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54 Sqdn Hunters- The Black Knights- codes/serials?


neilh

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Building an Academy Hunter as an F1 to represent an aircraft from 54 Squadrons " The Black Knights".  I have squadron badge from an Xtradecal sheet, but need to source codes and serial numbers. I have a few options from the decal stash, bit most pictures on the web are small or not too clear. Does anyone know the codes and serials for the four F1s that were flown ( in any year). I think they may have been WW610, WT659, WW641 and WT697?

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Hello Neil,

a fast look at aerobaticteams.net shows the black knights using F.1, F.6, and FGA.9 Hunters. There is one photo of the F.1 team, and the serials can be read. It’s worth noting that the leader and box aircraft have lightning bolts? on the vertical tails, but not the wingmen.

 

TW

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Hi Tony, yes they are blue lightning bolts in a profile I have. I'm probably going to model a wingman as a result! Thanks for the tip. Off to look.

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There's a good picture in Ward's "Hunter Squadrons of the RAF and FAA" showing 4 F.1s. These are WW636 (letter not visible) as leader, WT692 "S" flying slot, WT659 "U" and WT696 (individual letter not visible) as wingmen.

The leader carried the lightning bolt in yellow, the slot in blue.

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Page 104 of David Watkins's history of RAF Aerobatic teams from 1920 has a photo. I'll attach it when on a different device, but the serials for the four Hunter F1s in the shot are

WW610 (Leader)

WT659 (On leader's right wing)

WW641 (Rear)

WT687 (On leader's left hand side)

 

The photo is captioned as being from 1955, credited to Bernard Noble.

 

Edited by XV107
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From Adrian Balch's Aerobatic Teams of the World:

 

"...The aircraft retained their standard colours of gloss grey and green camouflage with silver undersurfaces.  The squadron's blue/yellow checks appeared on the nose and the leader's aircraft had a blue fin with a yellow lightning flash through the fin flash.  The "slot" aircraft had the colours reversed, being yellow with a blue lightning flash.  These tail markings were not thought to be specially applied for the team, as they denoted Flight Commanders' aircraft.  Aircraft used were usually WW636, WT659, WT696 and WT692.", 

 

In an accompanying photo the yellow fin/blue flash (down to level of tailplane only) aircraft is WT692 S.  The right wing aircraft is WT659 U.  WW636 is the leader's aircraft but code is obscured, as it is for the other wing aircraft, WT696.  It looks to me as if all 4 aircraft have wingtip fairings in blue.

 

Edit: oops, scooped by Giorgio, who apparently has the same picture.

Edited by Seahawk
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Thanks for all this useful info. My " profile" in a SAM feature on RAF aerobatic teams suggests red wingtips and there is a colour photo in that feature that definitely has red wingtips.

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