The Scale-Models guide to aircraft markings-Part 1-Training aircraft 1941-42

[Guest]

The Scale Models Guide To Aircraft Colours-Pre-war USN Markings

Here is some information to enable you to be historically accurate when modelling these aircraft from a very colourful time in aviation

Squadrons: the sqdn number appeared on the fuselage sides followed by a letter indicating the purpose of the squadron (e.eg. "B" for bomber, "F" for fighter etc) which was followed in turn by the number of the aircraft within the squadron.

Air stations used a basically similar system except that an abbreviation of the station name was substituted for the squadron function letter except in the case of an operational squadron which used both the station letter and the squadron function letter separated by a hyphen.

On June 1,1931 the use of 20 inch wide coloured bands around the fuselage of section leader's planes was directed, and chevrons of the same colour were to be painted on the upper wing surfaces of all aircraft of the section, the chevron enclosed the individual number of the aircraft within the squadron. In addition, the leaders plane was to have a coloured engine cowling, the number 2 plane having the upper half of the cowling coloured and the No.3 plane the lower half coloured. Airscrew tips were to be painted with three bands of four inches each (red at the tip, yellow in the center and blue last) The same order permitted the use of distinguishing colors on the tail surfaces whenever two or more squadrons flying the same type of aircraft operated together, but no restriction was placed on the selection of colors.

On March 15 1937 distinguishing colours were assigned to each aircraft carrier for use as tail markings by all squadrons assigned to the carrier, thereby ending the practice of assigning colours to squadrons and eliminating the confusion resulting when squadrons transferred from one carrier to another. This system remained in use until February 26 1941 when the use of coloured tail markings, engine cowlings and fuselage bands, chevrons etc terminated, the colours of markings, other than national insignia, becoming those that contrasted least with the background.

Carrier tail colours were:Langley - Red, Saratoga - White, Enterprise - True Blue, Yorktown - Black, Ranger - Willow Green, Lexington - Lemon Yellow. (When the Langley was decommissioned Yorktown adopted Red)

A typical US Navy Fighter Squadron comprise six sections of three aircraft, each section being assigned a colour as follows:1st section-red, 2nd section-white, 3rd section-true blue, 4th section-black, 5th section- willow green, 6th section- lemon yellow. Only section leaders had coloured engine cowling and coloured band around the fuselage in the section colour. Section leader's aircraft were numbered 1, 4, 7, 10, 13 or 16.

[wonwinglo]

The Scale-Models guide to aircraft markings-Part 14-British fighters B.of.Britain



Hawker Hurricane,Battle of Britain 1940.

During the Battle of Britain fighter markings underwent a complete revision in June 1940.The black & grey undersurfaces were abandoned and replaced by a single colour which was officially described as duck egg blue,the actual colour is best described as a very pale greenish shade which did vary depending on paint manufacturer and squadron practises ( ie pouring different colours into a single tin to use up valuable paint supplies !) the pre war practise of painting the rudder stripes onto the rudder were abandoned in favour being placed onto the tail fin,this avoided any problems with the balance of the moving control surface.

[Guest]

Barry, I don't want to appear argumentive but I very much doubt the black/grey undersurface you refer to. Could this be just misinterperation by colour plate illustrators and perhaps cofusion with grime etc giving the appearance of grey? Or is there a reference to this practice somewhere?, If so, is the shade of grey specified?

DTD memo 332 (issue 2) of 8 Sept 1939 specifically refers to black/white undersurfaces. This was primarily to assist in identification of aircraft flying over continental Europe. Sort of a forerunner to the much later invasion markings. This is borne out by the scheme being discontinued by the order issued on 6 June 1940 after the fall of France.

[wonwinglo]

Barry, I don't want to appear argumentive but I very much doubt the black/grey undersurface you refer to. Could this be just misinterperation by colour plate illustrators and perhaps cofusion with grime etc giving the appearance of grey? Or is there a reference to this practice somewhere?, If so, is the shade of grey specified?DTD memo 332 (issue 2) of 8 Sept 1939 specifically refers to black/white undersurfaces. This was primarily to assist in identification of aircraft flying over continental Europe. Sort of a forerunner to the much later invasion markings. This is borne out by the scheme being discontinued by the order issued on 6 June 1940 after the fall of France.

***This an area whereby we have to be very careful and not take too literally what is written or generally accepted,the generic term 'white' when referred to as a camouflage scheme really means a light grey until June 1940,the best example of this is the Spitfire 1 K9942 in the R.A.F Museum at Cosford which shows an excellent historical record of this particular colourscheme.Just as the duck egg blue colour was more verging into the realms of green the often incorrectly referred to white/black scheme was in fact a very very pale shade of grey,the R.A.F museum staff sourced the paint for restoration to as near to FS37925 the equivalent of HEX FBF8F6,in the field this was often mixed from the equivalent of Titanine dope FS37875 or FIF2EAC with addition of a quarter of black/dark grey whatever was available,the variations were very subtle but acceptable,in some photographs it can be clearly seen whereby spray repairs show colour variations to the very pale grey finish.Some of the greys even used additions of small amounts of camouflage green to get as near as possible.

As an aside my colour plates are generally mixed from Gouache colours matched either to original swatches or known BS shades of paint,or even better actual fabric or metal panels in my collection,whilst it is impossible to get the colours exact due to physical limitations with computer shades etc they serve as a general guide to modellers wishing to use the popular Humbrol/Revell tinlets,I have erred on simplyfying general descriptions rather than get a modeller confused as to the various ( and many ) variations,it is a general guide but still the results of many years research.

Camouflage is a minefield for the historian and with the passage of time can sometimes get confusing,it is important to relate issued orders to field requirements.

PS-As previously stated Gloster Gladiator aircraft & other biplanes used two very distinct shades of undersurface grey,much the same as Tiger Moth aircraft had two shades of shadow shading on the upper and lower top sides of the wings when used in the elementary flying training role in large numbers during the war years.

[wonwinglo]

Spitfire 1 K9942



Just to show how subtle this finish was here is a picture of the very accurate colourscheme on Spitfire 1 K9942 at R.A.F Cosford,paint chips of the original finish are held with the museum prior to repaint.

[wonwinglo]

The Scale-Models guide to aircraft markings-Part 15,Canberra aircraft 1950's



The English Electric Canberra,the R.A.F's first jet bomber carried a variety of colourschemes,the prototype examples generally had a very smooth silver-grey finish.Up to 1952 several squadrons had camouflaged their Canberra aircraft in a light slate grey and medium sea grey,with light blue undersurfaces,the division of surfaces occurring along the fuselage datum point,a few had black undersurfaces,normally for night operations and some PR.3's eg WE140,had azure blue and light grey for upper and undersurfaces respectively.For night bombing a dark green and dark sea grey camouflage pattern was applied to uppersurfaces and a semi gloss black underneath,this originated from the levels of the tailplane downwards.

The photograph above serves to show the variety of colours in service at a particular time.

As is always the case there were exceptions to the loose rules in place as the transition from piston engined Avro Lincoln aircraft to the twin jets took place.

[wonwinglo]

The Scale-Models guide to aircraft markings-Part 16 Royal Naval Air Arm 1939-1941.



Part 16.

Fairey Swordfish,Royal Naval air arm 1941.

Camouflage was not introduced in the Fleet Air Arm at the same time as on the aeroplanes of the Royal Air Force,and the vast majority of naval aircraft were flying with their silver overall finish until the outbreak of war in 1939.In peacetime the majority of Fleet Air Arm aeroplanes were doped silver overall,but a few types such as the Blackburn Shark and the Supermarine Walrus amphibian had their metal fuselages and hull respectively finished in a pale grey,whilst most of the Sea Gladiators,Swordfish,Skuas,Walrus and Sea Foxes operating in 1939,were silver.

On the outbreak of war land camouflage to the Temporate Land Scheme was used on the upper surfaces of FAA aircraft,and the undersurfaces were painted a pale grey.The dark green and dark earth shadow shading was usually applied to the upper surfaces of the wings and tail and to the upper decking of the fuselage.Towards the end of 1940 sea camouflage,known as the Temporate Sea Scheme,began to replace the former Temporate Land Scheme on Naval aircraft,and by 1941 vall FAA machines were finished dark slate grey and dark sea grey on the upper surfaces and were duck egg blue underneath.Fighters during 1940 had been duck egg blue instead of pale grey underneath.In 1941 most Naval fighters were finished in sea grey medium underneath.

Throughout 1941 and 1942,then the standard schemes for Naval aeroplanes on operations with carriers or from shore stations were as follows-Fighters such as Fulmers,Martlets,Sea Hurricanes,Seafires,Dark slate grey and dark sea grey above and sea grey medium below;TSR and Dive bombers etc such as Swordfish,Albacore,Skua,Chesapeake,Walrus,Kingfish er etc Dark slate grey and dark sea grey above and duck egg blue or the much maligned Sky Type S below.

As ever in markings and camouflage there are a few exceptions or special cases to be considered,certain land based Grumman Martlet fighters used in the Western desert in 1941-1942 were Ceulean blue all over.Albacore biplanes were used as night bombers both in the Western desert and from bases on the South Coast of England.Thes had the normal camouflage on the top surfaces and were night black underneath extending up the sides of the fuselage.Fleet trainers were painted dark sea grey and dark slate grey on the upper surfaces with training yellow underneath,types in this latter category included the Blackburn Shark,Swordfish,Fairey Seal,Blackburn Skua and Roc,Fairey Fulmer,Vought Kingfisher,Miles Magister,Sea Gladiator, and the Hawker Sea Hurricane.

The final category to record was the Fleet Air Arm target tugs such as the Roc and Skua which were painted in a similar pattern to the R.A.F tugs that we will cover in another part.

One thing to remember with most aircraft used by the fleet air arm was the general deterioration and degrading of doped and painted finishes,the salty sea air would have an adverse effect on colours and shades sometimes making the original finish look totally different until the next major overhaul,sometimes only part of the aircraft would be repainted leaving a strange mis-mash of colours.

[wonwinglo]

The Scale-Models guide to aircraft markings-Part 17,British Desert air force 1941-42



Curtiss Kittyhawk,Desert air force colourscheme

The Desert camouflage was introduced in 1941 for fighter aircraft stationed in the Middle East.The upper surfaces normally represented with the dark green was replaced with a mid stone finish and the dark earth retained as part of the overall camouflage effect.The undersurfaces were finished in azure blue,some of the fighters used a black distemper finish beneath the port wing which could be easily removed as required.

Another feature of Middle East fighters was a portion of the upper tailplane or elevators to be painted white.

[wonwinglo]

The Scale-Models guide to aircraft markings-Part 18-Target towing aircraft 1941-1942



1941-42 target towing colourscheme on a Martin Maryland aircraft.

Aircraft used for the towing of gunnery targets were painted on the undersides with yellow and black diagonal stripes,many aircraft deemed unsuitable for other operations were often relegated to the role of 'Target tug' where performance was not of the paramount importance.

Some examples of target tug aoircraft were seen with all trainer yellow undersides.

[wonwinglo]

The Scale-Models guide to aircraft markings-Part 19,Spitfire colours 1941-1942.



During initial operations from the UK.,U.S.A.A.F fighter squadrons operated British Spitfires,here is an Eagle squadron Spitfire VB with U.S. star insignia and former British camouflage.Some U.S Spitfires had the national insignia en-circled in yellow.



Spitfire in British day fighter colourscheme 1942.

In the Autumn of 1941 the dark green and dark earth camouflage colours were abandoned on all day fighters operating in Great Britain in favour of dark green and dark sea grey or sea grey medium,The colour on the undersides was also changed and from that time onwards fighters were painted in sea grey medium which was a pale grey colour.A completely new marking introduced in September,1941 was a yellow stripe 6 inches wide along the leading edge of the wings,this commenced half way along the span and finished at the tips.

[wonwinglo]

The Scale-Models guide to aircraft markings-Part 20,R.A.F Training aircraft 1950's



Royal Air Force training colours 1950's all silver with yellow training bands,upper is shown a De Havilland Vampire T.11 and below are Gloster Meteor T.7 twin jet trainers,note that the yellow bands do not overlap the ailerons to avoid balance and flutter problems.

By 1954 flying training aircraft such as the Percival Provost T.1,Vampire T.11,Gloster Meteor T.7 and the navigational trainers such as the Vickers Valetta and Varsity were finished in a standard colourscheme of overall silver with yellow training bands on the wings & fuselage,the finish itself was set up in 1947,the scheme extended to the aircraft of the Home command ie the Reserve squadrons operating De Havilland Chipmunk T.10 and the training gliders operated by the Air Training Corps under the aegis of the R.A.F.

Other aircraft types that used this finish were the Avro 19,Auster A.O.P.6 and the Airspeed Oxford.

[wonwinglo]

The Scale-Models guide to aircraft markings-Part 21-R.A.F Training aircraft 1960's







During the 1960 period a major change came about with aircraft of the R.A.F Training commands which extended to the Home commands,how this came about was as follows-

With the increase in the numbers of training aircraft and also some low level flying accidents,which involved collisions between civil & military aircraft experiments were undertaken with a new revolutionery type of paint,this was a flourescent finish which glowed in daylight and gave a whole new meaning to bright aircraft finishes,initially the paint was used on aircraft of the Minisrty of Transport & civil aviation on their Percival Prince & Dove aircraft,it consisted of a white primer basecoat with a top coat of powerful flourescing ( in nature a flower glows at night and is said to flouresch ) orange paint,many technical problems had to be overcome initially in the application of this special paint which also had a drawback in being much heavier than normal paint finishes in use at that time,eventually after advice and the tests with the MTCA aircraft the R.A.F adopted a bright orange dayglo paint which was sprayed on the nose,tail and wingtips in panels.After a short while in servive the paint would fade very badly and looked very tatty as it showed the white undercoat as faded patches,to this end the 3M company developed a unique peel off film that could be applied in selected panels between the rivet lines of aircraft structures ( see the Varsity picture above ) this dayglo was called 'Scotchcowl' and was a brighter more reddish shade than the original yellow flourescent finish used.Whilst not fading quite as quickly it proved difficult to remove when required on major overhauls and became very brittle due to the suns rays drying out the plastic based finish. Whilst this finish was proved to be visible especially in poor weather conditions it was eventually phased out in favour of a bright red paint applied against a light aircraft grey ground on R.A.F training command aircraft,this again was abandoned and a all gloss black finish was used,further tests have proven that black is the most visible colour at any given distance,the theory behind this is that an aircraft quickly becomes all black anyway against many different backdrops.This idea has quickly spread to low flying civil helicopters,many of which are now painted overall black.

XM378 Jet Provost above has the painted dayglo finish,whilst the one below it XS186 has Scotchcowl stick on adhesive panels between the rivets.

The Air Navigation school Vickers Varsity below from R.A.F Gaydon in Warwickshire also has this type of finish applied in selected tedious panels,a job which proved unpopular with groundcrew given the task in hand !

[wonwinglo]

The Scale-Models guide to aircraft markings-Part 22-Colour chart





These are all the colours used in the past tutorials for R.A.F aircraft markings 1939-1945,to check the guide for accuracy compare the pale sky blue swatch & the roundal red swatch with the ones on the colour chart.

[wonwinglo]

I need your help here ! can you please give me feedback on whether the two test swatches match up with the chart shown ? if they are darker or lighter on your computer I will need to further adjust the colours my end,first I painted the actual colours or used original paint finishes,then converted them into pixels,the two swatches represent the 'actual' painted colours.Thanks for your help,if we get this right then this will be the most accurate chart on the internet.

Almost forgot,close one eye and judge,then change eyes,thank you.

[wonwinglo]

The Scale-Models guide to aircraft markings-Part 23,NATO symbols.



Look on any NATO aircraft and you will find a proverbial manual of logo instructions and other insignia,here are a few of the more common ones that can be applied onto our models.