Ivor Ramsden

The door was hinged at its forward edge on all Ju52s and Revell have got it right, The door was removed for paratroop operations.

Yes, with pleasure. can you PM me an email address please?

One of the B-17Es from the first raid, 41-9043 "Peggy D", was still in use by the 381st BG in 1945. Renamed "Little Rock-ette" and stripped of paint she was used as a hack and general transport. There are several photos online. In April 1945 she had the sad task of flying back to Ridgewell the bodies of 31 USAAF men, mostly groundcrew, who were killed when another B-17 which was taking them to Northern Ireland on leave crashed on the Isle of Man.

The Rug Rat kit was issued in Manx Airlines livery and the BA Chathsm Dockyard livery. An approach to Aircraft in Miniature Ltd might be worthwhile. If not, I might be able to help. PM inbound.

That's a question that I can't answer, sorry, but I'm sure somebody will know.

I've recently handled a cap and its surround from a crashed MkII. I assume the MkIX is the same. Both parts are made of bright stainless steel and both had faint traces of topside camouflage paint still in place. The cap has 3 pins. I don't use a photo hosting service but I'll gladly email a photo to anyone who PMs me with an address.

We've got a couple of photos of G-AALG in the museum collection which show that it had slots. I can't see any modifications other than the headrest.

Tommy Rose flew BA Eagle G-ADID in the Isle of Man air races a few weeks before this so maybe it's safe to assume this was the aircraft used in Devon. Alington's Dart Kitten was silver and red at the time of the 1938 IOM races but it's possible that it had been repainted after the 1937 season.

From the 541 Squadron ORB a Mk.X Spitfire, MD193 was first used on operations on 11th May 1944. The ORB lists them all as "Spitfire XI" but it also lists the serials. The very short time that the aircraft had been in service at the time the photo was taken is reflected in the immaculate appearance of this one. First ops were MD191: 20th May MD193: 11th May MD195: 20th May MD197: 24th May MD199: 24th May All were in use throughout June. Sqn Ldr Saffery, the originator of the photograph, flew MD193 on 5th June.

Silver overall.

It might be worth visiting him again with a bottle of his favourite throat lubricant. Ask him if he's got his log book or a photo album. Do you know any other RAF veterans from the 50s or 60s? If you could get one to accompany you they would quickly begin reminiscing and you might be astonished at the stories that come out. All of these have worked for me!

That's on Ebay.com in the USA in case any Brits are looking for it. It looks like the Frog mould.

How did I miss seeing that it had been released? Ordered!

K6184 would have had the early, more sloping, design of cockpit glazing.

In the museum stores we've got a piece of skinning from B-17G 43-38856 which is painted in a very faded OD which is almost an orange colour and very similar to that in the photo. I am certain that the colour of the anti-glare panel on "A bit o'lace" is faded OD.

Good memory! Bellona MV Data No.15 has a front and side view of the K6 GS. It's not much but it's a start. I built one waaaay back in the 70s. PM me your email address and I'll send a copy.

Lovely job.

Seahawk is spot on with his identification and location. An original print of this photo is in our museum archives and shows SR6?2 of 805 Squadron FAA when at Hal Far, Malta, in 1946. We couldn't narrow the serial down to an individual aircraft. I don't use a photo hosting site but I'll gladly email a better copy of the image than the one above to anybody if they pm me their email address.

Thanks for the heads up on the pylons, Dave. All the detail changes on the C-135s and 707s are a complete nightmare. I might not live long enough to build the EC-135C - it's way down the list.

Thanks Dave. The only reference I could find said that the tail span was increased with the CF-56s. I'm using a KC-135A kit but I've got a KC-135C in the stash so I'll have a look at the tail in that one and modify the -A parts.

I'm embarking on a Royal Air Force RC-135W build but despite much searching I haven't been able to confirm whether the type has the wider tail span of the CFM-56-engined KC-135s or the earlier narrow tail. Can anybody tell me?

They are Medium Sea Grey.

As there seems to be some doubt about the correct serial for this Halifax we might be able to clear it up. Do you have a name for any of the crew? The ORB gives a full crew list for each aircraft.

I'm a bit late spotting this thread but maybe I'm just in time to stop you having to make some fuel tanks. In my voluminous spares box I've got a pair of Airfix tanks which came from a long-since scrapped model. PM me your address and I'll get them off to you.

A bit more detail: the 88" rear springs are shorter than the 109 and they are mounted to the bottom of the main chassis rails, which is why there doesn't appear to be enough room to remove a scale 21 inches. As you've spotted, on the 109" the springs mount outboard of the rails. The photos above show this but the differences don't jump out at you. The outriggers which mount the front of the body tub are different, as are the cross-members. The rear axles are different. The casings on the 88" are very similar front and rear but the 109" has a Salisbury-design rear axle which is a much chunkier shape. The 88 fuel tank/s are under the cab (2 of them on military vehicles), but the tank is at the back on the 109" although military 109"s follow the twin tank design. There are lots of variations over time just to make it more fun. In 1/35 scale the Lightweight chassis is very similar to a standard 88" one with the exception of the rear cross-member which is of the flat-bottomed military type.