Hornet133

The next film in the list was more from the same occasion and the date is given as May 30 1943 (which makes a lot more sense) and Bontarick Aerodrome in Algiers, Algeria. I think it is standard Olive Drab over Neutral Grey. By the way, it is an Lodestar transport, not a Ventura.

Oh that one, been known for ages. Good film, well recommended.

A56-5 carried the name 'Mischief' in small letters on the cowl as per attached link. You will have to click on the link as the system to 'attach from a web link' never works for me. As said apart from the name not hard to make up from available decals. A56-6 is not known to have carried a name so would be simpler. According to Scalemates one boxing of the Dora Wings 1/48 kit (No DW48034) has decals for A56-5 complete with nose art, but I suspect it is not released yet as it is not on the Dora Wings website or any sellers that I checked. http://www.adf-gallery.com.au/gallery/Republic-Lancer/A56_5_Pic?full=1

Ah yes..but have they done one of the airframes with side package guns ala B-25 and B-26.

Mark, I assume Buz will have sent you images to show you what 'Typhoon McGoon' looked like, but just in case I will attach some I had. They may interest someone else anyway. First off the nose art. I am surprised you did not find the 1st one as it has been in several books, being an official USAAF photo. I am not sure of the source for the 2nd, it looks like an official photo but maybe not. This IS the same airframe but interestingly the Nose # has been repainted between the two photos, and the name added. Buz said it had a White tail, that may be correct if the airframe was still in existence after Sep 1943 (Buz would know but I don't have that information), but originally it did not. The 3rd photo is from movie film taken at Port Moresby in early 1943, and this still shows no White tail. Maybe Buz was thinking of it's replacement when he said White tail as there was a 'Typhoon McGoon II' as per the fourth photo. Steve Mackenzie

the IWM description for the photo says 'Armourers wheeling one 500-lb and two 250-lb GP bombs into position for loading onto a Supermarine Spitfire Mk IX of No. 132 Squadron RAF at B11/Longues, Normandy' That looks correct, the outer ones looks like a 250 Lb bomb not 250 Kg. Whether it could have a drop tank on the centre line - yes often they did, depends on how close the target was. If longer range they needed a drop tank.

Well Tony only said 'Beaufighters' and did not specify which ones... Night Fighter Beaus in Egypt and Tunisia were often in Dark Earth and Midstone with Black under surfaces. So yes technically.

You are correct, the video is wrong AFAIK

There is no Osprey Australian Aces Aircraft Canadian Aces Aircraft New Zealand Aces Aircraft South African Aces Aircraft But they have wierd things such as Bulgarian and Slovak Aces. Makes you wonder where there priorities lie.

AZ brought the KP brand name only (which was as famous in Eastern Europe as Airfix is in the UK) but did not buy the old 70s-90s moulds. They have since issued a number of brand new moulds under the KP label which have no connection to any other manufacturer. AZ uses the KP brand name for standard, long term, steel moulds. Their short run items are issued under the AZ label. The OLD KP brand moulds (which AZ does not have) are now issued under labels such as SMER and Mistercraft.

Max Headroom - if these airframes are in the process of being transferred to the French as suggested, it is probably just an inventory reference applied by the RSU (whatever) where they appear to be stored.

Easy one, Richard Alexander (eventually 5 vics). Photo turns up on a regular basis. Attached under fair use provisions is the profile of this airframe from P.204 of the 52 FG history 'Spitfires & Yellow Tail Mustangs' (authors Tom Ivie and Paul Ludwig) Stackpole paperback edition. Great book, highly recommended.

Two different factories, 2 slightly different versions of the same general pattern. FY-F has what was intended as the 'official' pattern, but when somebody made up the diagrams at CBAF that were followed they made it slightly different. Just follow whatever it shows on photos of the particular airframe you wish to model.

I'm late replying as I had other things to attend to. Basically I found the same info as Sidhuey and Buz. FR295 was a 112 Sqn airframe in Mar 1943. Listed in Robin Brown's 'Shark Squadron' as such but no code listed (from mid 1943 odd codes are listed for every airframe as they started to list them in the 112 Sqn ORB). As said above NO airframe with the code GA-G for the rest of the war). I wonder what was the source for the GA-G identity. I could not locate a photo of any such airframe in any source that I checked, trying to find a photo to check on the colour scheme. If you want to do that airframe you can only assume that it would be in the desert scheme going from the date lost in absence of a photo. Whatever the source was it completely screwed up the dates on both FR295 (written off long before the claimed Oct 1943) and Frank Schaaf's OK-Diamond FR242. This airframe WAS used by Frank as OK-Diamond from 26/9 to 19/12/42, but it was sent by 450 Sqn to 53 RSU in Dec 1942. It did come back to 450 Sqn 25/4/43 to 21/8/43 but at that stage it was coded OK-Z. Thus their claim of it being OK-Diamond in July 1943 is another mistake. Corsairfoxfouruncle - one important thing to watch is that Sword have messed up the serials on the decal sheet. While the profiles correctly list the serials of these 2 airframes as FR295 and FR242, the DECALS have them printed incorrectly as RF295 and RF242. Thus they will have to be cut apart and re-arranged in the correct order for the model. If Sword had done a double boxing of the later long fuselage P-40K kit I would have acquired that also to use for long fuselage P-40K and later P-40M & P-40N-1 types (with the addition of the air intake grill on the forward nose). As it was it was a little bit expensive for a single kit (as it was sold at the same price as the double short tail boxing). They have missed the market now with the superior SH kits being available. Steve Mackenzie

BS_w - thanks, I did notice that wire on one photo that I looked at, and assumed that it would be IFF similar to a Spitfire (different attachment point of course), as something I had not seen before. Another case of something that is there but very hard to see in photos. Steve Mackenzie

P-40E, P-40F, short fuselage P-40K, some long fuselage P-40K and even a few of 3 Sqn RAAF P-40Ls in photos show 'fin to both wing tips and fin to spine'. The wires are usually VERY hard to see, but they are there. If the airframe has an aerial mast, the wires run only from it to the vertical fin tip (different radio fit). Many long fuselage P-40Ks used by 450 Sqn had the mast, but others did not, in even the same photo (things were being changed over). Most (but not all of the 3 RAAF P-40Ls have a mast, but there are a few exceptions in photos). So once again changeover period. All P-40M and Ns that I have seen have the mast. Basically look for an aerial mast. If there isn't one then the radio wires will run to a connector near both wing tips and also fin to spine. Steve Mackenzie

Very interesting, there are a few that look to be still in desert colours that late (3 RAAF moved to Cutella in Jan 44 and the others about the same time). The 3 Sqn RAAF airframe seen (CV-L) is a Mk.IIa (P-40L) version, not a Mk.III (no intake above the nose). CV-L would be FS420 belonging to Jack Doyle who was with 3 RAAF at that stage (he always had L as his personal airframe, using FS420 Oct 1943 to April 1944) keeping that tradition when he moved to 450 Sqn as C.O where he flew several airframes coded OK-L. One 260 Sqn airframe HS-J looks to have 2 long rows of mission markings under the cockpit, with possibly a name above them. The bomb that you see being loaded is a 1000 lb one, bigger than the 500 Lb ones. The long tail Mk.IIIs could carry that much (so could the Mk.IIa variant). The later MkIVs could carry as much as 2000 lb in the FX series airframes, 1500 lbs with the earlier FT series. Steve Mackenzie

Well that blew away the theory that they never released anything...

All kittyhawks with a 2 tone upper surface built against the RAF contract (the exception is the P-40Ns) came from the factory in 'B' pattern. A very very small number received local repaints where they had 'A' pattern applied. Unless you have very clear photographic proof of an 'A' pattern ignore any drawings that show a non 'B' pattern scheme as they are probably wrong. Steve Mackenzie

I'm aghast at the thought of the Hs-126 attempting to emulate a dive bombing attack 😃

I can't help re the code letter on FX820. Re the Dark Earth and US Olive Drab colour scheme, all P-40Ns for the RAF were delivered in the standard scheme of Olive Drab upper and Neutral Grey lower surfaces. Standard procedure was for the RAF to apply a disruptive pattern of RAF Dark Earth to the upper surfaces to give an approximation of the RAF Temperate scheme. Steve Mackenzie

Actually there were 2 Hurricanes converted to twin seaters by 350th FG. Only one of them was included in the DK Decal sheet however.

As they have Su-25s (and yes photos and film of those HAVE appeared), I very much doubt that the N.Koreans bothered to acquire the inferior Q-5 (A-5).

Quote 'On P40N-1, the wing had provision for six guns. Six were delivered but four mounted only' Make that with some units had only 4 mounted. All RAF and RAAF N-1 airframes that I have seen used 6 wing guns. Most USAAF units reduced the armament to 4 guns BUT for instance 80 FG in Burma had 6 guns mounted on their N-1 machines.

What were the colours of the Aéroclub de Syrie et du Liban. Likely to be still in it's original colour.