HISTORY

former Czechoslovakia to the point where

they were completely exhausted over the

following two or three years.

Most of the domestic aircraft facilities (such

as Aero, Mráz and Zlín) turned to available

German RLM colors to satisfy renewed

production efforts, or at least colors that

had similar tones. Avia and Letov were two

exceptions. These had significant wartime stocks of paint available, made possible by their production of training aircraft

at the end of the war, notably the Arado

Ar 96B, which had all its surfaces sprayed

in an aluminum color, or more accurately,

a clear coat with aluminum powder mixed

in. It was necessary, then, to find an interim

paint solution for the new S-199s coming off

the assembly lines at Avia headed for the

Czechoslovak Air Force from 1948. These

paints would need to be produced quickly

using local manufacturing facilities.

Over the first months following the liberation of Czechoslovakia, Avia saw a logical

decline in aircraft production. In order to

preserve the firm’s usefulness and future, focus was transferred to the repair of

buses and postal vehicles – vehicles that

were in high demand at the time due to

the end of the war. The final paint coats

on these vehicles were of several types,

among which were light green-grey shades, similar to RLM 02 (also similar to the

then-current RAL 7033). Although this paint

was not intended for use on aircraft, it was

the only decent quality and easily produced

paint available.

On the basis of recent research, it can be

said with a high degree of certainty that this

type of paint was, in fact, used on aircraft

such as the fighter/trainer C-10/C-110 (Bf

109G-10/G-12), combat fighters S-92/CS-92,

S-99, and on the first Avia-built S-199, C-4

(Bü 131D) biplanes and the first C-104 produced by Aero. This can also be extended

to the C-6/C-106 (Bü 181) and the first C-5

(Zlín Z-26), and even some twin-engined

B-36s (DH.98 Mosquito FB Mk.VI) modified

to carry German machine guns.

Nevertheless, the general goal of developing a new paint system for the Czechoslovak Air Force was still a high priority matter

and needed to be resolved through 1948. The

resulting product is known as Smalt Avion

2036, under which Paint 2036 Khaki MNO

(a shade similar to an early Czechoslovak

color called Khaki). This paint was considered for an overall covering of later S-199s,

or after these types had gone through repairs or overhauls. We can also add that

lower surfaces were to be painted Avion

2036.65 Light Blue (not unlike the German

RLM 65, as indicated in the paint’s designation), but for reasons that are not yet clear,

this shade was not applied to the S-199.

Paints for Czechoslovak military aircraft

are traditionally associated locally with the

name of Libeň-Vysočany company TEBAS

(Joint Stock Company for the Production

of Industrial Paints TEBAS), traceable to

Thurm und Beschke, from which the company evolved into TEBAS in 1938. During

the period of the Protectorate, the company

filled orders under its original name for the

Nazi war effort and after liberation, it fell

under national administration. From 1947, it

became a component of the Spojené továrny na barvy a laky (United Paint and Varnish

Company), and later the successor national

firm Pragolak, and later still, Barvy a Laky

(Paints and Varnishes).

To be continued

Detailed view of the puttied and sanded

joints, along with minor repairs on the

central section of the fuselage of Avia

S-199.260, EZ-11, belonging to the 3rd

Flight of the Air Regiment 5 based at

Plzeň. Other interesting details are worth

noting: the canopy and its associated rail,

head armor, the cover for the battery in

the cockpit, the antenna mast and PR 16

direction finding antenna on the fuselage

spine, the whip antenna associated with

the LR-25a identificatin equipement, and

the stencil data with yellow triangle over

the fuel tank filler cap (the fuel was 100

Octane Aviation Fuel).

A brand-new Avia S-199, Serial Number 167, made its acceptance flight by Avia’s test pilot Antonin Kraus on October 25, 1948. The aircraft is armed with two 17/7 9N wing guns

of 7.92mm calibre. Despite the photograph being somewhat underexposed, it is possible to conclude that the scheme is the light green-grey type applied to early aircraft.

This aircraft was coded KS-22 and was later attached to the 2nd Flight of the Air Regiment 4 bearing the name of Alois Vašátko, at Plzeň-Skvrňany, where it was damaged

in a landing accident on February 11, 1949.

August 2022

INFO Eduard

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