Antti_K

Hello Mark! Years ago I had the opportunity to sit in a Finnish Gnat. The seat looked like the one in John's photograph. It had a tan brown leather covered backrest (almost like in Martin Baker Mk. 1C) and bright medium blue seat harness. The rescue pack in seat pan was bright yellow. According to the colour photographs of GN-107 the primary seat firing handle was dark yellow. In some Finnish Air Force Gnats these could also be red. Have you seen the book "Ilmavoimat, Nordic Airpower #4? It has 12 great colour photos of Finnish Gnats. Best Regards, Antti

Hello Bill! At least in Airfix B.2 one "finger" is missing and there are none on the lower surfaces. Maybe the same goes for B(I).8... Best regards, Antti

Hello Bjorn! Thank you for this review! It is interesting to see that a Chinese company produces a kit of a subject that is mostly known in Scandinavia. Looking at the pictures my eye spotted the intake "recesses". They seem to be badly out of shape for J32B or E. They are far too short and curve too heavily downward. On the other hand surface detailing looks quite accurate; unlike in Tarangus kit. I build a Tarangus A32A and converted it to an early J32E. I had to scratch build the Petrus which was easy but the resin/PE "remsfällare" was tough one... Here is my "Störlansen": http://www.pienoismallit.net/galleria/malli_12281/ Best Regards, Antti

Hello Procopius! I have couple of books about Ta-152. The older one (by Dietmar Harmann) gives some information: "The Stabsschwarm suffered it's first loss at Neustadt-Glewe. During the afternoon of 15 April 1945 several British Tempests strafed rail installations at Ludwigslust. Four Ta-152s took off to intercept. The Ta-152 H of Obfw. Sepp Sattler was lost before combat was joined for reasons unknown. The remaining Ta-152s engaged the Tempests of No.486 Squadron at low level. Obfw. Willi Reschke positioned his "White 1" behind the Tempest being flown by Lt. Mitchell and damaged it's tail assembly with his first burst. Thus warned the Tempest pilot now at low level tried to escape the Ta-152's field of fire by turning even tighter. While this posed no problem for the Ta-152 H the Tempest stalled and crashed in a nearby wooded area." Was Sattler shot down or what caused his crash? The book doesn't tell. Neither it tells any particulars of Sattler's plane. Another piece of information: "According to information provided by Herr Mehling then a Leutnant in Stab JG 11 all appeared to have been test aircraft since no two were alike." "During it's last transfer to Leck the unit was engaged by Spitfires resulting the loss of two Ta-152H." It is possible that these pre-production aircraft came from Teststelle Rechlin and were those intended for service with Jagdstaffel Roggentin. The fates of W.Nrs 150 006 (CW+CF), 150 008 (CW+CH), 150 009 (CW+CI) and 150 011 (CW+CK) is unknown. It is possible that two shot down examples are in this list. I couldn't find a single photograph on any of these planes but I can have a closer look. Best Regards, Antti

Hello all! There is one photograph of BW-381 in the book "Finnish Fighter Colours 1935-1945" (Stenman & Holda, 2014). Some observations about the plane that might help: -the photo is probably taken using orthochromatic film because yellow appears very dark and middle blue quite light -the photo is taken from the starboard side rear quarter during summertime -the plane has a DF loop antenna under the rear glazing -the tubular support framework under the rear glazing is aluminium coloured -the plane carries factory applied "War Paint" and Finnish style serial number (BW-381) -the nationality markings are white and blue (not light grey and blue) -when comparing to other photos the under surface looks like aluminium coloured although very faded -the "Farting Elk" emblem is clearly visible -the cockpit framing is camouflaged -it looks like the plane doesn't have the lynx emblem on the nose -the plane has a large Finnish style tail wheel I also stated in an earlier post that the green matches quite nicely with Humbrol 117. Sorry . I t is Humbrol 86 that I was thinking about. Best Regards, Antti

Hello all! It is very interesting what Troy said about "kenttävihreä" (olive green) and FAA Dark Slate Grey. I looked at my British Aviation Colours of World War Two book's colour chart and it certainly looks a very good match. A couple of years ago a DC-2 airliner was restored here in Finland in it's wartime colours (same as in Brewsters). The paints were mixed by using a model airplane as a "colour master". The model was carved from wood at the front line by a veteran fighter pilot during his spare time. He painted his model using real aircraft paints. Insert the words Hanssin Jukka (the name of the DC-2) in Google and have a look at yourself. To my eye this new "kenttävihreä" looks too greyish. The actual samples I have seen are darker and more green in hue. I have a new book (published in 2014) by Kari Stenman and Karoliina Holda called Finnish Fighter Colours 1939-1945. It has a hole chapter about Brewster. This is the very first study which states that there is no photographic evidence about the the light grey under surface colour. It was specified for Brewster but probably never used as Brewster was an all metal aircraft and the light grey was intended for wooden surfaces. I also noticed the colour list Troy posted. It looks like it is from an earlier book by Mr. Stenman and Mr. Keskinen called "Sotamaalaus - Warpaint". The book was published in 2003. Merkkiväri means indeed marking colour. Two different yellows, red and white are mentioned in the book mentioned above. Also orange was used; for example the number 9 on the fin of captain Wind's Brewster was orange (See Troy's posting). Lifecolor produced together with Finnish Aviation Museum a set of acrylic paints for wartime Finnish planes. I use them as a master when mixing enamels... The set contains yellow, olive green, black, light blue, orange and light grey. Terveisin, Antti

Hello all! As said these planes came in overall silver or aluminium paint. At first camouflage colours (olive green/black) were applied to top surfaces. Note that cockpit frames and under surfaces were left aluminium which faded to a light grey. Note also the original aluminium colour around the registration codes in the rear fuselage. The registration codes were painted in six positions using a Swedish font. The yellow "Eastern Front" colour was applied around the rear fuselage and under the wing tips. Later the cowling was also painted yellow. During the final months of the war an order was given to paint over the upper part of the cowling with camouflage colours. Planes that were completely overhauled received new paint work. Olive green and black were again used for the upper surfaces but under surfaces were painted with "DN -väri" (RLM 65 or close equivalent). These planes had the registration codes re-painted using a Finnish font (two positions only). I saw a Brewster that was salvaged from a lake in Russia and transported back in Finland. The museum staff told me that the colours started to change considerably when the plane was brought inside the museum and started to react with dry air. During those "early days" Humbrol 117 looked a close match for the green. The yellow was more pale than Humbrol 24. Maybe Humbrol 69. Eastern front yellow was either Finnish Dicco Nr. 6 or German(?) Unica which were very close to RLM 04. By the end of 1942 BW-388, 363, 386, 377, 371, 366, 392, 379, 354, 374 and 365 had received the light blue under surface paint. During 1943 BW-367, 356, 364, 387, 375, 357, 384, 361 and 353 received DN -väri. During 1944 BW-368, 373, 384, 361 and 353 received DN -väri. It seems that Väinö Pokela's plane BW-381 had the original aluminium under surfaces. My grandfather flew Brewsters in Turku when they firstly arrived from Trollhättan (Sweden). At that time the planes didn't have the blue Finnish swastika but a white disc only. It was important that no foreign military aircraft flew over the territory of neutral Sweden. So nationality markings were over painted with removable white paint. Same goes by the way for Hurricanes and Lysanders. Best Regards, Antti

Hello RMP2! Alley Cat makes resin air intakes for Spey powered Phantom. You have to order these direct from the manufacturer. If only I knew this when I was building my FG.1! Aires makes jet pipes for Spey engine. They are pretty good because they have detailed inner surface. I think the best result can be achieved by using the Aires pipes with kit's original exhaust parts because they have better shape than Aires parts. The resin auxiliary air intakes doesn't look convincing when compared to photographs of the real thing so I scratch built mine. I would also use the resin wheels instead of Hasegawa white metal/"rubber" offerings. Here is my FG.1: http://www.pienoismallit.net/galleria/malli_13401/ Best Regards, Antti

Hello Dave! If you change your mind here is a suggestion for SU-24M. A Russian plane from 67. BAP that was based at Siverski near St. Petersburg. And why is this "interesting" or "battle weary"? Photos of these planes and their ordnance appeared in western media during the Russia/ Georgia conflict. Hand painted sentences decorated the 500 kg free fall bombs. According to the media this was water tight proof about the barbaric behavior of the Russians. Not a single journalist cared to translate what was actually painted on the bombs; things like "Just for you my love" or "Greetings from Siverski!" And the best part: during the conflict 67. BAP had their annual bombing exercise at Ushuluk weapons range in Astrakhan. The photos were loaded to the Internet by 67. BAP ground crew... The planes of this unit are good subjects to a modeller because you can use every trick in the book when weathering. Here is mine: http://www.pienoismallit.net/galleria/malli_11714/ MiG-25 then. I would build the "red 31" which was flown to Japan by colonel Belenko. Best Regards, Antti

Hello Jay! The Draken certainly looks like "Bertil" in the picture; it has a long jet pipe and a tube in the fin's leading edge. If we think "foreign visitors in neutral countries" then we can also build a model of a RAF Canberra B.2 which visited Sweden in the late 1950s. The pilot was Sir Ralph Cochrane. The plane was painted in MSG/Black scheme and the finish was high gloss. Best Regards, Antti

Hello all! I have used this technique: First find a proper photo showing the seat belts. Then measure the seat in the kit to find out exact measurements. Scale up the measurements and draw the seat belts / harness using crayons and a marker pen. Use a photocopier and scale down to correct size. Here you can find seat belts that I made for my Canberra's Mk 1C seat. Sorry about the picture quality but I hope you see the idea http://www.pienoismallit.net/profiilit/1498/kuvat/kuvapankki/kuva_121439/ I am currently drawing the seat belts for a Gloster Javelin FAW.9. Best Regards, Antti

Hello all, in Sweden the Tp 52 (T.11) was used as a high flying SIGINT platform. Two B.2s were converted to the T.11 standard by English Electric. A further extensive modification was carried out in Sweden before operational flights began. The nose radome contained directional radar receiver antennas. Related avionics and control boxes were assembled in the cockpit beside the pilot and in front of the back seaters. Actually in Sweden the navigators station was removed and filled with SIGINT equipment instead and the navigator sat on the starboard side using a Decca Navigator. The SIGINT operator from FRA (The Defence Radio Establishment) sat on the port ejection seat. A "storage shelf" was built into the bomb bay and filled with receivers and recorders. No further modifications were made to the bomb bay structure itself. Best Regards, Antti

Hello Woody! I have the Maintenance Manual for Canberra Tp 52 (Swedish T.11). These planes had "normal" B.2 bomb bays. The book has quite good drawings but no photos. If you think these will help, send me a PM and I will send some scans for you. IPMS UK Canberra SIG site has lots of good photos. It was a great source of reference material when I build my Tp 52. Best Regards, Antti

Hello all! The engines are also too "thin". They should be wider and especially the cowling should be higher above wing. In DHC-6 srs. 300 the cowling line should raise behind the propeller. In the kit the cowling top is more or less flat. I used to fly a Twin Otter that was owned by British Geological Survey but remained in Finnish register until it was sold to Canada. A month ago the plane was conducting survey missions on the Kenyan coast. An interesting subject for a modeller don't you think Best Regards, Antti

Hello Tony and Dennis! I just bought the new Javelin book from Pen & Sword Publications. There is one photo of "J" (XH793) in the book showing these tanks quite nicely. Best Regards, Antti

Indeed Mike. Your posting takes a step further; into "applied science" if you allow the expression. As Ullmann points out in more than one article the shades are known but the confusion usually starts with the RLM numbers. He also says that these late war colours were developed constantly during the final months. Even poor stirring caused remarkable variations. After reading hundreds and hundreds of pages on the subject I'm still not 100 % convinced that RLM 82 is the bright green and RLM 83 the olive green. But that's only me . The airplane handbook for Do-335 gives the colours as 81 Dunkelgrun and 82 dunkelgrun. I have an old "Scale Models" magazine (July 1975) showing two colour photos about the real thing (Do-335) in the Smithsonian collection. At that time the plane still carried it's original German paint. Surprise, surprise, the bright green colour is very clearly visible following exactly those application orders given in "Flugzeughandbuch" for "Farbton 82". The other colour is dark brown. Best Regards, Antti

Hello Seawinder! Yes Sir, I confirm my earlier posting. I listed the details from different sources. Mainly from the following: The Official Monogram Painting Guide to German Aircraft 1935-1945 - Colour chips on page 37 showing RLM 82 as bright or dark olive green - Colour chips on page 59 showing RLM 83 as bright green Luftwaffe colours 1935-1945 (Ullmann) - Colour chip on separate colour chart shows RLM 82 as bright green and RLM 83 as dark olive green - An original factory camouflage drawing on page 268 defines RLM 82 as "Dunkel Grun" (Dark Green) - An original factory camouflage drawing on page 270 defines RLM 82 as "Licht Grun" (Light Green) Luftwaffe camouflage and markings 1933-1945 vol. 1 (Merrick & Kiroff) - An original factory camouflage drawing for Ta-152 C gives colours 81, 82 and 76 without colour names - A photograph on page 103 showing a factory fresh FW-190 D-9 wings on a railway car. The caption says that the darker colour is either 81 or 83 - Official colour chips were issued for RLM 81, 82, 83 and 76 (page 123) Ullmann and Merrick both state that RLM 81, 82 and 83 match very closely to earlier shades of RLM 61, 62 and 64 respectively. The remaining colour samples (81, 82 and 83) have also been compared to a Luftwaffe paint chart for building and ground camouflage. RLM 81 is allmost an exact match to "Olivbraun", RLM 82 to "Dunkel Grun" and RLM 83 to "Olivgrun". Therefore it can be said that RLM 81 is RAL 8019, RLM 82 is RAL 6008 and RLM 83 is RAL 6002. RAL 6008 is a very close match to RLM 82 chip in the Monogram book. RAL 6003 is quite good match to RLM 83 chips in the Monogram book. It seems that model paint manufactures try to match their RLM 81/82/83 products with these RAL shades.I gues this forms the basis for "current practice" to some extent. Hitchcock was able to study actual paint on real aircraft at the Smithsonian in the 1970's. So if you want to match your model colours with those observed you need the Monogram book. There are no simple answer to questions concerning late war Luftwaffe colours. You have to read and study and study even more to get even some broad guidelines. I hope this helps, even a little Best Regards, Antti

Hello Charlie and Mike! This is exactly what I thought at first. It seems that at least some modellers here consider it as reliable. It is possible that the paint charts has been carefully checked against the original samples during production as stated. We have one Hurricane left here in Finland whose rudder still carries the original British paint (Dark Green/Dark Earth). The dark green has faded too much so no real comparisons can be made. Dark Earth looks pretty good. Same can be said about the interior colour (Grey Green). It seems that with age this colour turns toward grey. The rubbed down areas however show a more greenish paint. We will keep asking around and making comparisons whenever we may have the chance Mike: I think I "must" build a new PR.XIX (the fifth) just to try out paints I will mix according to the colour chart... Best Regards, Antti

Hello Solowing! In the late "Doras" the bright green was commonly used. Ullmann calls this colour RLM 83 and Hitchcock in his books either RLM 82 or RLM 83. The dark olive green RLM 82 can look quite "bright" when a thin coat was applied (for example the mottling in the fin). Hitchcock, Merrick and Ullmann also state that during the last months of the war RLM 81 wasn't used on "Doras" but replaced with the darker RLM 82. At that time the wing under surface was only partly painted with RLM 76 or even RLM 66. The majority of the under surface was left unpainted. Ailerons and flaps could have been either reddish brown (Hitchcock, Merrick, Kiroff) or RLM 76. This information should be called like "General Knowledge". When modelling a certain plane (like Barkhorn's), try to find out as many photos as possible and then consider the aforementioned information. Best Regards, Antti

Thank you Mike I built an Airfix Spitfire PR.XIX in 1/48 scale. I chose to model PS890 as she was in RAF Seletar just before withdrawal. I used Humbrol MSG and PRU Blue. There is a colour photograph of PS854 in an old Aeroplane Monthly magazine. In the picture the MSG looks far more blueish than from Humbrol tin. Now I know why... Best Regards, Antti

Hello Jay! This looks really good! The interior of the wing and flaps is spot on. Nice detailing indeed. I was fortunate enough to "look after" a Vampire T.55 (ex. Swiss Air Force, now in Swedish markings) a couple of years ago. I have walk around photos as well as detail shots. Let me know if you need photos. Best Regards, Antti

Thank you Graham, Steve and Dennis It seems that this was even a better purchase than I thought. Lucky me. It also seems that some serious paint mixing is taking place in the near future: Humbroll, PRU Blue, more green...you know. Best Regards, Antti

Hello all! I just bought an interesting book called "British Aviation Colours of World War Two". The book is as good as new although I found it in a second-hand bookshop for 14 Euros. Now I am asking all the experts (that means you) to tell how reliable the book's colour chart is? At least the colours "look" quite good to my eye. Best Regards, Antti

Hello all! An interesting MiG-23 poster on previous page. The poster however has nothing to do with France. Rissala Air Base is located near the city of Kuopio in Finland. In the text Kuopio was spelled Kouppio which of course is wrong. The first Soviet squadron exchange visit to Rissala took place in early August 1974 with five MiG-21BIS fighters from Kubinka AB. The second visit with six MiG-23ML (not MLA as mentioned above) took place between 1st and 4th of August 1978. The very first public appearance of MiG-29 in the west also took place in Kuopio when six planes arrived for a visit on July 1st 1986. What I didn't understand in the text above was that the MiG-29s had something to do with Cubans when they visited Finland?? They didn't. Finland was looking for a new fighter type to replace Mig-21 and SAAB J35 and the Soviets saw an opportunity for a fast deal...Nothing came of it. The Finnish Air Force yearbook from 1998 has some high quality colour pictures of these visits. Best Regards, Antti

Hello Plasticsurgeon, Meteor NF.13 was the tropicalized version of NF.11 wasn't it? Intended for use in the Middle East and in the Far East. At least some navigation equipment was removed because these systems would be out of coverage in ME and FE. One example was Gee. If these strips are Rebecca aerials then they would be also useless outside Europe. These strips are clearly visible in many NF.11 photos. Best Regards, Antti