Search the Community

I was given a Dambuster book as a present, which had sleeves containing flight plans, logbooks etc. On looking at Guy Gibson's logbook, I made an interesting discovery. The last entry before the raid was regarding the dress rehearsal, that included flying over 'Colchester Reservoir'. Strange I thought, posted here with 3 PARA in 2000, retired from the Regiment in 2011 and stayed in Coly - I do not know of 'Colchester Reservoir'. I know Abberton Reservoir, which is 3Km away where I often take the kids, has a small nature reserve. http://www.essexwt.org.uk/reserves/abberton-reservoir So I bought the book , 'The Dambusters Raid', by John Sweetman. This described how the area was used to train the crews whilst the 'revolving depth charge' was developed and tested. The road 'dam' crossing the reservoir from Layer de le Haye was indeed the simulated target over those weeks. I now can imagine the noise of those Merlin engines at 60ft in the night, as waves of Lancaster MkIII (type 464) bombers practiced for what was to become the most audacious bombing raid of WWII. On looking further, I found that much of the testing for the 'Upkeep' device was carried out at Reculver, in Kent. Prior to our move to Coly, 3 PARA were based at Dover for 5 years, and I spent some time up on the North Kent coast carrying out various training activities. With a natural interest in all things aviation and military, (I was bought up in Lakenheath and school was in Mildenhall and then 25 years in the Army!) I knew the basics about the Dams Raid and 617 Sqn. But this grabbed my interest and I have some good reference material. I am normally a 'Jet' builder, but have decided to trace 617Sqns history with models. I have bought 3 x 1/72 Lancs, 1 x new Revell, 1 x old Airfix and 1 x new Airfix tools. The plan is to build them side by side, in flight to hang in my den (double garage!). I have also managed to get a Tamiya 1/72 Mosquito Mk VI, 1/72 Academy Mustang III, as flown post Dams raid for target marking. Looking forwards, I have then got a 1/72 Vulcan (I know, a fight!) which will be a B2 but in anti flash white, a Revell Tornado GR1, possibly converted to GR4 with the special 70 years markings. I am looking for a 1./72 Canberra B2 (difficult to find with the correct canopy) or a B6 - references for these in 617 Sqn markings seem rare, even on 617 websites etc. Now there have been various BI/BIII mods, also the BVII. My logic says the 3 BII (464s) cover it! Then there's the Lincoln - hmm, I take the only option is a conversion from a Lanc? Not original I know, plenty have done it, but with local connections and something different, I thought, 'why not'! Another project in the same vain: https://modelbrouwers.nl/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=40310 Clearly a long term project, but something different for me until the GBs that interest me kick in next year. So I have started, will post some pics. Any advice, direction, references, spare Canberra's etc welcome!

Building this as part of the Bomber Command sig in prep for the 70th anniversary events that are happening in May. AJ-Z was flown by SL Henry Maudslay and was part of the first wave sent to attack the Eder Dam. He attacked between 01.30 and 2am, having two failed attempts before dropping his upkeep. The bomb bounced over the damn exploding on the otherside which is believed to have damaged the aircraft. Sadly, on the return leg, their Lanc was shot down over Emmerich at 02.35 with the loss of all on board. This is my tribute to that crew. The plan.. Largely out of the box, there will be a few aftermarket replacements, namely the wheels and gun barrels which are not great in the Revell kit. I'm also using the mask set which I've come to like very much !! I'm also going to see if I can get the Falcon front turret (designed for the Airfix kit) to fit to improve the look of the nose area too unless anyone else has already tried and failed ???? Well documented is the issue with the dihedral on the wings being too low, so following a tip I've seen somewhere, the wings were assembled and the main gear bay spars inserted for strength. A slit in the lower wing was then made with the razor saw and a plastic shim added which 'forces' the wing into the correct dihedral... The unmodified wing (apologies for the poor pics, I've not got my stuff set up properly) The corrections to the starboard wing using 0.5mm plastic shim... Cheers, Neil

Im in with a late entry - have been building over a couple of weeks. V small for my eyes, but picked up cheap in Tokyo when I was working over at the Olympics... Box and part pics... Fairly straightforward, apparently some wrong bits on it, no decals for Skyflash, too many wheels for nose gear, will just use the 2, will remove the radar housing on the nose as building against the online refs also the Corgi collectable! Link to a nice 1/72 Airfix build... https://www.fightercontrol.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=124124

Hello all, Just finished this new tool Airfix Avro Lancaster B.III last night. I did it as ED927, AJ-E, which was lost near Haldern in Germany before hitting its target, no survivors. I quite liked this kit, even though it came with a warped nose on one fuselage half, which was corrected with some hot water. One thing I don't like though, are the wingtip lights and windows on top of the fuselage, Airfix should have done those in clear plastic. Top colours are Humbrol 29 and 163, bottom is a 50/50 mix of Tamiya XF-1 Flat Black and XF-17 Sea Blue. The exhaust streaks were done with pastels. I painted the Upkeep mine in some rusty red color (Revell 83), because from what I've read about it, most were still in their red oxyde primer when they were used. There might be many errors on it, but I don't claim to be an expert on Lancaster, and I mostly just followed the instructions. Thanks for looking, and I hope you like it. Pete

Well I thought I would kill 2 birds with one stone and enter my Tamiya Mossie, as I did with the Academy Mustang! As part of my long term 617 Sqn project, I will build my Tamiya MK VI Mossie, using the Hannants Decals to model Leonard Cheshire's aircraft, NT202, used for target marking etc. The kit has a good reputation, I had a good bash at invasion stripes modelling Cheshire's Mustang. Lots on the go at the moment, luckily I can use the table tennis table in my garage to keep a track of it all (til the weather warms up!). So this may be a bit later starting, but here is my marker! Hannants decals: references very limited - rare photo - possibly the airframe: 'Two Mosquito FB.VIs were issued to 617 Squadron - NT202 and NT205. This next, rare, snapshot MAY be the other one ; it shows three NCO's of 627 Squadron ( who shared Woodhall Spa with 617 ) in front of 'Leonard Cheshire's Mosquito' ' IWM pic - noted as 617 Sqn?

Well I have taken a bit of a sabbatical from group builds as the subjects were not my usual area of fast, noisy pointy things. I however started on a 617 Sqn project, namely 3 x Lancs, with some other aircraft, including a Mustang III. Had a quick scan in prep for the upcoming F16, F111 and F15 GBs and thought.....I could get this Mustang III done! So, here it is, a bit out of my comfort zone, 1/72 and a prop powered a In The De Havilland Mosquito and then in a ?Borrowed? P-51B Mustang III (P-51B) Leonard Cheshire had pioneered a new method of marking enemy targets, flying in at a very low level in the face of strong defences. In four years of fighting against the bitterest opposition he maintained a standard of outstanding personal achievement, his successful operations being the result of careful planning, brilliant execution and supreme contempt for danger - for example, on one occasion he flew his P-51 Mustang in slow figures of 8 above a target obscured by low cloud, to act as a bomb-aiming mark for his squadron. Cheshire displayed the courage and determination of an exceptional leader. Group Captain Geoffrey Leonard Cheshire, Baron Cheshire, VC, OM, DSO and Two Bars, DFC (7 September 1917 ? 31 July 1992) was a highly decorated British RAF pilot during the Second World War. Among the honours Cheshire received as a bomber pilot is the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. After the war, he became a charity worker, setting up the Leonard Cheshire Disability as well as other philanthropic organisations. Cheshire was, in his day, both the youngest Group Captain in the service and, following his VC, the most decorated. His notable wartime record makes his subsequent career all the more remarkable. Kit: Decals: References: Now any advice appreciated - what weapons should I mount, is the spinner sky or white?