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This is an early Blenheim Mk.1, L1525, of 3 Radio Servicing Section 72 Wing at RAF Ouston, Northumberland in October 1940. The airfield was not officially opened until March 1941, but 3 RSS moved in far earlier and flew off the grass areas from 13th October 1940. L1525 didn't last long, and crashed on take-off from RAF Horsham St.Faith (now Norwich Airport) on 24th October 1940, the three crew were injured but safe. L1525, 3 RSS 72 Wing, Ouston, October 1940 (20) by Philip Pain, on Flickr L1525, 3 RSS 72 Wing, Ouston, October 1940 (34) by Philip Pain, on Flickr L1525, 3 RSS 72 Wing, Ouston, October 1940 (36) by Philip Pain, on Flickr L1525, 3 RSS 72 Wing, Ouston, October 1940 (42) by Philip Pain, on Flickr L1525, 3 RSS 72 Wing, Ouston, October 1940 (43) by Philip Pain, on Flickr L1525, 3 RSS 72 Wing, Ouston, October 1940 (50) by Philip Pain, on Flickr L1525, 3 RSS 72 Wing, Ouston, October 1940 (53) by Philip Pain, on Flickr L1525, 3 RSS 72 Wing, Ouston, October 1940 (58) by Philip Pain, on Flickr So what was L1525 doing down in Norfolk? This is what got me intrigued. There was little clue in its unit "3 RSS", nor in it reporting to 72 (Signals) Wing which was based at nearby Hallington Hall in Northumberland. But digging further revealed that 72 Wing was part of 60 Group, which is when it got interesting. RAF's 60 Group were entirely responsible for the construction, maintenance, and operation of the 'Chain Home' radar system thoughout the War, and 72 Wing was responsible for all the radar installations from the Firth of Forth right down to Suffolk, including on the West coast and the Isle of Man. So L1525 was actually a radar calibration aircraft and "3 RSS" was a spoof designation. There is no known photo or description of L1525, so I have drawn heavily on Michael Bowyer's two books on Bombing and Fighting Colours, Michael being a meticulous wartime spotter. My colour scheme for L1525 is consistent with the many Blenheims that he saw during the 1940 period of rapidly changing and inconsistent changes to official markings. Basically L1525 retains its pre-War top colours complete with the pre-War practice of displaying the serial on the rudder. As an 'odd' serial number it has the type B camouflage pattern. It was initially used by the makers Bristol for trials work, before joining 601 Squadron at Northolt, and this was a fighter unit, although there is no record of L1525 having had the extra gun pack of the Blenheim 1F fighter version. This was during the Battle of Britain period so L1525 would have had its undersides repainted in the 'half black / half white' recognition scheme. But that scheme was soon dispensed with, and 'sky' (duck egg green) undersides were mandated instead. At this time colours would be mixed locally and there was much confusion regarding what 'duck egg green' was supposed to look like, with local shades varying from blue to green. Bowyer describes the previous straight demarcation line frequently being overpainted in duck egg green with a wavy pattern. Also control surfaces were usually to be painted at Maintenance Units so as not to affect the delicate balance of the controls. With a 'local' paint job they would be left in their previous half black / half white colours. Bowyer describes how the supposedly plain underside scheme would frequently have prominent roundels added, where the aircraft was at risk from 'friendly fire'. In general the pre-War bright roundels were retained, but modified locally to add yellow rings, plus a tail flash on the previously bare fin. These locally applied markings rarely conformed to official standards. Finally, L1525 would have carried code letters with 601 Squadron, and these have been crudely painted over with fresher paint. I have assumed that L1525 would have retained its armament, given that the enemy was still very active in British skies, and its crash at Norwich confirms that the gun turret was occupied with a third crew member. My next one is the Airfix 1/72 Blenheim IV, also at RAF Ouston - another challenge colour wise!