Please allow me to put my little input into this argument.
As far as is 'officially' known only the first consignment through USS Wasp (Operation Calendar) were roughly overpainted in blue as specified through a signal received on the ship just after leaving Gibraltar. This is clearly confirmed through an excellent set of photographs taken on the ship throughout the voyage from the loading of the Spitfires onto the carrier up to their launch. It should be noted that of the 47 Spitfires from this consignment only a handful remained serviceable within a week, mainly through enemy action but also due to inexperienced pilots (thus AOC Malta's famous signal to the War Office: "this is no place for beginners").
No such order seems to have been issued for Operation Bowery, that brought to Malta 64 Spitfires through USS Wasp and HMS Eagle on 9 May 1942. Photographs taken on the ship prior to the launch and after landing shows these Spitfires in two-tone camouflage. Going by eye-witness reports these were finished in 'yellow/brown on top with blue underneath'. My recent involvement in research for the making of a Channel 9 (Australia) documentary unearthed some interesting facts. Focus of the story was Flt Sgt 'Tony' Boyd, an Aussie who had been flying Hurricanes with No.185 Squadron at Hal Far at the time of Bowery, who was one of the first pilots of his squadron to be allocated a Spitfire. He flew it for the first time on the day of arrival (9 May), then operationally on the 10th scoring a Ju88 'probable'. Two sorties on 13 May proved fruitless; then on 14 May he flew a sortie in the morning shooting down a Bf 109G. He was shot down by a Macchi C.202 during a second sortie that day in the afternoon. Below is an eye witness account by Denis Barnham, CO No. 601 Squadron, of Boyd's crash:
From: "Against All Odds", Lex McAulay, Hutchinson Australia, 1989, page 87
No further comments at this stage.
RJC
