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The first BOAC colour scheme on the Boeing 707


Gooney Fan

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Hello

 

I would like to know what the colour scheme was for recreating the first Boeing 707 in BOAC service.

 

I first travelled from Heathrow to Lagos in November 1962 by BOAC and wish to make a 707-420 model to celebrate.

 

Thanks

 

Gooney Fan

 

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As far as I know this was the original scheme. The photo was taken in February 1962.

 

Assuming your planned model is in 1/144 scale, decals are available from F-DCAL. Despite F-DCAL's reference to "336/346", G-APFI was a Conway powered 707-436.

 

Dave G

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My own personal approach would be Halfords Appliance White, Halfords Racking Grey and AK Interactive Xtreme Metal Aluminium. If you are using the Minicraft kit Flying Colors make a very good detail decal sheet which includes coroguard for the wings. If you decide to paint the coroguard you can use Xtracolor X331 or mix up a dull grey/silver from your favourite brand.

 

I stress that's only how I would do it - other ideas are available! If it's of any interest this is how my most recent 707 turned out. 

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4 hours ago, Skodadriver said:

the original scheme

Yes this the original look. Interesting that you picked PFE , the 707 that broke up over Mt Fuji 1966 ish . Google it the story is mind blowing . Quick version , some of the PAX were on another crash the day before in a DC-8 of Canadian Pacific at Tokyo and were being taken back home. Of all flight numbers , this one was BA 911 ! Went on it on a visit to the hangars in Easter 65 .

 

BOAC had the following from my spotter's memory !

-436 PFB -PFP and RRA-RRC Conway powered

-365 RWD and RWE ex Cunard Eagle Conway powered

-336C Prat powered  SZF, SZG , TWV, XXY and others

-379C Prat powered took over cancelled Saturn order WHU .

 

4 different BOAC schemes The years are the official BOAC schemes but still saw them in the previous look while waiting for space in the paint queue

1957 - April 1964 (59 - 64 in the case of the 707s)

April 64 - April 65 1st Gold Speedbird with stepped cheatline ,gold edged (Meat Cleaver) Typeface changed within months

April 65 Smoother Cheatline Gold Speedbird

April 65 -66 BOAC Cunard Gold Speedbird

3 hours ago, Gooney Fan said:

I'm looking for

Are you on facebook ? There is a great BOAC page and all the info is on there . I'll give you the link if you or anyone else wants it

Edited by bzn20
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2 hours ago, Gooney Fan said:

Any recommendation for matching the  blue tail with paint?

Afraid not , I built this in original BOAC paint back in the 60s to Airfix instructions .

That BOAC Blue was a pain in real life , sometimes it looked like Black and/or different shades of dark Blue . What's more I can't find instructions for the original boxing online . The BA edition is the only one I found.

Edited by bzn20
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You still haven’t told us what scale your model is. If it’s 1/144 there is no need to match the blue since the F-DCAL decals include all the necessary blue parts.

 

Otherwise I’d start with a really dark blue such as Revell 54 and work from there. Airliners.net and the BOAC Facebook page mentioned by @bzn20 are your friends.

 

If you’re not using decals, good luck with the narrow yellow stripes!

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A blast from the past as they say... Brought back memories from an overland trip to India and Nepal; I did do a little plane-spotting and my log book reveals:

18/2/75

G-APFL Dehli - Damascus via Tehran

G-APFB Damascus - LHR via Munich

 

Both wore Syrian Arab Airlines markings; interiors were a little tired, but then I was too. Did an aborted landing at Munich as a Volkswagen minibus trundled onto the runway as we were about to cross the threshold. Entertaining is a word that comes to mind!

 

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Hello Tornadofairy

 

The highlight of my week was to sit on the boundary hedge at Lagos airport to watch all the propliners plying their trade.

 

Unfortunately for me I missed the first flights to Lagos by the VC10.

 

The antics of the locals boarding the local flights were quite comical for my 4 year old eyes.

 

Gooney Fan

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 Now that's a question . Start a thread to ask for this Blue BOAC used 1957 - 1964 ( somebody some where will have the original Airfix instructions ) and also show a picture of it to make sure this is the BOAC scheme you want . Nobody will shoot you for using a very dark blue . In real life the dark Blue was all over the place . Fuel and exhaust stains from queueing at the end of the taxiway waiting for take off and rainbow effects off the nose  . Semi matt / Satin but very rarely really Glossy .

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The issue with period photos from this era is, the pigmant  that was often used back then in processing was off 'kilter'. Blue was particulary suspetible for being lighter than in reality excerbated when taken in open daylight. Just take a look at a lot of period photos of the the Midland "blue" Pullman. It often appears a light/mid blue in photos, the reality was Nanking blue the colour of the BP was a dark blue.

 

It is always worth checking more than once source, with the above in mind.

 

Tommo.

 

 

Edited by The Tomohawk Kid
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Hello

 

As a keen photographer I am aware of the colour shift problems inherent with old colour photos.

 

I have colour transparencies from the 1960s that my father shot using Kodachrome and were not stored in light proof conditions.

 

Gooney Fan

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Think you've mis understood . You can never go off photos .

My point was in real life , actually seeing them , those BOAC Blues were all over the place . The original , 1st boxing of the Airfix 707 kit instructions or just go really dark blue will be good enough .

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From memory, the blue used changed when the gold Speedbird logo was used on the fin and midnight blue would be a good starting point. But prior to this, when the two horizontal white stripes were used on the fin, the blue was much darker (almost black). Neither colour was glossy, varying from satin to matt according to age. As a thought the British Airways heritage centre may be able to help.

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15 hours ago, Orso said:

own paint line

Good thinking Orso ! Forgot about Airfix Paints... I always used Humbrol back then .

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On 10/11/2019 at 9:10 PM, RichardH said:

... As a thought the British Airways heritage centre may be able to help.

A bit late to the party, but I'll help as much as I can.

 

The blue we used for the 747-400 BOAC retro-jet was BAC5148.  We think that's a very good match, but the honest and slightly embarrassing truth is that it appears no-one really knows for sure what the original colour was.  In almost all documentation it is referred to simply as "Corporation Blue", perhaps with a stores reference, but those stores are long gone...  We believe it is the same blue used throughout BOAC's existence, and, for that matter the same blue used by Imperial Airways, who also just called it "Imperial Blue" or "Company Blue".  The best we could manage by way of a colour reference is in the 1947 BOAC aircraft painting guidlines, where it gives Dulux paint codes.  Sadly a check with them revealed that that particular code was part of a set of customer-specified paints (i.e. for many different customers), that the numbers were issued chronologically depending on when the first order was placed and otherwise meant nothing, and that they hadn't kept the records anyway.

I live in hope that lurking somewhere in our archives is a complete discourse on the paint colours, their chemical composition and so forth, but if it's there it's very well hidden!

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  • 1 month later...

Hello

 

As an update to this saga I have acquired an original Airfix boxing secondhand courtesy of Hannants.

 

The decals are likely to be beyond redemption, but will be handy as a guide for masking the livery scheme.

 

It will enable me to recreate the model that my father destroyed when he attempted to make it in 1964.

 

Gooney Fan

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