Question re Airfix's Spitfire Vb Malta colors

[Seawinder]

One of the kit options in the recent Airfix 1/48 Spitfire Vb is a plane from RCAF 249 Sqn. on Malta, 1942. Upper surface call-outs are for Sea Grey and Dark Earth, which lines up with what I've read, although the Grey may be Extra Dark Sea Grey either straight up or tweaked with some blue. What puzzles me is the lower surface call-out of Sky: I should have thought that, being originally Desert scheme, the color should be Azure Blue. Can anybody shed any light on this? Thanks!

[chillaton]

Research suggests, that this aircraft was delivered in standard Temperate colours ie Dark Green/ Dark Earth over Sky which was considered unsuitable in Malta. The Dark Green was simply overpainted in one of the Sea Greys, in which case Sky would be correct.

[tonyot]

249 Sqn was an RAF unit, not RCAF,...... however it did have pilots from all over the Commonwealth and even USA flying within it. As for the undersides,...... I personally think that they were Sky Blue,.... added as part of the tropicalisation process in the MU before delivery. 

 

Cheers

        Tony   

[Graham Boak]

I can only suggest consulting Paul Lucas's articles in recent and earlier issues of Scale Aircraft Modeller,  which suggest a number of different schemes that were applied to different deliveries to Malta, but not as I recall the temperate scheme.

 

I don't know the serial to which you refer, but early Mk.Vb were indeed delivered in the Desert Scheme and then overpainted, but  not with EDSG but Dark Mediterranean Blue.  Which I feel would have looked similar after fading.

 

As Azure Blue was the specified underside colour for all deliveries to overseas at this time, even those in Temperate Land, Sky is most unlikely.

 

PS. It has been stated that one of the Spitfire factories used Azure Blue and the other Sky Blue, but as Sky had been rejected by ME Command as being too light, and Sky Blue is even lighter, this seems less likely than a misunderstanding of a reference to the undersides being a sky blue, rather than the Sky Blue.

Edited December 22, 2018 by Graham Boak

[303sqn]

Serial is AB264, Airfix probably used the MMP book as reference. It was an Operation Spotter Spitfire of which PL has the following to say.

 

"Because these Spitfires were intended for service in Egypt they were finished on the upper surfaces in the Desert Scheme of Dark Earth and Mid Stone and on the under surfaces, so it is thought, in either Sky Blue on those Spitfires tropicalized by Supermarine or Azure BIue as dictated by official policy on those Spitfires which had been tropicalized by the ASUs. Following the arrival of the first batch of Spitfires in Malta from Operation Spotter on 7th March, the Mid Stone segments of the upper surface camouflage was overpainted with some kind of dark grey paint. After the second batch of Spitfires was delivered by Operation Picket on 21st March, it would appear that AHQ Malta sought and received permission to have the upper surface camouflage on its Spitfires modified by overpainting the Desert Scheme in its entirety and replacing it with a single dark colour. Such a monotone scheme appears to have been applied at Gibraltar to the Spitfires delivered by Operation Picket II on 29th March."

 

Scale Aircraft Modelling December 2015

Edited December 22, 2018 by 303sqn

[Seawinder]

2 hours ago, tonyot said:

249 Sqn was an RAF unit, not RCAF,...... however it did have pilots from all over the Commonwealth and even USA flying within it. As for the undersides,...... I personally think that they were Sky Blue,.... added as part of the tropicalisation process in the MU before delivery. 

 

Cheers

        Tony   

Right you are -- I didn't read carefully enough: the pilot is given as RCAF, not the squadron.

[JackG]

I don't know how azure blue photographs in b/w, but a period photo of AB264 does have fairly light underside colour in the nose/chin area;

 

regards,

Jack

 

[tonyot]

Here is my take on an early 249 Sqn Spitfire Mk.Vb, AB264, GN-H,..s seen above..... the Dark Earth and EDSG should really be swapped around and the camo pattern should be the mirror image of what I`ve done,.... but I did build it a long time ago and I stand by the colours;

 

 

Cheers,

          Tony

Edited December 22, 2018 by tonyot

[Seawinder]

23 hours ago, 303sqn said:

Serial is AB264, Airfix probably used the MMP book as reference. It was an Operation Spotter Spitfire of which PL has the following to say.

 

"Because these Spitfires were intended for service in Egypt they were finished on the upper surfaces in the Desert Scheme of Dark Earth and Mid Stone and on the under surfaces, so it is thought, in either Sky Blue on those Spitfires tropicalized by Supermarine or Azure BIue as dictated by official policy on those Spitfires which had been tropicalized by the ASUs. Following the arrival of the first batch of Spitfires in Malta from Operation Spotter on 7th March, the Mid Stone segments of the upper surface camouflage was overpainted with some kind of dark grey paint. After the second batch of Spitfires was delivered by Operation Picket on 21st March, it would appear that AHQ Malta sought and received permission to have the upper surface camouflage on its Spitfires modified by overpainting the Desert Scheme in its entirety and replacing it with a single dark colour. Such a monotone scheme appears to have been applied at Gibraltar to the Spitfires delivered by Operation Picket II on 29th March."

 

Scale Aircraft Modelling December 2015

That's really helpful, thanks! Sounds as though it'll be a choice between Sky Blue and Azure Blue, although the former looks more likely based on the photo JackG posted. Tony, your rendition is quite persuasive (and nicely done); I agree about reversing the colors and mirroring the scheme.