p-26luvr Posted June 29, 2013 Share Posted June 29, 2013 I purchased one of the Glencoe models Curtiss Condor biplane models today, &, in a google search saw that the RAF had purchased 3 of the real planes. Can anyone point me in the direction of the correct colors & markings for these planes, & possibly a picture or 2 ?. THANKS in advance for any help. Carl T 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Test Graham Posted June 29, 2013 Share Posted June 29, 2013 That's an interesting story - there's no mention of this in either Putnam's Curtiss aircraft or Aircraft of the RAF, nor Air Britain'sThe K File.. What is the source? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scorpiomikey Posted June 29, 2013 Share Posted June 29, 2013 RAF had them, never used them, they went directly to the scrappers. (No 30 Maintenance Unit) before that they were International Air Freight Croydon. Would have stayed in their colours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Aero Posted June 29, 2013 Share Posted June 29, 2013 RAF serials were issued against each civil reg but were probably never carried. (Air impressments log Vol 1) They were transported to 30MU ie not flown. They were probably still in the Eastern Air Transport colours when used by International Air Freight Ltd. Sources A.J.Jackson British Civil Aircraft Vol 2 (Vol 1 old series), Air Britain Impressments log Vol 1. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Test Graham Posted June 30, 2013 Share Posted June 30, 2013 My apologies to Peter M.Bowers: not only a mention but registrations given as G-AEWE, D, F, ZE. Jackson has a photo of G-AEWE and quotes RAF serials as P2573, 5 ,6 ,4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted June 30, 2013 Share Posted June 30, 2013 RAF had them, never used them, they went directly to the scrappers. (No 30 Maintenance Unit) before that they were International Air Freight Croydon. Would have stayed in their colours.[/size] Pity that, a Condor in TLS maybe with yellow undersides, (used as a radio/navigation trainer) would look just great imho. It'd make a super whiff. Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scorpiomikey Posted June 30, 2013 Share Posted June 30, 2013 I did find a b/w photo of one in what appears to be black fuselage with yellow wings/writing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p-26luvr Posted July 5, 2013 Author Share Posted July 5, 2013 Thanks to you all for your input. I guess my next choice is US Navy/Marines for military markings. Carl T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted July 5, 2013 Share Posted July 5, 2013 (edited) A bit of googling around shows only one of the British registered aircraft as being scrapped. Tapping in Curtiss conder raf in google images brings up a model of G-AEWF as having a red fuselage with silver doped wings. There is also a picture of G-AEWE that shows up with a dark fuselage & light wings, could be scorpiomikey's one, not sure but also found a painting showing G-AEWE with the same red/silver colours as G-AEWF. I still reckon that Dark Green/ Dark Earth/ Trainer Yellow would look just the ducks guts. Steve. Edited July 5, 2013 by stevehnz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilneBay Posted July 5, 2013 Share Posted July 5, 2013 A bit of googling around shows only one of the British registered aircraft as being scrapped. Tapping in Curtiss conder raf in google images brings up a model of G-AEWF as having a red fuselage with silver doped wings. There is also a picture of G-AEWE that shows up with a dark fuselage & light wings, could be scorpiomikey's one, not sure but also found a painting showing G-AEWE with the same red/silver colours as G-AEWF. I still reckon that Dark Green/ Dark Earth/ Trainer Yellow would look just the ducks guts. Steve. Duck's guts just about describes the standard of this "kit". I've built two over the years and Merlin on a bad day just doesn't describe the awfulness of the kit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted July 5, 2013 Share Posted July 5, 2013 Duck's guts just about describes the standard of this "kit". I've built two over the years and Merlin on a bad day just doesn't describe the awfulness of the kit. Sounds like I should hold out until Azur does one? Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mhaselden Posted July 5, 2013 Share Posted July 5, 2013 Thanks to you all for your input. I guess my next choice is US Navy/Marines for military markings. Carl T I think the CNAF used them, with at least one being captured by the Japanese. Dunno if any wore Japanese markings (although there are online profiles showing one wearing hinomaru). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Millman Posted July 16, 2013 Share Posted July 16, 2013 The Chinese Condors were CNAC (China National Airways Corporation) rather than CNAF and the captured one was indeed re-painted with Japanese Hinomaru and a white senchi hiyoshiki (so-called combat stripe) fuselage band but retained its CNAC tail number 'F3' (the five CNAC Condors were numbered F1 to F5 - 'F' for freight). Three were reported destroyed at Kai Tak but only three were reported in operation by CNAC at that time, the other two having been broken down for spares. Chiang Kai-shek also had a BT-32 as personal transport - a repaired Curtiss-Wright demonstrator that had been shipped to China in 1934. The CNAC Condors were five former American Airways T-32s and AT-32Ds sold to the Chinese government by Charles H Babb in 1939 and allocated to CNAC in 1940. They had been stored in Mexico after detention during an attempted sale to the Spanish Republic and went to California in 1939 to be re-built as freighters. The CNAC plan was to use them for freight duties between Lashio or Hanoi and Kunming but they ended up transporting tungsten ore and tin from Nanshiung to Hong Kong (200 miles) with mainly imported Red Cross supplies freighted on the return trips. That service began in March 1941 with initially ten round trips a month increasing to 105 by July. American Airlines sold an AT-32A to CAMCO for the transport of emergency supplies. It went to Loiwing from Hong Kong where it received the Burmese registration XY-AAI but was destroyed when CAMCO's factory there was bombed by the Japanese on 26 October 1940. Nick 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Aero Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 The Curtiss Condors at Croydon are recorded by E.J. Riding as being Dark Blue in "A Flying Life". John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted August 11, 2013 Share Posted August 11, 2013 The Curtiss Condors at Croydon are recorded by E.J. Riding as being Dark Blue in "A Flying Life". John That could equate with the B & W shot of G-AEWE that I mentioned above. Handsome colours but not especially "impressed". Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWM Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 (edited) Today I have found this thread - and few days ago I sterted new one... Sorry - I should do this search first. I've read above and there is a lot of interesting details If anybody can add some info about military use of Condor I will appreciate it - and I hope not only me will appreciete it Regards Jerzy-Wojtek Edited September 17, 2016 by JWM spelling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magpie22 Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 The Journal of the American Aviation Historical Society had an article on the Condor in its Spring 1967 issue, by none other than William R. Mathews, then President of IPMS UK. Approx 50 photos and five pages of line drawings. Â The article has histories of each individual aircraft as well their civil and military use. Military use covers USA, (SAAC, USN, USMC), China, Colombia, and Argentina.Their use in Antarctica is also covered, (Byrd expedition, 1933-35, and USAS expedition 1940-41). Â Magpie22 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magpie22 Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 (edited) Paul Matt also had an article on Byrd's T-32 in Volume One of his "historical Aviation Albums" - excellent drawings. I also have a note that Air Enthusiast Quarterly No. 6 had an article on the Condor. Can't find it - so much for the state of my filing system!! Â Magpie22 Edited September 19, 2016 by Magpie22 For some reason it saved before I finished Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don McIntyre Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 Keep in mind, when describing how awful this kit is to build, that these molds are probably from the mid-late 1950s originally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Boak Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 There are three books by (primarily) Dan Hagedorn that have material.  Central American and Caribbean Air Forces has a photo of Honduran CT-32 ex-NC12374 bought as a transport in 1936 but hastily converted into a bomber.  Dark blue fuselage with white cheat line.  More useful is Latin American Air Wars, with three photos and two profiles of Colombian examples, transport (one of each) and floatplane bomber, all basically a light colour - Aluminium or light grey. .  His work on the Gran Chaco War has discussion of the Bolivian attempt to  buy a batch of bombers, clashing with a US Government ban on the export of such.  They were impounded in Peru at US insistence, and later handed over to the Peruvian Air Force, presumably as transports.  The book contains a drawing of the rear fuselage showing the gun positions, but no photos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Junchan Posted September 22, 2016 Share Posted September 22, 2016 Hi Folks,  Here are some photos of the US Navy and Colombian Condors from my hard drive. I don't remember where on the net I got them, but they may interest most of you.  For those who have interests in the Chinese Condor, Mr. Lin Zhenrong's Early Chinese Aircraft web site is highly recommended. https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=zh-CN&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fcwlam2000.0catch.com%2Fcafx19.htm&edit-text=  Jun in Tokyo https://www.flickr.com/photos/horaburo/albums 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWM Posted September 22, 2016 Share Posted September 22, 2016 Many thanks Jun for sharing with photos - however  first link above is not working - at least on my comp  Cheers J-W Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Junchan Posted September 22, 2016 Share Posted September 22, 2016 Hi J-W,  Try this link, but it is in Chinese. http://cwlam2000.0catch.com/cafx19.htm  Hope this will work.  Jun in Tokyo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWM Posted September 23, 2016 Share Posted September 23, 2016 Thanks Jun, but It is still blocked on my comp (message received is "the page is empty" - whatever it means...) Many thank again for trying J-W Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted September 24, 2016 Share Posted September 24, 2016 Showed up for me OK, interesting too. I'm viewing on Firefox Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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