Blue and White, or Black and White Stearman ?

[Convair]

Hi, please I have a question about the Stearman aircraft used for training (in U.S. Navy) during WWII. Because training airplanes sometimes did not have radios, when a sudden storm or other emergency arose, a "Recall" aircraft was launched. When a cadet saw the Recall airplane flying through the area, he knew he should return to the base immediately.

This Recall aircraft was painted in its entirety with dark stripes on a white background.

 

As an example, the image below is from the website "The Aero Experience: Stearman Flight Clinic Provides Opportunity to Share an Aero Experience". It's a restored Stearman, painted with black and white stripes.
 

 

However, other sources say that in fact the stripes were Insignia blue and White, "according to the old U.S. Navy Recall flag, the origins of which date back to 1777". I searched the Internet, but I did not find this specific "Recall flag".

What are the correct colors for the Recall aircraft stripes, blue and white or black and white?

And, were there other planes besides the Stearman painted like that? Or just the Stearman?

Thanks in advance.

Edited February 28, 2018 by Convair

[Rabbit Leader]

Interesting question Convair. Now if the restored aircraft is painted correctly (you would hope so, but never guaranteed) then I would say that the stripes exactly match the insignia which to my eye is blue. Here is an enlarged screen grab from one of the photos in the link. The fabric contours on the rear fuse show both blue and black, but this is certainly just the shadowing effect. 

 

Well thats my theory - hope it helps. 

 

 

[Convair]

I agree with you Rabbit Leader. Let's see if more information will appear ...

[Bobk]

You will not find a reference to the "recall flag". Look for the Blue Peter. https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/xf-sign.html#bluepeter  We still use the blue peter on the tall ship that I crew on.

 

[Roger Holden]

Peter Bowers' 'Wings of Stearman' book says black and white....  Frankly, if you were looking for an aircraft in stormy conditions, would you notice (or care) if it was insignia blue ?

[Work In Progress]

I would be going with insignia blue I think. It's not much but I found a reference to a old "recall" USN signal flag here, blue and white

 

curiously there is also a flag with diagonall blue stripes on white, but that's listed as something different "Number 6"

https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/us^nvsf2.html

Edited February 28, 2018 by Work In Progress

[Wm Blecky]

I can't answer the question at hand, but man, that is one spiffy looking paint scheme on this plane.

[occa]

Where did they take the idea for this scheme from, from a B/W photo ?

 

If it was a training AC it should rather be yellow and black, or not ?

[Ed Russell]

There is one in Queensland the same. It's described on the net as "black and white" but someone who has seen it said it was Insignia Blue and White.

http://www.aerotec.com.au/gallery.html

The one above seems to be blue and white also.

Yellow and Black stripes is usually a target tug. Strictly speaking these striped Stearmans were not trainers.

[Convair]

Thank you all gentlemen. Seeing the comments, there is no other naval flag with only white and black colors (with the exception of the pirate flag ), but there are flags with only white and blue colors. So, considering that this plane was used by the Navy, IMHO it is virtually certain that the recall Stearman is dark (insignia) blue and white.

 

21 hours ago, Wm Blecky said:

I can't answer the question at hand, but man, that is one spiffy looking paint scheme on this plane.

Exactly. My intention is to build a 1/72 scale Stearman with this painting scheme, so I asked about the correct colors.

The first time I "heard" of this recall aircraft was when in the 1990's I saw a picture of a Revell PT-13 1/72 built by a reader of FineScale Modeler magazine, in the "reader gallery" section.

 

 

Sorry for the quality of the image, it was scanned directly from the magazine using 1990's technology.

 

I could not find references to any other airplane with this paint scheme. Maybe a T-6 Texan or even a BT-13 Valiant?

Edited March 1, 2018 by Convair

[bobmig]

Here are two pics of a recall aircraft that flipped over in a windstorm upon landing at MAS Bunker Hill, Indiana. Note that the struts seem to have retained their yellow finish. I would imagine that most, if not all of the training facilities had such an aircraft which could also be used for conventional training when its 'recall' role wasn't required.

 

[Ed Russell]

2 hours ago, bobmig said:

such an aircraft which could also be used for conventional training when its 'recall' role wasn't required.

 

Only if they repainted it each time (:>). Otherwise every time it went up all of the others would return to base.

[Convair]

31 minutes ago, Ed Russell said:

Only if they repainted it each time (:>). Otherwise every time it went up all of the others would return to base.

A Monty Python sketch, maybe? 

Edited March 1, 2018 by Convair