Yet another 24th scale tiffie thread (hopefully short)

[Folkbox1]

I've got the kit (not yet got the time or space) and I'm looking forward to the build. I'm thinking of doing the "Silver Bullet" scheme for MN666 at the Flight Leader School (as shown in the Airfix Modeller's World supplement).

I'd like to do this with the cannon bays open but would the plane ever have flown like this loaded with live ammo?

Also, the plane is shown clean with no rocket rails. Would MN666 ever have carried rockets (or bombs for that matter) at the FLS?

Thanks

[Edgar]

I suspect that the C.O. might have wanted to keep his hand in, by firing at a towed drogue, from time to time, but I doubt he'd have carried other ordnance.

Edgar

[ben_m]

Just guessing, but:

unlikely, but possible it had live ammo

almost certainly didn't carry rockets or bombs

As I understand it, it was used as a hack and what the US would now call an aggressor.

[Chris Thomas]

Good question. Despite the reasonable guesses above it looks like the Silver Bullet carried the lot!

I was able to check in Sqn Ldr P.H.Beake's logbook (he was CO of the FLS Typhoon Squadron) and he flew the aircraft a number of times, either on liaison flights or for "observation" (of students' exercises) but also for RP practice. I also consulted a couple of students' logs and found that they and flown it on both bombing and RP exercises as well as drogue firing.

So my turn to guess. It seems likely that The SB was fitted with two or even three RP rails (Mk III) outboard of a 500 lb bomb carrier on each wing. The bomb carrier would support a Small Bomb Carrier which took 4 practice bombs (in line abreast). This was the usual configuration for OTU Typhoons in 1944/45.

II is almost certain that the RP would have concrete practice heads.

So this could be a very interesting model, both in configuration and scheme!

Chris

[Folkbox1]

Thanks Chris (and Ben and Edgar) that's very interesting and will make an interesting model with all that slung underneath

[ben_m]

Thanks Chris for the real gen. Looks like another to add to the list... in 1/72 though.