsure:

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The term "Mirage grey" is generally associated to the blue-grey introduced by the French Armee de l'Air on their Mirage F-1C. However I'm not convinced that this colour is the one used on the latest F-1AZ scheme, the SAAF colour looks a bit less blue and lighter

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South African Mirage F1AZs were initially camouflaged in colours to BS381C (topsides Deep Buff BS360 and Olive Drab BS298, undersides Light Admiralty Grey BS697). Source: article on SAAF aircraft and colours by LJ Vosloo in Scale Aircraft Modelling 3/3 Dec 1980 pp.103-123. I thought BS298 is the colour better known to UK modellers as RN Helo Olive Drab but, if so, Hannants seem to have dropped it from their range. At the same time SAAF Dakotas were using Olive Drab (as above), Dark Earth BS450 and PRU Blue BS636.

Not sure where that leaves us 35 years later but, if rpt if the SAAF is still using BS colours, the Olive Drab, Dark Earth and PRU Blue colours above would seem to be a possibility.

If "Mirage Grey" as quoted by eclipse is the same as what we at the time called (and may have officially been called) Bleu de Mirage, that was the upper surface colour used on French Mirage F.1s. It looks a bit like the colour on your photo but personally I would want evidence that such a colour had entered the SAAF stores inventory, especially as a. the aircraft were not even initially in this colour (see above) and b. the SAAF did persist with PRU Blue long after everyone else had dropped it.

If you must equate BS381C colours to FS595, Olive Drab, Dark Earth and PRU Blue equate to 34098, 30118 and 35337 respectively.

But SAAF colours are absolutely NOT my subject. Others likely to know more.

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Knowing the habits of Dassault, I'm not sure at all that SAAF Mirage F1s were initially painted with BS381 paints... According to what people from Dassault told me, they don't use nor FS nor BS, actually not any foreign color charts but their own paints.

For example, let's take the Mirage F1EJ :

BuYku1LIAAAQekn.jpg

source :http://fighters.forumactif.com/t71169-mirage-2000-grec-tanagra

The Mirage is painted in Asia Minor scheme as the F-5 next to it, painted in FS paints. Nevertheless the Mirage isn't painted with FS colors but with mate Celomer PU66 paints directly in factory, chosen for their resemblance with Asia Minor scheme FS colors !

But once in South Africa and after the embargo in 1977, I don't know...

The official name in France of the blue used on Mirage F1C/B is supposed to be... Celomer 6345-2617 also called 'Bleu de défense aérienne'

Edited by eclipse
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Knowing the habits of Dassault, I'm not sure at all that SAAF Mirage F1s were initially painted with BS381 paints... According to what people from Dassault told me, they don't use nor FS nor BS, actually not any foreign color charts but their own paints.

Knowing the habits of Dassault, I'd be inclined to agree with you. But that's what the article states, surprising though it may be. Maybe "matched to BS381" would have been more accurate. :shrug:

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In the same way the desert scheme of Mirage F1EDAs (and also Alpha Jets) used by the Qatari Emiri Air Force are the Dassault transcription of the RAF Desert Scheme during WWII in BS Mid Stone and Dark Earth (again... ! :banghead: ) with the Azure blue underbelly, already applied in the first qatari Hawker Hunters. ;)

12763.jpg

source: http://www.hawkerhunter.com/9722/

qa-78_1.jpg

source: http://www.dstorm.eu/pages/en/qatar/mirage.html

Edited by eclipse
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  • 5 years later...

Hi all @eclipse @Doug @Seahawk @Giorgio N

 

I realise it is an old thread but as I am building one now I thought I'd add this. I'm going with:

 

Colourcoats ACRN06 - Dark Slate Grey (BS381C-634)

Colourcoats ACRN07 - Ocean Grey

Colourcoats ACUS18 FS 30219 (Vietnam)

 

Martin

 

I've linked to my GB thread 

 

 

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1 hour ago, RidgeRunner said:

Hi all @eclipse @Doug @Seahawk @Giorgio N

 

I realise it is an old thread but as I am building one now I thought I'd add this. I'm going with:

 

Colourcoats ACRN06 - Dark Slate Grey (BS381C-634)

Colourcoats ACRN07 - Ocean Grey

Colourcoats ACUS18 FS 30219 (Vietnam)

 

Martin

 

I've linked to my GB thread 

 

 

 

Martin

I guess that your choice is the result of a comparison of those paints with pictures, in any case I'm surprised about the use of a paint meant to represent Dark Slate Grey. This is a greyish green, that IMHO looks pretty different from the colour used on the SAAF/Gabonese aircraft. This is a olive green while Dark Slate Grey has no olive tone

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I used a custom mix of Revell colors on mine, as usual

scaleworx propose Humbrol 29, 30, 230

YiWortk.jpg

but as on photos of the real plane, the colors depend very much on the lightning (and possible weathering status )

Vm1WySp.jpg

IcjWvvw.jpg

aTbZ0X5.jpg

more blue, less blue, more green, less brown... you can have it all! but always the same paint :D

 

 

 

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