09/2021

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  Vol 20, September 2021Vol 20, September 2021

  ISSUE 139

  INFOINFO

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  INFO

  EDUARDEDUARD

  ISSUE 139

  © Eduard - Model Accessories, 2021

  FREE FOR DOWNLOAD, FREE FOR DISTRIBUTION!

  This material may only be used for personal use. No part of the text

  or graphic presentations can be used in another publication in any other media form

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  permission of Eduard - Model Accessories and authors involved.

  Editorial and Graphics - Marketing department, Eduard - Model Accessories, Ltd.

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  eduardeduard

  EDITORIAL

  SEPTEMBER 2021

  KITS

  HISTORY

  BRASSIN

  PHOTO-ETCHED SETS

  BIGED

  RELEASE

  BUILT

  ON APPROACH

  September 2021

  October 2021

  P-51K ProPACK 1/48

  ANGEL OF MERCY Limited edition 1/72

  Camel & Co. Limited edition 1/48

  MiG-21MF Weekend edition 1/48

  Fw 190D-11/13 ProPACK 1/48

  Spitre Mk.VIII ProPACK 1/48

  Camel and Co. 1/48

  Eagle's Call 1/48

  Tempest Mk.II early version 1/48

  Spitre Story: Tally Ho! 1/48

  CONTENTS

  A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF CAPTAIN W. E. JOHNS

  THE ACE OF SPADES

  LAST FLIGHT ANGLE OF MERCY

  A BUMPY START

  TAIL END CHARLIE

  Published by Eduard-Model Accessories, spol. s.r.o.

  Mírová 170, Obrnice 435 21

  support@eduard.com www.eduard.com

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  Dear Friends and Fellow Modellers,

  I have to begin today’s newsletter with some

  bad news. This year’s E-day is again cancelled.

  I suspect that the reasons for it will not be ne

  -

  eding any detailed explanations, and that they

  are clear to everyone. Uncertain predictions

  regarding the development of the pandemic

  and the restrictions that are in place, covered,

  by the way, in a nine page document written

  in a language used and understood mainly by

  lawyers, has led to our decision. I feel rea

  -

  lly bad about this, and as you all know, I was

  optimistic that things would improve by now.

  I believe that the situation has, in fact, impro

  -

  ved, and I understand the trepidations and care

  exercised by the people responsible. This leads

  to our own trepidations and caution, and if we

  were to uphold and enforce the required re

  -

  strictions, holding the event would not give us

  any pleasure and satisfaction, as it should, but

  rather frustration and stress, the exact things

  we don’t want.

  Alternate Program: Aviation Day in Plzen

  At the same time, though, we don’t want to just

  give up on the whole thing, either. So, we came

  to an agreement with our friends in Plzen at

  Classic Trainers to put on a second air show at

  the field of Plzen-Line. It will take place on Oc

  -

  tober 2nd, and will again be a pleasant, subdu-

  ed affair for invited guests. The invited will be

  those that pre-order tickets, but, as opposed

  to last year, the number of attendees will not

  be limited. A condition will be in place, and that

  is that either vaccination certification must be

  presented, or documentation of having had co

  -

  vid-19, or a negative antigen or PCR test. The

  program itself will be more interesting this

  year than last, and will be connected to our

  new releases. This will be so varied that it’s

  difficult to know where to start, but I will start

  with helicopters.

  Our Mi-24D Limited Edition kit in 1:48th scale

  comes from the Zvezda Mi-24V. The Mi-24D

  will be possible through the use of included

  conversion parts. This will be from our popu

  -

  lar Brassin line, this time, though, not in the

  form of resin castings, but for the mostpart, as

  actual 3D prints. I will write more on those in

  the following texts, so I won’t dive head-first

  into describing them here, though I will say

  that the advantages of 3D printed parts over

  cast resin items include easier application and

  geometrical stability, not to mention higher fi

  -

  delity of detail. The conversion will be covered

  by three parts that will recreate the D version

  Raduga-F guidance pod under the nose, chaff/

  flare dispensers under the tail and the exhaus

  -

  ts (although I am not certain that these things

  behind the engines are called ‘exhausts’, but

  for now, no better term comes to mind). The

  -

  re will also be some smaller, version specifics

  included in the cockpit, such as the collimator

  gunsight, although exactly what qualifies it as

  a collimator item I am not certain of either, and

  pylons with Falanga (AT-2 Swatter) missiles.

  The missiles will be cast resin in the kit, and the

  reason for this is production quantity require

  -

  ments, and set of Swatters will be released as

  a separate Brassin set too. The kit will include

  some photoetching, such as the rails for the

  missiles, and the instrument panel and seat

  -

  belts, but these should come as no surprise.

  Part of the package will be made up of the Ja

  -

  roslav Spacek publication that was included in

  the Hind kit in 72nd scale, released five years

  ago. The current version of the publication only

  has its roots in that one from five years ago,

  and has significant differences, among which

  are that it deals strictly with the Mi-24D in

  Czechoslovak and Czech Air Force service. We

  will focus on the Mi-24V and Mi-35 variants in

  a year or so, and the plan is to release similar

  kits around the same time to be highlights for

  E-day 2022. And I am not ready to speculate

  on the go or no-go for E-day 2022 at this point.

  This kit will have its premiere at Plzen, and will

  be available for purchase there, and an actu

  -

  al Czech Army Air Force Mi-24 will make an

  appearance, too. It won’t be a ‘D’ version, but

  I doubt that anyone will seriously mind.

  Another participant in the event should be

  a Hurricane. This had become a fixture in many

  performances, but that doesn’t matter either.

  We have invited the Hurricane to come to Plzen

  because another of our new releases is Octo

  -

  ber’s Limited Edition boxing of the Arma Hobby

  Hurricane Mk.I in 1:72nd scale, dubbed Hurris

  -

  tory. This release is consistent with the vision

  of our new Limited Edition kits, meaning it is

  a Dual Combo issue with some twelve marking

  options. The Arma kit has received some very

  high praise and I expect that this issue will be

  no different. As a theme, it is the polar oppo

  -

  site to July’s Adlergriff, which centred around

  the 1:72nd scale Bf 109E of various types, first

  and foremost used in the Battle of Britain. The

  Hurricanes are mainly from the same battle

  with a greater number covering later periods,

  with four even of the tropicalized version from

  North Africa.

  Then, there should be a lot of Trener (‘Trainer’)

  aircraft in Plzen, as well. The reason for that

  is that they will be invited, and the reason why

  they will be invited is that Plzen will see the

  release of our new 1:48th scale kit. This will,

  again, be a Limited Edition issue kit covering

  the Z-226 Trener in various versions. Speci

  -

  fically, they will include the Z-226B, Z-226T,

  Z-226M and the Z-226MS. Technically, the Tre-

  ner is slated to be a new item for November,

  but was originally intended as such for Octo

  -

  EDITORIAL

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  ber to coincide with E-day. Our mistake was

  that we were not able to finish the model in

  time to make it a part of October’s list of new

  kits, which were slated to go out on the 15th of

  September. But due to the work of my collea-

  gues, who did everything they could to remedy

  the situation, the model can be premiered on

  October 2nd in Plzen. Or at least, that is how

  things are panning out, but the kit is still not

  quite ready and time is running down. If the kit

  is still not ready for normal release, we will at

  least have the plastic sprues, boxes, and decals

  to show off. But, if we have all these individual

  components ready, chances are that the kit will

  be set to go out the door. But, in any case, if the

  Trener kits are not in Plzen, the real thing will

  be, and that in itself will be worthwhile.

  All of the above are clearly being planned on

  the basis of these three kits. The rest of the

  October new releases will be saved for Octo-

  ber’s newsletter. Details of the air show can

  be found elsewhere throughout this newsle-

  tter, on the pages of the Eduard e-shop

  at www.eduard.cz , on Facebook, Twitter and

  so on.

  September Limited Edition Releases

  There will also be the September releases

  to be had at Plzen. One of these is seriously

  threatened with being hopelessly sold out by

  the time the event comes around, so we are

  planning on holding back a carton or two to

  have some remnants of stock at our table in

  Plzen. This is the Limited Edition kit ‘Angel of

  Mercy’ aka the B-25J Mitchell in 1:72nd. At the

  moment as I write this, at the end of August,

  the situation is not quite so dramatic, but they

  can be extrapolated to that end. We’ve already

  got some drama behind us, and the plastic has

  arrived from Japan with a major delay. You may

  recall that we have had to postpone the release

  of the kit. The plastic didn’t even arrive in time

  for August release, and when they should have

  been in the process of being packed, they were

  still sitting in customs in Hamburg. It’s just one

  example of the state of international shipping

  these days, which can be described as depre-

  ssing. It’s a mess that has not been witnessed

  in a long time, if ever, actually. The information

  that can be had, and its accuracy, seems to be

  a massive, twenty or thirty year step bac-

  kwards. The important thing now is to under-

  stand what Angel of Mercy is. It is the B-25J

  with the glass nose that was used by units in

  1944-1945 in the Mediterranean and Far East

  theatres of operation. There are ten marking

  options, five from Europe and five from Asia,

  and they are very striking options to boot.

  Current ‘rights activists’ would likely class

  them as sexist and vulgar applying current

  standards and agendas to wartime conditions

  as they like to do. See them for yourselves, and

  if you want this kit, don’t delay. This kit will not

  be in stock for very long. The decal sheet is, of

  course, quite substantial, and is consistent with

  the subjects it covers. The decals are ours, and

  are of the ‘peeling’ variety, something that after

  three years after their introduction has become

  a standard norm, but we still get a lot of questi-

  ons as to whether or not the decals included in

  recent releases includes these types. So, yes,

  they are. And that includes stencil data sheets,

  too. You can also read the article that focuses

  on the Mitchell named ‘Angel of Mercy’ and her

  crew in this issue of the newsletter.

  Despite the fact that this kit is, without a doubt,

  a beautiful release, it’s not our ace up the sle-

  eve for the month. This honor falls on the new

  Camel, being first released as a Limited Edition

  kit named ‘Camel & Co.’. Originally, the kit was

  being developed under the name of ‘Biggles &

  Co.’, but during development, it was discovered

  that the publishers of W.E. Johns’ ‘Ace of Spa-

  des’ had registered the name ‘Biggles’, and so

  this was our way of circumnavigating potential

  conflicts. There is no registered trademark for

  our industry or our group of products per se, but

  using the name as is didn’t give us a warm or

  fuzzy feeling. Biggles is, nevertheless, the cen-

  tral theme of this edition. The first two marking

  options are based on the work of W.E. Johns.

  They are actually fictitious, but we are not the

  ones that made them up. The development of

  the appearance of aircraft serialed J1936 come

  from researches that have looked into Biggles

  aircraft, and J4613 is based on an illustration by

  Howard Leight in the short story ‘Caught Na-

  pping’. That story is not really about Biggles, so

  our connection between the pilot and machine

  is likely off. But admit it… our hobby is really

  something when we can find a mistake in the

  development of fictional markings on an air-

  craft flown by a hero in a novel. I find this whole

  thing quite intriguing, and I hope you will, too.

  This is why we chose this non-traditional path,

  and inserted Biggles’ aircraft among serious,

  historically accurate and documented Camels.

  After all, who is the most famous Camel pilot?

  There are many candidates, and we all know of

  a few. We have Captain Arthur Brown, conque-

  ror of the Red Baron, William Barker, Raymond

  Collishaw, Donald R. MacLaren, Henry Woollett,

  and many others. None of you is likely to re-

  cite the entire list of Camel aces, but there is

  one name that is almost certain to be common

  to all of them, and that is the name of Captain

  James Bigglesworth. Him and his creator,

  W.E. Johns, together with Pierre Clostermann,

  Ernst Udet, Antione Saint-Exupery and even

  Frantisek Fajtl are our childhood heroes. They

  were important in leading us down the road to

  the magic of plastic modelling. So, who cares

  that Biggles is no more than a hero in a story?

  He is our hero, and we want his Camel to help

  make our modelling world more complete. And

  for those of you that want to depict his blue and

  yellow Camel, leave the serial number off the

  rudder and you have it.

  The details concerning the colouring of Biggles’

  Camels will be explained further on our Face-

  book page and maybe will even find its way into

  future issues of our newsletter. But not in this

  one, because there is already an article and

  a short story dedicated to him. That is the afo-

  rementioned ‘Ace of Spades’. The other is the

  biography of W.E. Johns by Roger Harris. But,

  that will not be the end of the Biggles saga for

  us. Starting with the October newsletter, we

  will be presenting the genesis of books about

  Biggles Even that is unlikely to be the end of it

  on this theme within the pages of our newsle-

  tter. I am often asked why a new Camel? The

  reason is that the original galvanized forms

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  were in rough shape. Extracting plastic sprues

  from them was becoming an embarrassment.

  These old forms were made at a time when

  there were changes being implemented in

  the composition of materials used in the ma-

  nufacture of plating dies, which had an adver-

  se effect on copper shells that were, in turn,

  reflected in the surface of the forms. The end

  result was a short lifespan of the forms. To top

  it off, even the kit design was not that great.

  That also found itself in the midst of the change

  from handmade forms to CAD generated items,

  and we had no experience in CAD designs and

  were in search of the correct procedures. That

  resulted in some rough and incomplete details

  and a more difficult kit to build, and was a far

  cry from what we can do today. And because

  we simply want a Camel in our catalog, if for no

  other reason, it belongs among the best known

  types in history, we had no choice but to do it

  again, and do it better.

  Other New Releases

  Besides two Limited Edition kits, we have ano-

  ther Mustang, this time a P-51K in the Profi-

  PACK line. The ‘K’ is a ProfiPACK classic, It has

  a list of marking options that are chosen in the

  normal way, with emphasis on colour and pilot

  histories, as you will be able to tell as you go

  through the profiles from the kit below. I can

  already hear the choruses of ‘oh God, another

  Mustang! Can’t you make something else for

  a change?!?’, but we have had a lot of requests

  for this version, and the ‘something else’ has

  already been covered by the above paragra-

  phs. If you are interested in new impulses and

  new, up to now unproduced, items, listen up!

  The next four months will see the premiere

  of two brand new kits. Along with the Camel

  in three versions, we have molds ready for

  three new models, so from now to the end of

  the year, we are in for some ride that will not

  end with the coming of December. In fact, the-

  re is no issue with any excess of monotony in

  our activities. September alone sees six new

  kits, and if you think this is on the boring side,

  then I am throwing in the towel. To round out

  the new items, I will make reference to three

  more. In the Weekend line, we will be releasing

  the MiG-21MF in 1:48th scale. The boxart de

  -

  picts the now famous plane coded 1113, one of

  the first two MiGs to serve in the Czechoslovak

  Air Force that featured noseart. The art was

  -

  n’t carried for very long and the bird only flew

  with it likely just once. It also didn’t fly with any

  weapons while so adorned, and the roof of the

  depicted castle was not shingled at the time.

  But these inaccuracies are survivable by the

  modeler. Even the best Robin Hood movies are

  not exactly according to history. In the form of

  re-editions of sold out kits, returns to the cata-

  log will be made by the Spitfire Mk.VIII and the

  Fw 190D-11/D-13. Be forewarned that this Fw

  190 won’t be a new release in the Dual Combo

  format, but will only include one model. This

  has already managed to be covered in discu

  -

  ssion forums, but this one, as well as the other

  Doras, is getting on in age, and the original re-

  leases came about when different standards

  ruled. Today, it’s largely about the plastic. Until

  recently, the cost of the plastic was a relatively

  low expense within the context of all included

  components that make up a kit. It made econo-

  mic sense to include the second complete kit to

  make up a Dual Combo, because overall, each

  of the two kits came to a considerably lower

  price than a single kit. In the first half of this

  year, this has not been the case. The cost of the

  plastic has skyrocketed due to the cost of raw

  materials, and also to the fact that we have had

  to outsource some of our sprue production,

  and all of these things push the cost of produc-

  tion in the wrong direction. Original cost calcu-

  lations no longer apply, sometimes wildly so,

  and then we have to adjust somewhere. This

  can be in the contents of the kit, or the price of

  it, and sometimes both. In some cases, we can

  maintain the set retail prices, and re-editions

  are at the same price as they were previously.

  This applies to newer kits, mostly. It’s harder

  with older kits, and is not restricted to just kits,

  but to accessory items as well, especially with

  photoetching. There, the expenses rise even

  more dramatically, because the cost of metals

  is out of control, to the point of being disgus-

  ting.

  3D Prints

  We have already talked of 3D prints included in

  Brassin sets. We have been preparing their high

  volume production and subsequent inclusion in

  sets for about a year now. The process will now

  gradually gain steam. I should mention that 3D

  prints have been a part of Brassin production

  from the line’s inception some twelve years

  ago. This line has basically never utilized hand

  -

  made masters, and were designed in CAD and

  the vast majority of them have been 3D prin-

  ted. Only in the beginning, we did experiment

  with CNC milling, and these mostly focused on

  the production of weapon sets. Back then, and

  until recently, the quality of the prints was not

  good enough to be considered for production.

  They were also relatively expensive, so all we

  printed were masters that were manually cle-

  aned up and copied for production molds. Tho-

  se that ever attended a Novemberfest know

  the process, because they would have seen it

  firsthand. In the last few years, 3D printing has

  made massive leaps forward. That, combined

  with a decline in the price of the material that

  is used for printing, has made 3D print produc

  -

  tion a realistic path to go down. Many smaller

  companies and individuals have been selling

  such products for quite a while now. And you

  may also be familiar with our own testing of the

  waters with the 3D printed spray systems for

  the 1:72nd scale Cmelak or the camera frames

  for the 48th scale F-6D Mustang. In September,

  we also have another two small sets to add,

  the seat and the pumps for the Camel. The seat

  in particular is very well done, and looks very

  ‘braided’. Prints will be gaining momentum in

  October, and there will be three new, more se-

  rious sets, all designed for the Camel: bomb

  racks with bombs, and Bentley BR.1 and Cler-

  get 9B engines.

  I think that these sets illustrate the progress

  of this technology very nicely. For example,

  the Bentley engine is in three pieces, two resin

  and one photoetched. The main body is a print,

  which includes the pistons and pushrods. The

  second printed part covers the fuel tubing to

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  the piston heads while the PE piece represents

  the plug wires. I am hopeful that this will be

  viewed as optimized use of available techno-

  logies and that the discussions about these

  will be positive. My own impression is that this

  engine is a small miracle, and I am curious to

  see what will be said by a traditionally critical

  component of the modelling community.

  I don’t think there is any real need to try and

  convince anyone of the mentioned advantages

  of 3D prints. In some sets, these will be obvi-

  ous, and it should lead to their use by mode-

  lers who, for one reason or another, may have

  avoided such detail sets in the past. These may

  have included difficulty of use and geometrical

  instability, both of which are being addressed

  with this technology. Production will differ

  from traditional methods. Besides a dramatic

  decrease in the number of parts, what gluing

  will need to be done will be accommodated

  by the geometrical stability over long periods,

  weather it is an assembly of printed parts or

  a completed assembly into the model. I expect

  the tolerences of fit to be as tight as they are

  with our kits, and this will set these apart from

  cast resin…another league altogether. We fine-

  -tuned this technology over the summer and

  bought two new printers. One is being dedica-

  ted to 3D production prints and the other for

  Look and Space sets.

  By November, the majority of our production

  will be printed. By next year, the goal is to have

  the majority of new items done with this tech-

  nology, quickly replacing the cast resin. This

  will concern first and foremost missiles, as

  well as engines and cockpits. So far, wheels

  will still be cast, because it actually looks as

  though 3D prints as production pieces offer no

  advantages over cast resin. And since we have

  touched on expenses and resources, it looks

  like we can largely maintain price points where

  they are. Maybe we can even decrease them a

  bit. Time will tell if all this is sustainable. What

  is happening currently with costs of metal and

  plastic, and even wood and other building ma-

  terials, was unforeseen even a year ago.

  Samples of newly prepared production will be

  up for inspection on September 11th at Hotel

  Olympik at the national championships of the

  CzR. This will begin at 3:00pm, and will go on

  through as long as interest lasts. Much of the

  above described things will be there, and more.

  For example, there will be a set rivets for the

  Mi-24, printed in the same manner as our Spa-

  ce sets. They are applied like decals and are

  very ‘rivetting’!

  I would like to also point out that we esta-

  blished an Instagram account. The address is

  EduardCompany. So if you prefer Instagram to

  Facebook, you are more than welcome to come

  by for a visit.

  Happy Modelling!

  Vladimir Sulc

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  William Earl Johns (his name is often incorrect-

  ly spelt with an “e” on the end of Earl) was born

  on Sunday February 5, 1893 at Mole Wood Road,

  Bengeo in Hertfordshire. His father, Richard

  Eastman Johns was a tailor, and his mother

  Elizabeth Johns (nee Earl) was the daughter

  of a master butcher. Johns had a younger bro-

  ther, Russell Ernest Johns, who was born on

  October 24, 1895.

  Army calls

  Johns' early ambition was to be a soldier.

  In January 1905, he went to Hertford Gram-

  mar School (now the Richard Hale School,

  Hertford) where the headmaster was Major

  Kinman. Some of his experiences here went

  into the book BIGGLES GOES TO SCHOOL. Not

  a particularly able scholar, Johns was a crack

  shot with a rifle. In the summer of 1907, he was

  apprenticed to a county municipal surveyor for

  four years and in 1912 was appointed as a sa-

  nitary inspector in Swaffham in Norfolk. Soon

  after, his father died of tuberculosis at the age

  of 47. Johns soon spotted a "pretty girl" called

  Maude Hunt who was the daughter of the Re-

  verend John Hunt, a vicar at Little Dunham.

  It is worth saying that Maude was eleven years

  older than him.

  On October 4, 1913, Johns joined the Territorial

  Army as a Private in the King's Own Royal Re-

  giment (Norfolk Yeomanry). This was a cavalry

  regiment, so he had his own horse. In August

  1914 the Great War began and Johns' regiment

  was mobilised. He later wrote that he

  "gallo-

  ped down the drive to what, in my youthful folly,

  I supposed was going to be death or glory. I had

  yet to learn that in war there is plenty of death

  but little glory; that in war only death is real; that

  glory is simply gilt and tinsel to wrap around

  the other so that it looks less like what it really

  is".

  Like many other couples, faced with an un-

  certain future, Bill Johns and Maude Hunt got

  married on Tuesday October 6, 1914. His brother,

  Russell was his best man. Johns' regiment was

  in training and on home defence duties until

  September 1915 when they received embarkati-

  on orders for duty overseas.

  The Great War years

  Travelling in the SS Olympic to Gallipoli, Johns'

  regiment went to fight alongside the ANZAC

  (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps)

  against the Turks and the Germans. Disease

  was the biggest problem for Johns' regiment,

  but he served under fire in the trenches until

  the regiment was withdrawn in December 1915.

  Johns was to recount a number of tales of in-

  stant death from these times. Sent initially to

  Alexandria, the regiment next went to form part

  of the defences to the Suez Canal. On March 18,

  1916, Maude gave birth to Johns' son who was

  christened William Earl Carmichael Johns but

  was known as “Jack” to distinguish him from

  his father. Johns trained as a machine gunner

  and was transferred on 1st September 1916 to

  a new force (only founded in October 1915), the

  Machine Gun Corps. He was also promoted to

  Lance Corporal. After brief leave in England,

  Johns was then sent to Salonika in Greece.

  Here he served in the trenches and fought in

  a number of battles. In April 1917 he took part

  in the spring offensive. Johns came down with

  malaria and whilst in hospital in Salonika, he

  put in for a transfer to the Royal Flying Cor-

  ps. On September 26, 1917, Johns was granted

  a temporary commission as Second Lieutenant

  and posted back to England to learn to fly at No.

  1 School of Aeronautics at Reading. He was tau-

  ght by Captain Ashton. He learnt in "an old Rum-

  pity"; a Maurice Farman Shorthorn, and many

  Captain James Bigglesworth has made an indelible

  mark on aviation history, however fictional charac-

  ter he may be. Anyway, it should not be forgotten

  that many of his stories are based on real events

  that his creator either experienced himself or heard

  from fellow aviators. Who was the man who influen-

  ced millions of boys so much that they later beca-

  me aviators too?

  ROGER HARRIS

  Photo: RAF Museum

  HISTORY

  A BRIEF

  BIOGRAPHY

  OF CAPTAIN

  W. E. JOHNS

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  of his experiences were to go into the book

  BIGGLES LEARNS TO FLY. Johns had an aptitu-

  de for flying and soon went solo but stalled and

  crashed on his first flight. On January 20, 1918,

  he was posted to No. 25 Flying Training School

  at Thetford, close to where his wife and son

  lived. A Home Establishment posting sounds

  very cushy but in fact Flying School was dan-

  gerous. People crashed and died on a weekly

  basis and sometimes there were fatalities on

  a daily basis. There are many astonishing ta-

  les of death and disaster from this time, which

  make fascinating reading. Johns himself had

  a number of spectacular crashes and forced

  landings from failed engines. He once wrote off

  three planes in three days due to engine failu-

  re and the planes he destroyed must number

  in double figures. Had he been a German pilot

  he would have been an ace! It has to be said

  that this was not uncommon, and many planes

  were destroyed by various accidents. In April

  1918, Johns was posted to Marske-on-Sea in

  Yorkshire. The CO here was a Major Champion,

  who was nicknamed 'Gimlet', a nickname Johns

  was to later borrow for one of his future cha-

  racters. On 20th July 1918, Johns received no-

  tification that he was being posted to the front

  in France.

  Biggles goes to war

  It is a common misconception that William

  Earl Johns was a fighter pilot with the Royal

  Flying Corps. In fact, on April 1, 1918, the Royal

  Flying Corps had merged with the Royal Na-

  val Air Service to become the Royal Air Force

  and Johns was actually a bomber pilot. Johns

  effectively posted himself to No. 55 (Day) Bom-

  bing Squadron stationed at Azelot, near Nancy

  in France. Here they shared an airfield with

  No. 99 Squadron and No. 104 Squadron. No.

  55 Squadron was equipped with De Havilland

  DH.4 aircraft. These two-seater aircraft were

  heavy bombers with 275 hp Rolls-Royce Ea-

  gle engines. They were nicknamed "flaming

  coffins" because the petrol tank was between

  the pilot and his rear observer and so a good

  target for enemy aircraft. It has to be said that

  life expectancy was low for many First World

  War pilots. At one stage, average life expectan-

  cy was just 11 days.

  Johns arrived in late July 1918 (although due to

  various paperwork problems he wasn't offi-

  cially posted to the squadron until August 21,

  1918). Johns only had to last until November 11,

  1918, and the war would be over, but such was

  the nature of his job, that like many others, he

  didn't make it. He flew on numerous bombing

  raids on an almost daily basis and had a num-

  ber of close shaves with enemy aircraft. It was

  on Monday September 16, 1918, that Johns "fai-

  led to return". The night before had been spent

  in Nancy but for various reasons he got lost

  on the return journey and stopped at a mag-

  nificent French house at 03.00 a.m. to ask for

  directions. Here he met a beautiful French girl

  and was able to spend some time with her. She

  was to become the inspiration for the love of

  Biggles' life, Marie Janis in THE CAMELS ARE

  COMING book. On Monday September 16, 1918,

  whilst flying in formation on a bombing raid to

  Mannheim, Johns, together with his observer

  and rear gunner, 2nd Lt. A. E. Amey, were hit

  by German anti-aircraft fire and their fuel tank

  holed. Forced to drop out of formation they

  were then easy prey for a dozen or so German

  fighters and shot to pieces. Amey was killed

  and Johns hit in the thigh and had his goggles

  smashed by bullets. Eventually his engine was

  hit and stopped, spraying petrol vapour every-

  where. The flames held off and Johns crashed

  in a German field and passed out. Coming

  round, he was able to get out of the plane but

  couldn't get Amey's body out. He was captured

  by the Germans and given a rough time, due to

  the recent bombing of a Sunday school and the

  death of a number of local children. The pilots

  who shot him down came to see him and he

  was treated by them with great camaraderie.

  The pilot who claimed to have eventually got

  him wore the Blue Max and in later years,

  Johns became convinced he had been shot

  down by Ernst Udet, but this cannot be correct,

  as Udet was not there at that time. Johns was

  sentenced to be shot by a firing squad, but

  this was never carried out and he was sent to

  a Strasbourg gaol. After an initial escape

  attempt here, he was sent to another camp at

  The Airco D.H.4 was a medium bomber, an aircraft that W. E. Johns flew at the front. Because of the fuel tank placed

  between the pilot and observer, these machines were nicknamed the flaming coffins.

  Photo: zdroj Wikiwand

  HISTORY

  Georg Weiner: Johns' Slayer

  The German airman who shot down Johns' crew

  on September 16, 1918, was Georg Weiner, and at

  the time he was commander of Jasta 3. Johns

  was at controls of a D.H.4 bomber (F5712) of No.

  55 Squadron of Independent Force in a raid on

  Mannheim. The flak first hit their tank and then

  seven D.VII Fokkers attacked. The British crew

  landed at Ettendorf near Saverne. Both pilots

  were wounded in the fight, but the gunner, 2nd

  Lt. A. E. Amey died.

  Weiner was born in Dresden on August 22, 1895

  and joined the infantry in August 1914. In June

  1915 he was promoted to the rank of Leutnant

  and after finishing his pilot training he was as-

  signed to Kasta 38 in September 1916 as part

  of Kagohl 7. In November 1916 he was assigned

  to the new Jasta 20 and achieved one victory

  with it. After an injury in June 1917, associated

  with a long period of treatment, he served with

  the Air Service Inspectorate and in other sup-

  plementary roles. In August 1917 Weiner went

  into combat again, this time with Kampfein-

  sitzerstaffel 3. In September 1918, he became

  commander of Jasta 3, and his last task was to

  demobilize the legendary Jasta 5 after the end

  of the war. In total, he achieved nine victories.

  Among the airmen he shot down during his

  career was American volunteer Sgt. Thomas

  Hitchcock, Jr. serving at Spa 87. Weiner shot

  him down on March 6, 1918. Although the Amer-

  ican was captured, he managed to escape to

  Switzerland in August. In the interwar period,

  he became a polo player, leading the U.S. na-

  tional team and still holds the record handicap

  of 10. During World War II, he was involved in

  the development of the P-51 fighter, particu-

  larly with regard to the use of Rolls-Royce

  Merlin engines manufactured under license by

  Packard. He was killed in an air crash on April

  18, 1944, in the UK. Based on his fate, author

  F. Scott Fitzgerald created the character of Tom

  Buchanan in his novel The Great Gatsby (1925)

  and Tommy Barban in Tender Is the Night (1934).

  Georg Weiner served continuously in the armed

  forces during the interwar period and from

  March 1937 to January 1938 commanded the

  fighter unit I./JG 137, which he took over from

  Bruno Loerzer (44 victories, PlM, KC). While

  serving in various administrative positions in

  the Luftwaffe command, he attained the rank

  of Generalmajor. In February 1945, he went into

  civilian life for health reasons, but was taken

  prisoner by the Soviets in October 1945. He was

  not released until September 1949. He died in

  Göttingen on January 24, 1957.

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  Landshut, 30 miles east of Munich. From here

  he escaped, towards the end of October 1918,

  and was at liberty for four or five days befo-

  re being recaptured whilst stealing apples. He

  was then transferred to a 'bad boys' camp at

  Ingolstadt, and it was whilst Johns was there

  that the war ended on November 11, 1918. He

  returned to his family on Christmas Day 1918,

  much to their astonishment as he had been

  listed as missing and they had presumed that

  he had been killed, until the moment he walked

  through the door.

  Back to civilian life

  After the war, Johns didn't want to return to life

  as a sanitary inspector, as he preferred to stay

  in the Royal Air Force. However, the Armed For-

  ces were being drastically reduced to peaceti-

  me levels. Initially Johns was posted as a flying

  instructor to Cranwell but by April 11, 1919, he

  was transferred to the 'Unemployed List' which

  meant no pay. His marriage to his wife Maude,

  was breaking down. She had developed acute

  arthritis and Jack was a sickly child. Johns took

  up painting, a childhood hobby, until on Novem-

  ber 23, 1920 he was reinstated on the RAF Active

  List for a three-year commission and promo-

  ted to the new RAF rank of full Lieutenant. He

  was sent to join the Inspectorate of Recruiting

  in London's Covent Garden and the family mo-

  ved to Lancaster Gate. It was here that Johns

  recruited 'John Hume Ross' into the RAF. Hume

  was in fact ‘Lawrence of Arabia’. Johns actu-

  ally rejected Lawrence because he didn't like

  his attitude, but he was forced to take him by

  higher authority. Between 1921 and 1924, Johns

  claims that he spent time serving in Iraq and

  India, but his RAF records do not show that he

  served outside the UK. Friends from that time

  have said that Johns did not serve in Iraq and

  India, and he was simply 'gilding the lily'. Spea-

  king of which, this may be the appropriate time

  to mention that Johns' title 'Captain' was self-

  -imposed. If asked, he would say it was his old

  RFC rank, but Johns was a 'Flying Officer' which

  was the equivalent of Lieutenant. It appears

  that Johns gave himself a promotion purely be-

  cause children would more easily understand

  what a Captain was, rather than a 'Flying Offi-

  cer'. It is not known whether Johns really did

  serve in India and Iraq, or whether he merely

  picked up stories from other officers who had

  served there. His books, a number of which are

  set in those countries, certainly have the ring of

  authenticity about them, as if they were written

  by someone who was familiar with those coun-

  tries. Johns also produced artwork from those

  places, which may indicate his claims are true,

  but the real truth is something of a mystery. In

  1922 Johns wrote his first novel "MOSSYFACE".

  It was published by the Weekly Telegraph Novel

  under the pseudonym William Earle (note Johns

  adding the "e"). In 1923 his RAF commission was

  extended another four years and Johns was in

  Birmingham working on RAF recruitment. By

  this time, his wife and son had moved back to

  live with her father, the Reverend Hunt, the ma-

  rriage having completely broken down. Johns

  wanted a divorce, but the Reverend would have

  none of it and Maude wouldn't go against her fa-

  ther's wishes. Whilst living in a hotel in Hackney

  Road, Edgbaston, Johns got friendly with the

  Leigh family next door. He fell in love with Do-

  ris May Leigh (born September 6, 1900) and ex-

  plained his situation to her. When Johns was po-

  sted to Newcastle, Doris went with him, calling

  herself Doris Johns and they were inseparable

  until the day he died. Johns continued to pay for

  his wife and son's upkeep as well as for nurses

  to look after Maude.

  Illustrator and Author

  In 1927, Johns' commission in the RAF was co-

  ming to an end and he had started making a li-

  ving by selling his artwork to various magazines

  such as the Illustrated London News. He speci-

  alized in aviation art and moved to Lingfield in

  Surrey to a cottage with a studio. Doris's family

  moved nearby and her brother Howard Leigh,

  then 18, joined Johns to learn to be an artist as

  well. Howard Leigh was to become a famous

  aviation artist and illustrated many of the ear-

  ly Biggles books. Johns began selling aviation

  illustrations to THE MODERN BOY magazine, pu-

  blished by Amalgamated Press from February

  11, 1928 and soon after started writing aviation

  articles. These were initially credited to 'Our Avi-

  ation Expert' but by 1930, were being credited to

  Flying Officer Johns. In 1931, Johns edited two

  books, THE MODERN BOY'S BOOK OF AIRCRAFT

  and WINGS: A BOOK OF FLYING ADVENTURES.

  John Hamilton Ltd, a publisher that specialized

  in aviation books, published the latter. Johns

  then illustrated THE PICTORIAL FLYING COURSE

  with text by Harry Schofield. A few months later

  Johns wrote FIGHTING PLANES AND ACES.

  John Hamilton Ltd decided to launch a new avi-

  ation magazine and they asked Johns to edit it.

  POPULAR FLYING, aimed at an adult market,

  was first published on March 16, 1932 (cover da-

  ted April 1932). Wanting to write authentic sto-

  ries about flying in the Great War, Johns decided

  to create a fictional airman for the first issue

  and James Bigglesworth, known as 'Biggles',

  was born.

  Biggles first appeared in Popular Flying Volume

  1, No. 1, April 1932 credited as being written by

  'William Earle'. In August 1932, John Hamilton

  published a collection of Biggles stories as THE

  CAMELS ARE COMING. This was the first Bi-

  ggles book and Biggles was to become a British

  Institution.

  Period advert for the first Biggles stories in The Modern Boy Magazine.

  HISTORY

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  Illustration: Drawing Pavel Rampír

  HISTORY

  I

  Captain Bigglesworth of 266 Squadron R.F.C., known to his friends as

  “Biggles”; homeward bound from a solitary patrol, glanced casually at

  the watch on his instrument board. “Twelve-fifteen,” he mused. “Just

  time to look in and have a word with Wilks before lunch.” He altered

  his course a trifle, and a few minutes later set his Sopwith Camel down

  neatly on the aerodrome of No. 287 Squadron, where his friend, Cap-

  tain Wilkinson – more often referred to simply as “Wilks” – commanded

  a Flight of S.E.5s.

  “Is Wilks about?” he called to a group of pilots who were lounging

  about the entrance to a hangar, in which the dim outlines of some squa-

  re-nosed S.E.5s could just be seen.

  “Hullo, Biggles! Yes, I think he’s down in the Mess,” was the reply.

  “Good enough; I’ll stroll down.”

  “Do you want your tanks filling?”

  “No, thanks, laddie; I’ve plenty to see me home.”

  Biggles tossed his cap and goggles into his cockpit and walked quickly

  towards the Mess, where he found Wilks, with two or three members of

  his Flight, indulging in apre-luncheon aperitif.

  “Ah – speak of the devil,” declared Wilks.

  “Do you often talk about yourself?” inquired Biggles.

  “Bah! When are your crowd going to knock a few Huns down?” grinned

  Wilks.

  “Just as soon as the Boche opposite to us have fixed up what few

  fellows we’ve left alive with some new machines. Why?”

  “We’ve got seven this week, so far.”

  “Oh, that’s it, is it?” observed Biggles. “Well, you lot so seldom get

  a Hun that I suppose there is an excuse for you to get a bit chirpy. But you

  start riding too high on the cock-horse and you’ll stall and bruise your-

  selves. What about providing me with a little refreshment, somebody?”

  “The fact is, our new S.E.5s are a bit better than your Camels,” ex-

  plained Wilks apologetically, as he ordered Biggles’s drink.

  “You think so, eh? Well, let me tell you something. I’d back a Bentley-

  -engined Camel against a long-nosed S.E., as a Hun-getter, any day.”

  “And let me tell you something,” declared Wilks, setting his glass

  down. “The worst S.E. in this Squadron could make rings round the best

  Camel you’ve got — ’cos why? Because we’ve got speed and height on

  you.”

  Biggles’s eyes glittered. “Well, speed and height aren’t everything,” he

  said shortly. “My kite will turn twice before you’re halfway round the first

  turn. You think that over.”

  “You’d have to prove that.”

  “I’ll do that.”

  “How?”

  “Camera guns.”

  “When?”

  “Any time you like. Now seems to be the best time; there’s no need to

  wait, as far as I can see.”

  “How would you arrange it?” inquired Wilks curiously.

  “It doesn’t need any arranging. We take off with six films each and

  rendezvous over the aerodrome at ten thousand. No surprise tactics

  allowed. The show starts as soon as both pilots see each other and ends

  as soon as the first man has got his six pictures. Then we’ll develop both

  films and tot up points for hits in the usual way.”

  “I’ll take that on!” cried Wilks, starting up. “I’ll show you whether

  a perishing, oil-swilling Camel can hold a candle to an S.E.”

  “Get ready, then. Your jaw will seize up one day, talking too much.”

  There was a general babble of voices and a move towards the door as

  everyone hurried out on to the aerodrome to watch the match.

  “Get one of your fitters to fix me up a gun,” Biggles told Wilks.

  “I’ll see to it.”

  II

  Ten minutes later the stage was set, and both pilots were ready to climb

  into their machines.

  “Rendezvous over the aerodrome, you said?” queried Wilks.

  RICHARD PLOS

  THE ACE OF SPADES

  William Earl Johns

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  HISTORY

  “That’s right; take off how you like. I’ll approach from the north, and you

  come in from the south. It doesn’t matter about the sun, as the shooting

  doesn’t start until we see each other.”

  “Good enough.”

  “Wait a minute, though!” cried Biggles, suddenly remembering some-

  thing.

  “Have you got any ammunition in your Vickers?”

  “No, they’re just being overhauled.”

  “Hold you hard a minute, then,” retorted Biggles. “I’ve got a full belt in

  mine, and they weigh something. I’ll have them taken out and then we’ll be

  square.”

  It was the work of a moment for a fitter to remove the belt of ammunition,

  and both machines then took off amid the joyful applause of the assem-

  bled aerodrome staff, officers, and ack-emmas.

  Biggles headed away to the north, climbing as steeply as possible in order

  to reach the arranged altitude without loss of time. At eight thousand feet

  he swung round in a wide circle and headed back towards the aerodrome,

  knowing that he would be able to make the other two thousand feet by the

  time he reached it. He peered ahead through his centre section for the S.E.,

  although he was still a long way away from the aerodrome, but Wilks had

  gone as far to the south as he had to the north, and they were still invisible

  to each other.

  Biggles, was, of course, backing the manoeuvrability of the Camel against

  the slight pull in speed and ceiling held by the other. He hoped to beat

  Wilks on the turn, for the Camel’s famous right-hand turn, caused by the

  terrific torque of the rotary engine, was a very real advantage in a combat.

  That was really all he had in his favour, but it was chiefly upon that quality

  that he had developed his own technique in air-fighting, and he hoped to

  catch Wilks unprepared for the manoeuvre.

  Again, he peered ahead for his opponent, and pressed gently on the rud-

  der-bar to swing his nose clear from the head-on position. The movement

  may have saved his life. There came the shrill clatter of a machine-gun

  at point-blank range; at the same moment a stream of tracer poured be-

  tween his wings.

  The shock was almost stunning in its intensity, so utterly unprepared was

  he for anything of the sort, and his actions for at least two seconds were

  purely automatic and instinctive. He kicked out his left foot hard and dra-

  gged the joystick back into his right thigh. The Camel bucked like a wild

  horse, and before it came out, he had recovered his composure and was

  looking for his aggressor. He had done quite a lot of thinking in the brief

  interval of the half-roll. His first impression was that Wilks had attacked

  him, thinking he had been seen, and by some accident ammunition had

  been left in his guns. But he dismissed the thought at once and knew that

  he had fallen victim to a prowling Hun, operating for once in a while over

  the British side of the lines. That, he reasoned, could only mean that the

  Hun – if Hun it was – was an old hand at the game; a novice would hardly

  dare to take such a risk.

  If it was so, then he was by no means out of the wood, for, unarmed, he

  could only make for the ground, an operation that would require a few mi-

  nutes of time, a period of which the Hun, finding his fire was not returned,

  would certainly take full advantage.

  Then he saw him, an orange-and-black Fokker D.VII, with a large Ace of

  Spades painted on the side of its fuselage. Biggles brought the Camel

  round in a lightning turn that put him on the tail of the black-crossed ma-

  chine for a few seconds. Automatically he sighted his guns and swore bi-

  tterly when his pressure on the Bowden lever produced no result. At that

  moment he thought he could have got his man, but there was no time for

  idle speculation. The Hun had reversed the position by a clever move, and

  a tattered skylight warned Biggles that he had better follow the old adage

  of running away if he wished to fight again another day.

  He spun, counted six turns, and came out. Instantly the chatter of guns

  sounded so close that he winced. He held the Camel in a dizzy turn for

  a minute, with the Hun racing behind him trying to bring his guns to bear,

  and then he spun again. All the time, at the back of his mind, was a fierce

  condemnation of his utter and inexcusable folly in flying without ammuni-

  tion, and an equally fierce conviction that if he did succeed in reaching the

  ground alive, he would never again be guilty of such madness. He spun

  for so long that he became giddy and pulled out sluggishly. But the Hun

  was still with him, and he heard his bullets ripping through the spruce and

  canvas of his fuselage.

  For the first time in his life, he nearly panicked. He twisted and turned like

  a minnow with a pike on its tail, losing height on every possible occasion,

  and finally side-slipped steeply into a field that appeared invitingly under

  him. He did not notice that a narrow ditch ran diagonally across the field,

  and it would have made no difference if he had. Fortunately, the Camel had

  nearly run to a stop when he reached it, so it suffered no serious damage.

  It lurched sickeningly, stopped dead, and cocked its tail up into the air. The

  prop disintegrated into flying splinters, mixed with clods of earth.

  Biggles was jerked forward and struck his nose on the padded ends of his

  guns with a force that made him “see stars”. He swore, tersely but effecti-

  vely, undid his safety belt, and looked up just in time to see the Hun waving

  him an ironic farewell. He watched it disappear into the distance, followed

  by a long trail of archie bursts, and then climbed out on to the ground to

  survey the damage. As he did so he noticed for the first time that a road

  bounded the field, over the hedge of which a number of Tommies were

  grinning at him. He heard a car pull up with a grinding of brakes, but he

  paid no attention to it until a sharp commanding voice brought him round

  with a jerk. No fewer than three red-tabbed officers were corning towards

  him; the first, an elderly, hard-faced man, wore the badges of a General.

  “My God! Here’s a General come to sympathise with me. I couldn’t bear

  it,” muttered Biggles to himself, and he was framing a suitable reply when

  the General spoke. The voice was not sympathetic; in fact, there was so-

  mething in the tone of voice that made him wince and may have resulted

  in his subsequent attitude.

  “How long have you been in France?” began the General, coldly.

  “About eleven months, sir,” replied Biggles.

  “That seems to have been quite long enough.”

  Biggles stared, hardly able to believe his ears. Then, suddenly understan-

  ding the implication behind the General’s words, he froze, and clenched

  his teeth.

  “I witnessed the whole affair – I should hardly call it a combat – from

  start to finish,” went on the General contemptuously.

  “Not once did you make the slightest attempt to return the German’s

  fire. In fact, to put the matter still more clearly, you ran away. Am I right?”

  “Quite right, sir,” answered Biggles frostily.

  “I thought so. That orange and black Fokker has been causing a lot of

  trouble over our side of the lines lately, and you had an admirable oppor-

  tunity to shoot him down, such an opportunity that may not occur again.

  It is a pity you did not take advantage of it, but it would seem that he was

  the better man.”

  “It would seem so, sir.”

  “It would be futile to deny it,” went on the General, icily. “What is your

  name?”

  “Bigglesworth, sir.”

  “Squadron?”

  “Two-six-six, sir.”

  “At Maranique, I believe.”

  “That is so, sir.”

  “Very well. Report back to your unit at once.”

  “Very good, sir.”

  The General turned on his heel, closely followed by his two aides. Biggles

  watched them go, sullen angers mouldering in his eyes. “Never been in

  the air in your lives, any of you, I’ll bet. You’d jump like cats if you heard

  a gun go off. Then, without asking why, you come and call me a coward,”

  he mused. “The fact is, I suppose that Hun has been shooting up your snug

  little headquarters, and you don’t like it. You wouldn’t. Well, I hope he blows

  your dug-out as high as the Eiffel Tower, and I hope you’re inside it when

  he does,” he soliloquized, as he made his way slowly down the road in

  search of a telephone, to ask for transport to fetch him, and the wrecked

  Camel, home.

  III

  Major Mullen’s opening remark when, an hour later, he reported at the

  Squadron Office, was an inopportune one, particularly with Biggles in his

  present mood. Far from pouring oil on troubled waters, it added fuel to

  a conflagration.

  “You’ve let me down badly, Bigglesworth,” he began.

  Biggles drew a deep breath, and stiffened. This sort of talk from the Ge-

  neral had merely irritated him, but that his own C.O. should doubt him put

  him in a cold fury.

  “You let a Hun run you into the ground without firing a shot at him.” The

  Major did not ask a question; he made a statement, and Biggles, who was

  about to explain the true facts of the case, shut up like an oyster. He made

  no reply.

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  Illustration: Drawing Petr Hrčka

  HISTORY

  “You’ve broken your machine, I hear,” went on the C.O.

  “I have, sir.”

  “Brigadier-General Sir Hales-Morier, of Air Headquarters, has just

  been on the phone to me. I will spare your feelings by not repeating what

  he said, but I gather he proposes to post you to Home Establishment; in

  the meantime, he wants a report tonight from me on the matter. It is to

  reach him by six-thirty, so will you please make out your own report and

  let me have it by five o’clock.”

  “I will, sir.”

  “That’s all.”

  Biggles did not go to the Mess. Instead, seething with anger, he made

  his way moodily to the sheds. He stood on the deserted tarmac for a few

  minutes and then sent anack-emma down to the Mess with a message

  to Algy Lacey, of his own Flight, informing him that he was borrowing

  his machine and would be back some time. Then he took off and hedge-

  -hopped – finding some satisfaction in the risks he took – to 287 Squad-

  ron, and told Wilks, whom he found at lunch, just what had occurred.

  Wilks, who was about to pull Biggles’s leg in connection with his failure

  to turn up at the appointed place, swore luridly.

  “What are you going to do about it?” he asked.

  “Do? Nothing — not a blessed thing.”

  “You might have told your Old Man about only having celluloid in your

  guns.”

  “I’m making no excuses to anybody; people can think what they like.

  Brass-hats should either ask why or look at a fellow’s record before

  they jump down his throat, and mine isn’t too bad, although I say it my-

  self.”

  “They’ll think you’ve lost your nerve and send you home,” observed

  Wilks, soberly.

  “Let ‘em. I’d as soon be busted by a ham-fisted pupil at an F.T.S. as have

  my inside perforated by explosive bullets. We’ll be able to finish that little

  duel some time when you come home on leave.”

  “Don’t talk rot. You go and tell Mullen that you hadn’t any ammunition,

  or I will.”

  “You mind your own blooming business, Wilks,” Biggles told him col-

  dly, and refusing an invitation to stay to lunch, returned to his Camel.

  He swept into the air in a climbing turn, so steep that if his engine had

  conked the story of his war exploits would have ended there and then;

  he knew it perfectly well and derived a bitter sort of satisfaction from

  the knowledge. But his engine continued to give full revs, and on a wide-

  -open throttle he climbed in ever-increasing circles. He knew precisely

  where he was, for as one landmark disappeared from view, he picked

  out another, although this procedure was purely automatic and deman-

  ded no conscious thought. Yet where he was going, he did not know; he

  was simply flying for the sake of flying. In his present frame of mind,

  he had no desire to talk to anyone, least of all his own Squadron. So, he

  continued to climb, thinking about the affair of the morning.

  It was a burst of white archie about two hundred yards ahead that brou-

  ght him out of his reverie. It was only a single burst, and as it was British

  archie it could only mean one thing – a signal. Mentally thanking the

  gunners for what should have been quite unnecessary, he scanned the

  sky around quickly for the hostile machine that he knew must be in the

  vicinity and was just in time to see a vague shadow disappear into the

  eye of the sun. It had gone too quickly for him to recognise the type, but

  as he could see no other machines in the sky, he assumed it was an

  enemy.

  Now a newcomer to the game would have turned at once, and thus made

  it clear to the stalker – if stalker it was – that he had been observed; but

  Biggles did nothing of the sort. He did certain things quickly, but he held

  straight on his course. The first thing he did was to pullup the handle of

  his C.C. gear and fire two or three shots to satisfy himself that the guns

  were working; then he twisted round in his seat as far as his thick fly-

  ing-kit and the cramped space would permit and squinted through his

  extended fingers in the direction of the sun. The glare was blinding, but

  by just keeping the ball of the thumb over the blazing disc and opening

  his fingers only wide enough to get a blurred view through the bristles

  of his gauntlet, he was able to search the danger zone. He picked out

  a straight-winged machine, in silhouette, end on, and knew that the ene-

  my pilot was just launching his attack.

  Not by a single movement of joystick or rudder did he reveal that he had

  spotted the attacker; he watched its approach coolly. Only when the Hun,

  who now appeared as a thick black spot, was about three hundred yards

  away, did he push his joystick forward for more speed; then, when he

  judged that the other was about to fire, he made a lightning Immelmann

  turn. He knew that at that moment the enemy pilot would be squinting

  through his sights, and the disappearance of the Camel from his limited

  field of view would not unduly alarm him.

  In this he was correct. The Boche, thinking he had a “sitter”, wasted three

  precious seconds looking for him in his sights, and it was the sharp

  stutter of Biggles’s guns that warned him of his peril, and sent him half

  rolling wildly.

  Now it is a curious fact that, although Biggles had been thinking about

  his orange-and-black acquaintance of the morning when the archie

  gunners had fired their well-timed shot, all thought of him went out of

  his head when he realised that he was being stalked; so it was with

  something of a mild shock, swiftly followed by savage exultation, that

  he saw the well-remembered colours through his sights as he took the

  Hun broadside on and grabbed his Bowden lever.

  The pilot of the black-crossed machine came out of his life-saving ma-

  noeuvre, looking around with a speed born of long experience. He saw

  the Camel anywhere but where he expected to find it, and in the last pla-

  ce he hoped to find it – on his tail. But he was, as Biggles had assumed,

  no novice at the game, and did not allow the British machine to retain the

  coveted position long enough to do him any harm. Biggles did actually

  get in a quick burst just as the other machine darted out of his sights, but

  it was ineffective, and the duel began in earnest, both pilots aware that it

  could only end in the downfall of one of them.

  They were evenly matched, although Biggles, smarting from his repri-

  mand of the morning – for which, rightly or wrongly, he blamed the pilot

  of the orange machine – fought with a ferocity that would not have been

  possible in a normal cold-blooded battle. He hit the other machine se-

  veral times, but without causing it any apparent damage, and he took

  several shots through his own empennage in return.

  The fight had opened over the British side of the lines, the Hun evidently

  repeating his tactics of the morning; but a fairly strong wind was carry-

  ing both machines towards the pock-marked, barren strip of no-ma-

  n’s-land. Naturally, this was not to Biggles’ liking, for unless the Hun

  made a bad mistake, which was hardly to be expected, he would soon be

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  The blue and yellow Camel with this serial number was based on an

  illustration for Johns' short story CAUGHT NAPPING, which does not

  feature Biggles. In addition, it was slightly altered (blue instead of yellow

  struts) as part of our fictional modifications. If You wish to have a "proper"

  fictional Biggles Camel from the blue and yellow period of Johns' work,

  simply omit the serial number on the vertical fin and give all the struts a

  yellow color. That's it!

  HISTORY

  fighting with enemy territory below. So, gambling on the Hun repeating

  the tactics he had followed during the encounter of the morning, he deli-

  berately spun. As he hoped, the other machine followed him. Twisting his

  head round, he could see the Hun spinning down behind him. He counted

  six turns, came out, and instantly spun the other way. This time, however,

  he allowed the machine to make only one turn. He pulled it out into

  a loop, half rolled on to even keel on top of the loop, and to his intense

  satisfaction saw the Hun go spinning past him. The short spin had caught

  him off his guard, and as he came out, Biggles thrust home his attack. He

  deliberately held his fire until it was impossible to miss, and then fired

  one of the longest bursts he had ever fired in his life.

  The Hun jerked upwards, fell off on to his wing, and spun. Biggles was

  taking no chances. He followed it down without taking his eyes off him

  for an instant in case it was a ruse. But it was no ruse. The orange Fo-

  kker went nose first into the ground with its engine full on, and Biggles

  stiffened in his seat as he watched that fearful crash. He circled for

  a minute or two, looking for a suitable place to land; it was not his usual

  practice to look at unpleasant sights too closely, but on this occasion an

  idea had struck him, and he had a definite object in view.

  He saw people hurrying towards the crash from all points of the com-

  pass, he put the Camel down in an adjacent field and joined the hurrying

  crowd.

  His great fear was that the wreck would be removed piecemeal by sou-

  venir-hunters before he could reach it, but he found an officer on the

  spot when he got there, and the machine lay exactly as it had fallen.

  IV

  It was five o’clock when he reported to the Squadron Office. Major Mullen

  looked up from his desk as he entered. “Ah, you’ve brought your report,”

  he said.

  “Er — yes, sir.”

  “Good. First of all, though, you had better read what I have said. Here

  is the minute; I shall attach your report to it.”

  Biggles took the buff sheet and felt his face go red with shame as he

  read a eulogy of his conduct and exploits since he had joined the Squad-

  ron. The C.O., he knew, must have gone to considerable trouble in the

  matter, for he had looked up a large number of combat reports – not all

  his own – and pinned them to the document. Further, he had evidently

  been in communication with Major Paynter, for a lengthy report from his

  old C.O. was also attached. Biggles did not read it all through but laid it

  on the C.O.’s desk.

  “Thank you, sir,” he said quietly, “but I’m afraid I don’t deserve such

  praise.”

  “That is for me to decide,” replied the C.O. Then, with a quick change

  of tone, he added, “What on earth possessed you to behave like that this

  morning, and before such an audience, too?” A slow smile spread over

  Biggles’s face.

  “Well, the fact of the matter is, sir,” he said sheepishly, “I was in the

  air without any ammunition. It sounds silly, I know, but I had arranged

  to fight a camera-gun duel with Wilks – that is, Wilkinson, of 287, who

  claimed that his S.E. was better than my Camel.”

  “Then why, in the name of heaven, didn’t you tell that interfering old

  fool – no, I don’t mean that – why didn’t you tell the General so?”

  Biggles shrugged his shoulders. “I find it hard to argue with people who

  form their own opinions before they know the facts.”

  “Like that, was it?”

  “Just like that, sir!”

  “I see. Well, let me have your report.”

  “I’m afraid it’s rather a bulky one, sir,” replied Biggles, struggling with

  something under his tunic. The C.O. stared in wide-eyed amazement.

  “What in the name of goodness have you got there?” he gasped.

  Biggles slowly unfolded a large sheet of orange fabric on which was

  painted a Maltese Cross and beside it an Ace of Spades. He laid it on

  the C.O.’s desk. “That, sir, is the hide of the hound who made me bust my

  Camel this morning. I chanced to meet him again this afternoon, and on

  that occasion, I had lead in my guns. I think H.Q. will recognise that Ace

  of Spades, and perhaps it will speak plainer than words. I’m not much of

  a hand with a pen, anyway.”

  First published in the book "THE COCKPIT" (August 1934) and later in

  the book "THE RAID" (April 1935). Taken from the book "BIGGLES OF THE

  SPECIAL AIR POLICE" (September 1953), where the Fokker D.VII type

  was changed to Fokker D.VIII.

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  HISTORY

  The railway bridge in Rovereto was (and still is)

  barely five meters wide but regardless it was an

  important German army transportation line and

  as such drew increased attention of the Ameri-

  can bomber units. After repeated raids it was in

  fact destroyed but the Germans managed to re-

  pair the damaged section by means of temporary

  bridging which, to keep it secret, was used during

  the night only. At the same time, they surrounded

  the bridge with the strong anti-aircraft artillery

  defense. Every „trip” into the area represented a

  considerable risk experienced by both 428th and

  380th BS when they took part in the raid on Ap-

  ril 19. First squadron dispatched 18 aircraft on the

  mission and the second unit added six to the full

  strength. Each Mitchell carried two 1000lb bombs

  (bomb load of total weight of 906 kg). The formati-

  on was led by Col. Remington, 310th BG comman-

  der. In case the German fighters appeared, the

  fighter cover was provided by P-47s and P-51s.

  The sky full of shrapnel

  At 9:40 local time Remington released the brakes

  of the formation’s leading ship, and his Mitchell

  started the take-off roll on the runway in Fano.

  All other 23 aircraft took off in the quick sequen-

  ce and only two circles around the base were

  needed to make full formation. The skies were

  clear and visibility unlimited. Only in the vicinity

  of Florence did the crews notice one tenth cloud

  cover. Past the ancient town, in the direction of

  the target, the skies were clear again. The escort

  fighters were patrolling above, below and on the

  sides of the formation, but the German fighters

  did not show up so shortly before the target the

  Mustangs and Thunderbolts withdrew to moni-

  tor the situation and prepare for the return flight.

  Before the first ships reached the target the first

  anti-aircraft shells started to explode in the sky.

  It was clear to everyone that this time it would be

  no „Milk Run” as they had nicknamed the easy mi-

  ssions. It was obvious that there would be some

  losses, and everybody hoped he would not be one

  to fall victim. There were several „green“ crews

  in the formation who were experiencing a very

  harsh baptism of fire. The shells were exploding

  on all sides and the explosions were rocking the

  airplanes in all directions. Before they released

  their bombs, they heard the excited voice of one

  of the gunners:

  "Plane going down, nine o'clock."

  "It's McGilvray,"

  was the reply.

  "Watch out for chutes,"

  came the answer back

  from someone.

  After a short time:

  "Four, four of 'em, all open,"

  replied the crewman.

  (McGilvray and other crew members returned to

  the unit just the next day after Germany surren

  -

  dered – on May 9 – and according to the unit’s dia-

  ry records they were in “good condition”; editor´s

  note).

  When on April 29, 1945, two dozen of Mitchells

  from USAAF 310th Bombardment Group got airbor-

  ne from their Italian base in Fano to attack the

  railway bridge in Rovereto, no one expected that,

  baring one single aircraft, all remaining ships would

  receive one hole or more “compliments” of the

  German anti-aircraft fire. One of those was a ship

  christened Angel of Mercy. It was her 47th as well

  as her very last mission.

  Aircraft of the 310th BG on their way to the target.

  William S. McMillan in the cockpit of Angel of Mercy. Under the cockpit

  there is the name of Airplane Commander 1st Lt. Thaddeus C. Michal

  visible. The two pilots shared this machine during March 1945.

  Photo: 57th Bomb Wing Asociation

  Photo: 57th Bomb Wing Asociation

  Last FLight

  RICHARD PLOS

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  HISTORY

  After this excited communication a calm order to

  drop the bombs was heard on the air and the le

  -

  ading ship started to turn away from the target.

  Flak fire intensified and it seemed impossible for

  anyone to fly through its barrage. Lt. W. H. Naff’s

  aircraft from 380th BS was hit very hard and lost

  one engine. Another aircraft left the formation

  to escort him. Naff managed to bring the heavily

  damaged ship back behind the Allied lines whe

  -

  re the whole crew bailed out. It was not over yet.

  Another seriously damaged aircraft was 1st Lt.

  William S. McMillan’s ship. His “Angel of Mercy”

  was hit by several shrapnel shells which da

  -

  maged the hydraulic system. The copilot was 1st

  Lt. Walter D. McLean, the other crew members on

  board were bombardier 2nd Lt. William W. Gra

  -

  ham, radio-operator and gunner S/Sgt. Donald

  E. Wilson and gunners T/Sgt Kenneth G. Mueller

  and S/Sgt Arthur S. Hatfield. Both men at controls

  managed to maintain Angel of Mercy on the cour

  -

  se so that Graham was able to drop the bombs on

  the target. The loss of the hydraulic system also

  meant that the landing gear could not be lowered

  for the landing.

  That was however a secondary problem in the

  given moment, first they had to make it with a da

  -

  maged aircraft over the mountains, and to friendly

  territory. They succeeded in doing both and their

  comrades at Fano base, where the group had

  moved barely two weeks before from Corsica,

  would observe an unusual landing. The Mitchell

  approaching the runway had only the nose leg ex

  -

  tended. The unusual belly landing was successful

  though, and except for the rear gunner Hatfield,

  who was already wounded over the target, every

  -

  body else escaped unscathed.

  For his leadership under the heavy fire the for

  -

  mation leader, Col. Peter H. Remington, was

  decorated with Silver Star, several other pilots

  were awarded as well. McMillan was decorated

  with DFC for his conduct and the citation to the

  decoration award stated:

  "[…] Upon the commen-

  cement of the bomb run, shell fragments from

  intense anti-aircraft fire heavily damaged his air

  -

  plane. Displaying great courage […] maintained his

  crippled aircraft on course, thereby enabling his

  bombardier to release his bombs […] Then piloting

  the shattered bomber over difficult mountainous

  terrain to his base, […] effected a perfect landing

  without injury to his crew."

  McMillan managed to save his fellow crew mem-

  bers however he could not save the ship. The Flak

  damage as well as the “kiss” with the ground upon

  landing were extensive and she was written off.

  Angel of Mercy’s incomplete story

  The aircraft serial No. 43-35982 came from the

  production block B-25J-10-NA. We don’t have

  the information about the exact manufacturing

  date neither when it was delivered to 428th BS,

  we know however that it flew its first mission on

  January 8, 1945. It was the raid on Crespellano as

  -

  sembly area, and the aircraft was flown by Capt.

  C. W. Sprague (with 2nd Lt. R. D. Stead as copilot).

  In this aircraft Sprague flew in total six missions,

  afterwards several pilots alternated at its cont

  -

  rols from the beginning of February. As the well-

  -known photographs show, on the port side of

  the fuselage of Angel of Mercy, under the cockpit

  besides T/Sgt E. O. Robinson‘s name as a Crew

  Chief (he survived the war and died on August 9,

  1987) there was also 1st Lt. Thaddeus C. Michal’s

  name as an Airplane Commander. He was a very

  experienced pilot who served with the unit from

  August 1944 until the end of March 1945. For his

  service he was awarded Air Medal and, in addi

  -

  tion to it, nine Oak Leaf Clusters. On March 25 he

  was decorated with the DFC for a mission flown

  on February 6, 1945, when his ship was heavily

  damaged by anti-aircraft fire during the raid on

  San Ambrogio marshalling yards. Regardless,

  Michal pressed on the attack and his bombardier

  dropped the bombs on the target with „devasta

  -

  ting effect “. The ship Michal flew on this mission

  was not 43-35982, i.e. Angel of Mercy however,

  but 43-35957 (this aircraft was lost on March 10,

  1945 during the raid on Oro and the crew of 1st Lt.

  G. A. Rorer was killed). Next day Michal flew 43-

  35982 for the first time and with several excepti

  -

  ons he flew it into combat from then on, mostly

  with 1st Lt. F. S. King as a copilot. Together they

  flew eight missions in February.

  It’s possible that Angel of Mercy was assigned to

  Michal as of February 7. If the unnamed ship be

  -

  came Angel of Mercy while he was flying her, or

  if she had been christened so by Sprague or her

  Crew Chief cannot be ascertained from the his

  -

  toric documents known to the author. At any rate

  Angel of Mercy flew 13 missions in February (out

  of the total 32 missions flown by the whole squad

  -

  ron) out of which nine times piloted by Thaddeus

  C. Michal. A month later „Angel“ flew additional

  17 missions out of which nine times piloted again

  by Michal who shared the airplane with McLe

  -

  an. He flew the ship on seven missions and 2nd

  Lt. S. A. Willis „borrowed“ her once. Michal said

  goodbye to „his“ Mitchell on March 19 flying the

  raid against Vo Sinistro (approximately 15 kilo

  -

  meters south of Rovereto). Due to the navigati-

  onal error the formation bombed the railway in

  Chizzolo (approximately 8 kilometers north from

  the original target). It was Michal’s seventieth,

  and last mission. In the beginning of April, he was

  headed back home to USA.

  Pilots and their airplanes

  The custom to display pilots‘ names on the aircraft

  needs to be explained. The name shown did not

  mean that the ship was assigned exclusively to

  this pilot. In fact, pilots rotated flying the particular

  ship and quite often the pilot-in-command and his

  copilot were not paired permanently, not to men

  -

  tion the rest of the crew. For example, McMillan

  flew with McLean for the first time on April 17 i.e.,

  two days before the Rovereto raid which was their

  second mission together. After the emergency

  landing with Angel of Mercy they flew together in

  Angel of Mercy just before belly landing at Fano Air Base.

  The crew of Angel of Mercy shortly after an emergency

  landing. From left to right: S/Sgt Donald E. Wilson, 2nd

  Lt. William W. Graham, 1st. Lt. William S. McMillan, T/Sgt

  Kenneth G. Graham, T/Sgt. Mueller and 1st Lt. Walter D.

  McLean. Missing from the picture is wounded rear gunner

  S/Sgt. Arthur S. Hatfield. Walter D. McLean at the time of his studies.

  Photo: Cpl. Robert A. Cooper via fold3.com

  Photo: Cpl. Robert A. Cooper via fold3.com

  Photo:: fold3.com

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  April twice, first on April 20, which was an uneventful flight and the

  following day when Flak shattered their tail surfaces, and they had

  their hands full to nurse their ship back to the base. It was McMillan’s

  68th mission and the Squadron Flight Surgeon concluded he needed

  a rest. McMillan however continued flying combat missions and till

  the end of April flew four more. His copilot was 2nd Lt. C. G. Cook for

  all of these.

  The pilot whose name was carried on the port side of the fuselage

  under the cockpit was in fact responsible for the conduct of the Crew

  Chief and his team. He also maintained the logbook, checked the

  accuracy of the combat missions’ records, number of hours flown,

  repairs and other important data. He flew that particular airplane

  generally more often than the other pilots but not exclusively.

  According to the veterans it did happen that the crew in the nose

  barely knew crew members on the other side of the bomb bay. The

  pilots and bombardier were officers, the gunners were sergeants,

  a fact that also played a certain role as well in the number of men

  in one bombardment squadron. For example, in the end of March

  1945 the 428th BG was comprised of 106 officers and 351 enlisted

  men. Opinions were heard that the crew members were „mixed” on

  purpose not allowing them to form too strong personal bonds which

  could be a psychological trauma in case of death of any of them.

  For McLean, thanks to his medical leave, the war was de facto over.

  The 428th BG did not fly any more missions at the start of May and

  then the war was over...

  McLean took advantage of his leisure time and visited Pisa and Flo

  -

  rence, sunbathed on the beach, rode a bike in the vicinity of Fano…

  He must have thought of returning home, to 838 Collier Drive in San

  Leandro, to his wife Margaret Ann whom he married on April 19, 1944

  (i.e., exactly a year before the Rovereto raid flying Angel of Mercy).

  As he wrote in his letters home, he wanted to return to the university

  and continue with his studies.

  The tragedy at night

  After Germany surrendered the leadership strived not to let the

  personnel „go wild“ so they planned training flights, sports activities

  and educational courses. Each of 310th BG squadrons also received

  several A-26s and pilots conducted the familiarization flights with

  them. Part of the flight personnel started to prepare for the return

  home.

  The whole procedure of the return in their own planes was named

  „Green Project “. The route was plotted via Tunisia-Marrakesh-Da

  -

  kar-Roberts Field (Liberia)-island of Asension-Natal (Brasil)-Be-

  HISTORY

  Inspecting the damage to Angel of Mercy. She was written off a few days later.

  Local press report on Walter's marriage to Margaret Ann.

  Photo: Cpl. Robert A. Cooper via fold3.com Photo: Oakland Tribune 1944

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  HISTORY

  lem (Brasil)-Borenquin (Costa Rica) and finally

  Morrison Field in Palm Beach Florida or Hunter

  Army Airfield in Savannah, Georgia. The first

  crews were to set out on the long journey home

  between June 3 and 6 and selected pilots were

  busy practicing instrument and night flying.

  On June 9 Walter McLean and William McMillan

  were reunited in the same cockpit to perform

  such a training flight. After the movie in the ai

  -

  rport movie theater ended, they got on board of

  43-36226. This aircraft was brand new when Mc

  -

  Millan flew it on his twelfth mission and in the le-

  tter home, he complained that Germans had put

  ninety holes into his shiny, new airplane! There

  was no such a threat now, the night training fli

  -

  ght was to proceed without problems. But it was

  not to be the case. Shortly after the take-off, due

  to unknown causes, the aircraft burst into flames

  and crashed into the sea barely 1,000 ft (300 m)

  from the end of the runway. Both pilots perished.

  McMillan ‘s body was recovered during the same

  night, McLean’s body on the following day. In 2007

  Walter’s brother, James McLean recalled:

  “When the telegram arrived, I opened the door

  and saw the Western Union messenger standing

  there. My family was devastated of course; but it

  was even more poignant because the war was

  over, and he was expected back almost any day.

  My mother never quite recovered from the shock.

  The body was returned a couple of years later and

  was buried at the Golden Gate National Cemetery.

  I think of him often – I'm 76 now, he died when he

  was only 22."

  The last airplane with 310th BG personnel landed

  at Savannah airport on June 19. But the pilots who

  two months earlier nursed badly shattered Angel

  of Mercy back to the home base were not among

  them…

  The author would like to thank Daniel Setzer of

  the 37th Bomb Wing Association for invaluable

  help with documents and additional information.

  Sources:

  428th Bomb Squadron Chronicle and Combat Reports

  57th Bomb Wing Association Bulletin (Winter 2007,

  Summer 2010)

  57thbombwing.com

  Oakland Tribune, 1944

  Over the Med - 340th Bombardment Group (Medium)

  B-25J-10-NC, 43-35982, 428th BS, 310th BG, 12th AF,

  Ghisonaccia, Corsica, France, April 1945

  Photo:: fold3.com

  Confirmation of the interment of Walter D. McLean's remains at Golden Gate Cemetery.

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  HISTORY

  Spitfire Mk. VB ES306 HL

  -

  D, 308th FS 31st FG, Thelepte, March 1943

  Although the 31st FG operations during the

  Battle of Kasserine Pass are well-known, its

  Tunisian combat debut between 8 and 13 Fe-

  bruary 1943 saw the inexperienced but eager

  American pilots and their supporting ground

  personnel settle into life at a frontline base,

  and begin to fly some missions, battling not

  only the enemy, but also the desert conditions

  and atrocious winter weather. Not everything

  went according to plan, as the following story

  will reveal.

  Early History and North African

  ‘Holiday’

  The unit was activated as the 31st Pursuit

  Group on 1 February 1940, and it was initially

  equipped with the Curtiss P-39. In May 1942,

  the Group’s 307th, 308th and 309th Fighter

  Squadrons were transferred to the east coast

  of the United States in preparation for a move

  overseas, and they sailed across the Atlantic

  to Great Britain in June. Once there, the now

  re-designated 31st FG became the beneficiary

  of ‘reverse Lend-Lease’, and took on strength

  Spitfire Mk. Vs. The unit loved the aircraft, one

  member of the ground personnel remarking

  after the war:

  “It was a mighty beautiful air-

  plane!”

  A pilot wrote: “

  It did everything well”

  ,

  while 307th FS ace J.D. Collinsworth noted:

  “a [Spitfire Mk.] Five was about as manoeu-

  vrable and a flyable an aircraft as you could

  ever hope to get your hands on”

  . However, it

  had some obvious weak points. The single-

  -stage supercharger meant that its horsepo-

  wer decreased with altitude. This issue was

  most noticeable above 12,000 feet, and would

  be rectified in the Spitfire Mk. IX. The topica-

  lization modifications made to the 31st FG in

  North Africa created some additional perfor-

  mance issues.

  Conversion and training in England occupied

  several weeks, during which time there were

  many accidents, including 21 aircraft lost or

  badly damaged in just sixteen days! The 31st

  FG went into action in August after being ad-

  judged operationally ready, and its first real

  challenge came during the failed Allied lan-

  ding at Dieppe on 19 August 1942, when the

  American unit claimed its first aerial victories,

  but also suffered several losses in duels with

  experienced German foes.

  The 31st FG was then earmarked for Opera-

  tion TORCH, the Anglo-American invasion of

  Vichy French-held North-West Africa. The pi-

  lots and ground personnel sailed to Gibraltar,

  and the pilots flew their desert-camouflaged

  Spitfire Mk. Vs from there to Tafaraoui near

  Oran on 8 November 1942, the opening day

  of the invasion. Dewoitine D.520s attacked

  them on landing and killed a 31st FG pilot,

  and three American Spitfire pilots claimed

  victories in return. Strafing missions were

  also flown against Vichy French troops and

  vehicles. After that initial excitement, the 31st

  FG would not engage in aerial combat again

  for three long months. Instead, Lt. Col. Fred

  M. Dean’s unit operated from various bases

  in Algeria and Morocco, flying convoy patrols,

  courier missions, and routine escort sorties

  for transport aircraft far behind the frontline.

  It was important but tedious work, and the

  American pilots grew restless as their wait

  for action continued.

  One of the squadron commanders was sur-

  prised at the situation:

  “For some unstated reason we were kept at

  La Senia and not sent up to the forward ai

  -

  rfields. Most of [our flying] consisted of pat-

  rols over Allied shipping in the Mediterranean

  which … was very boring.”

  On 4 February, one pilot wrote simply in his

  diary:

  “Same dull routine.”

  The men had signed

  up for combat, been trained as fighter pilots,

  and wanted to go where the action was, and it

  was very frustrating to be based so far from

  the land fighting. Commander of the 307th

  FS/31st FG, George J. LaBreche, later wrote:

  “we were chaffing at the bit to get back into

  combat”.

  By early February 1943, the American pilots of the 31st

  Fighter Group (31st FG) were itching for some action.

  They had briefly tasted combat over the Channel Front

  in the late-summer of 1942, and then in a skirmish

  with Vichy French aircraft over Algeria on 8 November

  1942. However, it was only in the opening weeks of Fe-

  bruary 1943 that the Spitfire-equipped fighter unit rea-

  lly found itself in the frontline, as it transferred to the

  American forward base at Thelepte in western Tunisia,

  just 75 kilometres from the nearest German troops.

  EARLY 31ST FIGHTER GROUP OPERATIONS OVER TUNISIAEARLY 31ST FIGHTER GROUP OPERATIONS OVER TUNISIA

  Andrew ArthyAndrew Arthy

  A BUMPY START

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  HISTORY

  Přesun do Thelepte

  In early February 1943, the 31st FG received

  an order from the American XII Air Support

  Command to transfer to the front. The move

  was needed because the Curtiss P-40-equi-

  pped 33rd FG had suffered tremendous lo-

  sses and had to be relieved of its duties. Prior

  to the transfer, 31st FG pilots were sent back

  to Gibraltar to collect new Spitfire Mk. Vs. The

  long-awaited action was about to become

  reality, and this caused a great deal of exci-

  tement for the men in the unit, and no doubt

  some anxiety as well. Pilot Merritt C. Wolfe of

  the 308th FS/31st FG wrote on 5 February:

  “Word came that we are to go to the front in

  the morning. Exactly where we don’t know,

  but it is where there’ll be plenty of the long

  -

  -awaited action. [The] 309th is going too. … At

  a meeting this afternoon we learned we were

  going to Thelepte in Tunisia, practically in Je

  -

  rry’s backyard. Everyone is pretty eager, we’-

  ve sat around so damn long that people are

  champing at the bit.”

  Due to the long distances involved and the

  poor transport routes and means availa-

  ble, the transfer of all 31st FG pilots, aircraft,

  ground personnel, vehicles and equipment

  was not a smooth process. Instead, the unit

  arrived at Thelepte in dribs and drabs starting

  on 6 February, with the ground echelon trave-

  lling part of the way in Douglas C-47 trans-

  ports, and part of the way in trucks and je-

  eps through some spectacular, mountainous

  countryside. Several elements of the Group

  were bombed and strafed during the journey

  by German Focke-Wulf 190 fighter-bombers

  of III./Schnellkampfgeschwader 10, an obvi-

  ous sign that they were approaching the front.

  Most of the pilots flew in to Thelepte No. 1 on

  6 February, and the Group prepared itself for

  operations the next day.

  After their time based in southern England,

  and then near cities in Algeria and Morocco,

  the village of Thelepte and it surrounds was

  a stark contrast. Mechanic Thomas Stieglitz

  later wrote:

  “the area our Squadron occupied

  was big enough for the whole squadron of

  planes to take off side-by-side, you never saw

  such a big flat plateau in your life.”

  It is located

  on a plateau high above sea level, and it was

  a very wide-open space with two airfields,

  Thelepte No. 1 and No. 2. The location crea-

  ted lasting impressions on the 31st FG men,

  and one member of the ground personnel re-

  flected many years later:

  “Thelepte was such

  a miserable place. I don’t think anything lives

  there except sand fleas and scorpions”!

  The previous occupants were in a hurry to

  leave, and 31st FG personnel were a little

  shocked at the state of the men from the 33rd

  FG. Frank A. Hill of the 308th FS/31st FG re-

  marked on how “staring-off-into-space” they

  seemed to be, and another 31st FG pilot con-

  fided in his diary:

  “Talked to one of the 33rd

  pilots whom we’re relieving. He looked like

  hell and says it’s rough. They’ve been pretty

  well shot up and are ready to leave.”

  The 33rd

  FG had certainly been on the receiving end of

  some harsh treatment, not only in aerial com-

  bat with the German aces of II./Jagdgeschwa-

  der 2 and II./Jagdgeschwader 51, but on the

  ground, because Thelepte had been regular-

  ly targeted by German bomber and fighter-

  -bomber raids in the previous month. There

  was no radar, so the Luftwaffe sneak attacks

  came out of nowhere. 31st FG personnel were

  very concerned that they would be targeted by

  similar raids, and one aircraft mechanic later

  recalled:

  “… we had to get our planes serviced and rea-

  dy to fly while it was still dark. None of us

  wanted to be in the cockpit doing a pre-flight

  At Thelepte the 31st FG pilots and ground personnel had to live underground, so the first task after arrival was digging.

  The primitive living conditions experienced by the 31st FG at Thelepte – dugouts in a hill.

  Charles C. ‘Chuck’ Kenworthy of the 309th FS/31st FG was an exceptional pilot, who had breezed through his flying training.

  He had also been responsible for shooting down one of the Vichy French fighters over Algeria on 8 November 1942.

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  HISTORY

  run up and plane check out during the time the

  field was being strafed.”

  Living conditions were quite primitive compa-

  red to what the unit was used to, as one pilot

  wrote:

  “We took over [the 33rd FG] troop hou-

  sing area, which consisted of some dugouts

  with shelter halves for roofing for the officers,

  while the enlisted men lived under their pup

  tents.”

  The men soon adapted to underground

  living in their housing area some distance from

  the airfield. A radioman with the Group HQ re-

  called his very basic living arrangements:

  “It was really a small cut out on the side

  of a hill, with a roof on it. It was better than

  a pup tent. We found some straw and stuffed

  a mattress cover full. This beat sleeping on the

  ground, but the straw had camel fleas.”

  The men would have to quickly adjust to this

  new situation, because despite the hardships,

  their Spitfire Mk. Vs would soon be sent out on

  operations.

  During its early days at Thelepte, the 31st

  FG would operate alongside various USAAF

  units based at Thelepte and Youks-les-Bains

  (about 75 kilometres north-west of Thelepte,

  in eastern Algeria). This included the Douglas

  A-20 bombers of the 47th BG, French P-40s of

  Groupe de Chasse II/5, and the Bell P-39s of

  the 154th OS/68th OG, the 346th FS/350th FG,

  and the 81st FG. The XII Air Support Command

  was still developing its tactics at this stage,

  and learned lessons every day about how best

  to conduct combat operations in support of

  American and Allied ground forces.

  The land fighting had see-sawed in the cen-

  tral Tunisian mountains in January and early

  February 1943, as the Americans and their

  French allies battled with the Germans and

  Italians. When the 31st FG got to the front, both

  armies were building up forces for a future

  offensive.

  Across the mountains from Thelepte was the

  German air base at Kairouan, where the com-

  bat veterans of II./JG 2 were based, including

  aces Kurt Bühligen (53 victories at this time),

  Erich Rudorffer (54 victories) and Kurt Gol-

  tzsch (eighteen victories). Those Luftwaffe

  fighter pilots with their FW 190s were deadly

  opponents for the inexperienced Americans.

  Aside from the Luftwaffe fighters, also ope-

  rating over central Tunisia were some Ger-

  man long-range reconnaissance units, which

  dispatched daily sorties with their Junkers

  88s. The 31st FG pilots believed that the FW

  190 had the advantage over the Spitfire Mk. V

  in many respects, as J.D. Collinsworth stated:

  “The Spitfire Mk. V could only out-turn an FW

  190. Other than that, [the FW 190] could fly fas

  -

  ter, dive faster, climb higher.”

  Into Action: 8 February 1943

  After settling in at Thelepte, finally, the day

  had come – the 31st FG was slated to return

  to action. However, it was to be a quiet return.

  24 patrol sorties were flown in the Thelepte

  area, but the main excitement to occur during

  those was when a lone Bf 109 was spotted in

  the morning. However, it was “lost heading

  east on the deck.” 22 Spitfires of the 308th and

  309th FS/31st FG were sent out to escort the

  47th BG to Faid towards midday, and they met

  heavy and accurate anti-aircraft fire, although

  all 31st FG aircraft and pilots returned to base

  unscathed. The A-20 escort mission was re-

  peated in the afternoon in clear skies, with the

  CO of the 31st FG himself leading 24 Spitfire

  Mk. VBs and VCs to the Faid Pass. Bombs were

  seen to fall accurately on vehicles and troops,

  and again, no Axis fighters were encountered.

  American ground forces were grateful for the

  air support, which they reported to be very

  successful.

  Sitting in his dugout that evening, a relieved

  31st FG pilot wrote in his diary about the ab-

  sence of enemy ‘sneak raiders’ so far: “Jerry

  still hasn’t paid us a visit.” To counter the ex-

  pected raids, the three squadrons took turns

  to provide airfield defence. At any one time,

  four pilots would be airborne, four would be

  at cockpit readiness, and four would be at ten

  minutes’ readiness.

  The American Spitfires really got into the

  swing of things on 9 February, with six missi-

  ons flown to escort P-39s on reconnaissan-

  ce and strafing, the first taking off at 07:30,

  and the last landing at 17:50. These missions

  ranged from Faid in the north to Sened in

  the south, but anti-aircraft fire was the main

  enemy again: two Spitfires were damaged on

  the first mission, while a P-39 was lost on the

  third mission and several Spitfires were hit.

  There was also a non-combat loss, when Lt.

  Carl J. Woodrich of the 308th FS/31st FG “was

  slightly burned and shaken up when gas fu-

  mes collected in his ship’s fuselage detonated

  while he was starting.” He would be in hospi-

  tal for a while.

  The Luftwaffe sent a Sicily-based reconnai-

  ssance Ju 88 over central Tunisia in the mor-

  ning, and the crew reported 40 single-engine

  aircraft at Thelepte – if it had been a secret

  before, the presence of the 31st FG at Thelepte

  was now known to the Germans. The 308th

  FS/31st FG was on airfield defence duties at

  the time, but failed to intercept, as squadron

  member Merrett C. Wolfe related:

  “although

  we had ships in the air, they didn’t see him and

  he got away. At that moment our ground radio

  was out and we couldn’t contact the patrols.”

  Fred M. Dean led the 31st FG from December 1942 to July 1943,

  and is seen here after the war. He rose to the rank

  of Lieutenant General.

  Portrait of Capt. James A. Isbell, Jr., of the 309th

  FS/31st FG. He flew five missions between 8 and

  11 February 1943.

  A charcoal portrait of Charles C. ‘Chuck’ Kenworthy

  of the 309th FS/31st FG, done in the autumn of 1942.

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  HISTORY

  First Real Scrap: 10 February 1943

  After several fleeting encounters with German

  reconnaissance aircraft on previous days, the

  31st FG really came to grips with the enemy

  on 10 February, but unfortunately, it did not

  distinguish itself. An early mission to Sened

  was a precursor of what was to come, when

  Capt. Louis M. Zimlich, Jr. and Lt. Vincent E.

  Baker of the 307th FS/31st FG became hope-

  lessly lost during a P-39 escort mission in low

  overcast soon after midday, and had to land

  at Youks-les-Bains. They had stayed behind to

  protect the rearmost P-39s as they pulled out

  of their strafing runs, but the ungrateful 81st

  FG pilots then opened their throttles and left

  their escorts far behind! The two Spitfire pi-

  lots returned to Thelepte in coming days.

  The first combat with German fighters would

  come on the next P-39 escort mission, begi-

  nning at 13:00. Twelve Spitfires of the 308th

  FS/31st FG took off, led by Major Delwin B.

  Avery, to accompany four P-39s of the 92nd

  FS/81st FG. The objective for the mission was

  to reconnoitre the Kairouan area, and given

  the expert German fighter pilots based there,

  it was really asking for trouble. FW 190s were

  seen on four different occasions during the

  mission, after the P-39 pilots had witnessed

  them scrambling from Kairouan. The Ger-

  mans seemed reluctant to attack, but even-

  tually jumped the Americans from out of the

  clouds and 2,000 feet above. A brief combat

  ensued, during which Major Avery was the

  only American to open fire.

  The shock of being jumped badly disorienta-

  ted the Spitfire pilots, and they used the The-

  lepte homing service for vectors. However,

  the directions provided were faulty and they

  ended up a long way to the south-west of The-

  lepte. Running low on fuel, ten aircraft tried

  to put down on a road, with varying results.

  Major Avery and Lt. Corrigan overturned their

  aircraft and received injuries, and Lt. Mosby

  and Lt. M.P. Smith belly-landed. The rest lan-

  ded wheels down. Lt. Taylor and 2/Lt. Ove-

  rend were the only ones able to make it back

  to Thelepte, at 15:00 and “with only a couple

  gallons of petrol”. They alerted the unit about

  what had happened. Merritt C. Wolfe recalled:

  “We had thought they were down in enemy

  territory and were overjoyed to hear that all

  were safe.”

  Capt. ‘Doc’ Crawford, with 2/Lt.

  Overend as a guide, set out overland with fuel,

  aircraft parts and medical supplies to rescue

  the pilots, some of whom endured a freezing

  night in their aircraft, while the two injured

  men were tended to by friendly Arabs. Eight

  aircraft were eventually flown home after re-

  pairs and refuelling, and two were used for

  salvage.

  The outcome was unsurprising given the men

  were not used to aerial combat. J.D. Collin-

  sworth remembered being shocked at what

  a dogfight actually involved:

  “I was surprised

  at how quickly it started and ended”

  . To wor-

  sen the situation, the Thelepte homing station

  had a very bad reputation, as Major LaBreche

  wrote:

  “I hoped I would never need them in an

  emergency.”

  After the excitement of the previous day, 11

  February 1943 was much quieter. The strong

  wind had been ever-present since the 31st FG

  arrived at Thelepte, but on the eleventh it was

  particularly bad. Two missions were flown in

  the morning, and then the Group ‘battened

  down the hatches’, trying to avoid the strong

  winds and biting cold. Unit records noted:

  “Wind so strong that aircraft not tied down

  blew across field”!

  A morning P-39 escort mission by the 309th

  FS/31st FG on 12 February was disrupted by

  another desert problem: sand. Major LaBre-

  che wrote that Thelepte:

  “was subject to dust

  storms, known as Siroccos, which closed the

  airport and created maintenance difficulties.”

  The sand got into everything, including living

  quarters and aircraft. The mission report for

  this day noted that some of the Spitfires and

  P-39s were “having mechanical difficulty, pro-

  bably because of high winds and sand on the

  night of 11/12 February”, and one 31st FG Spitfi-

  re pilot crash-landed on returning to base due

  to those two factors. The unit did not fly again

  during the day, and Merritt C. Wolfe noted in

  his diary:

  “Wind made flying almost impossi-

  ble.”

  Lt. Col. Dean later wrote about the pro-

  blems caused by sand at Thelepte:

  “Guns frequently clogged by sand. We now put

  canvas bags over tail end of cannon. Toilet pa

  -

  per and cellophane paper over muzzles and

  on machine-guns, we now use canvas over

  front and fire through it. This helps but does

  not solve problem. It just helps to keep guns

  from being ruined permanently! Guns get dai

  -

  ly inspection.”

  Fortunately, the weather situation improved

  a little on 13 February, although no operations

  were possible in the morning, as mechanics

  checked all the Group’s Spitfires for damage

  from the wind and sand. Lt. Col. Dean led off

  the first of two P-39 escort missions at 14:25,

  Major George J. Labreche led the 307th FS/31st FG with distinction in Tunisia.

  ‘Walt’ Overend initially served with the Royal Air Force, before joining the 308th FS/31st FG. He was one of two pilots

  to make it back to Thelepte after the afternoon mission of 10 February 1943.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  HISTORY

  Spitfire Mk.Vc Trop, Lt. George G. Loving, 309th FS,

  31st FG, 12th AF, Pommigliano, Italy, December 1943

  Spitfire Mk.Vb Trop, ER200 (probably), Lt. Col. Fred M. Dean,

  CO of 31st FG, Korba, Tunisia, May 1943

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  HISTORY

  but it was uneventful. Two hours later, the

  308th FS/31st FG flew an operation to Mak-

  nassy, led by temporary squadron CO Capt.

  Hill, but they lost the P-39s early on, so flew

  reconnaissance themselves before returning

  to base.

  Conclusion

  The pilots and ground personnel of the 31st FG

  were certainly in the thick of the action now,

  and were about to be embroiled in the famous

  Battle of Kasserine Pass, which began on 14

  February 1943, when the Germans launched

  a very successful counterattack at Sidi Bou Zid,

  only 80 kilometres from Thelepte. That would

  provide more than enough of the combat so ea-

  gerly sought by the 31st FG pilots. During their

  first week flying operations from Thelepte, the

  Group learned a lot about flying, operating, and

  maintaining the Spitfire Mk. V. They were still a

  long way from being seasoned veterans, but

  the lessons of that week stood them in good

  steed for the immense challenges to come in

  the remainder of the Tunisian campaign, and

  the Second World War.

  Acknowledgments

  Gerhard Ausborn, J.D. Collinsworth family, Bill

  Dickerson, Hugh D. Dow, James A. Isbell, Jr.

  family, Morten Jessen, Charles C. Kenworthy

  family, George J. LaBreche family, Rolland G.

  Lamensdorf, Walter J. Overend family, Russell

  Richardson, Jean-Louis Roba, Bernard J. Ro-

  che family, Derwood K. Smith family, Thomas

  Stieglitz family, Adam Thompson, Rémi Traca-

  nelli, Joe Vincent, Merritt C. Wolfe and family

  Sources:

  Primary Sources

  BA

  -

  MA RL 2-II/296, Eingehende Meldungen.- Fein

  -

  daufklärung: Meldungen Luftflottenkommando 2.-

  Mittelmeer und Afrika, Februar 1943

  BA

  -

  MA RL 7-2/118, Führer der Luftstreitkräfte Tunis

  und unterstellte Einheiten.- Gefechtsberichte und

  Tagesabschlußmeldungen: Bd. 4, Februar 1943

  BA

  -

  MA RL 10/361b Teil 2, III. Gruppe.- Erfolgsberichte

  (Auftrag, Ergebnis, Besatzung) (Einsatz Afrika, Itali

  -

  en), November 1942-September 1943

  NA AIR 23/6609, Air Intelligence Reports: H.Q. U.S. 12th

  Air Force, later N.A.A.F., 1942-1943

  NARA RG 18 Box 2270, 31st Fighter Group, 1942-1943

  USAFHO Reel B0110, 31st Fighter Group, 1942-1943

  USAFHO Reel B0166A, 81st Fighter Group, 1942-1943

  Isbell, James A. Logbook

  Rudorffer, Erich Flugbuch

  Collinsworth, J.D. Interview with Dogfighter, 17 Febru

  -

  ary 2001

  Collinsworth, J.D. Interview with Flying Heritage, 12

  September 2002

  Dow, Hugh D. Letters and Emails

  Hill, Frank A. Interview with Museum of Flight, unda

  -

  ted

  Richardson, Russell Interview

  Wolfe, Merritt C. Diary

  Ausborn, Gerhard Letter

  Dickerson, Bill Letters

  Richardson, Russell Emails

  Wolfe, Merritt C. Letters and Emails

  Secondary Sources

  Chandler, Jr., Clifford H. History of USAAF Spitfire

  Operations in the Mediterranean (31st and 52nd Fi

  -

  ghter Groups), Air Command and Air Staff College,

  Maxwell Air Force Base, undated.

  Craven, Wesley Frank & Cate, James Lea (eds) Army

  Air Forces in World War II, Volume II: Europe: TORCH

  to POINTBLANK, August 1942 to December 1943, Uni

  -

  versity of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1949.

  Howe, George F. United States Army in World War

  II, Mediterranean Theater of Operations, Northwest

  Africa: Seizing the Initiative In the West, Office of the

  Chief of Military History, Washington, 1957.

  Kucera, Dennis C. In a Now Forgotten Sky – The 31st

  Fighter Group in World War II, Flying Machines Press,

  Stratford, 1997.

  LaBreche, George J. Memoirs, self-published, unda

  -

  ted.

  Lamensdorf, Rolland G. History of the 31st Fighter

  Group, self-published, 1985.

  Olynyk, Frank J. Victory List No. 6: USAAF (Mediterra

  -

  nean Theater) Credits for the Destruction of Enemy

  Aircraft in Air-to-Air Combat of World War 2, self-pu

  -

  blished, Aurora, 1987.

  Prien, Jochen, Stemmer, Gerhard, Rodeike, Peter &

  Bock, Winfried Die Jagdfliegerverbände der Deut

  -

  schen Luftwaffe 1934 bis 1945, Teil 11/I, Struve Druck,

  Eutin, 2006.

  Stieglitz, Thomas Barefoot in Boots: The World War II

  Experiences of Staff Sergeant Thomas Stieglitz, self

  -

  -published, 2009.

  USAF Historical Study No. 114, The Twelfth Air Force in

  the North African Winter Campaign, 11 November 1942

  to the Reorganization of 13 February 1943.

  Spitfire Mk. VB EP969, 309th FS 31st FG.

  Capt. James A. Isbell, Jr., of the 309th FS/31st FG. He flew five missions between 8 and 11 February 1943.

  Lt. Derwood K. Smith of the 308th FS/31st FG was one

  of the fortunate pilots to land wheels down in the desert

  on the afternoon of 10 February 1943.

  eduard

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 26

  KITS 09/2021

  1/48 Cat. No. 82105

  Eduard plastic parts

  Photo-etched set

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  6 marking options

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  eduard

  26

  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 27

  KITS 09/2021

  P-51K-5, 44-11622, Maj. Leonard Carson, 362nd FS, 357th FG, 8th AF, Leiston, United Kingdom, Autumn 1944

  P-51K-5, 44-11661, Lt.Col. Jack J. Oberhansly, 334th FS, 4th FG, 8th AF, Debden, United Kingdom, February 1945

  P-51K-5, 44-11631, Lt. Huie Lamb, 82nd FS, 78th FG, 8th AF, Duxford, United Kingdom, March 1945

  The second most successfull fighter group of the USAAF 8th AF and the most successful group equipped with P-51D and K

  Mustangs was 357th FG. During the conflict the unit destroyed 609 German aircraft in the air and 109 on the ground losing 128 of

  its own. 35 fighter aces served with 357th FG, Major Leonard Kyle Carson being the most accomplished one credited with 18.5

  kills. Since January 1944 he served with 362nd FS and as of April 8, 1945 he became its commander. Secret of 357th FG success

  was its tactical training center nicknamed „Clobber College“ (possibly referring to tedious and detail oriented shoe repairing job)

  where the seasoned veterans passed their combat experience on the novice pilots. 362nd FS received its first P-51D only couple

  of days before the invasion to Normandy. „Kit“ Carson named all his aircraft „Nooky Booky“. In this case it was the airplane nr. 4.

  In the fall 1944 his aircraft sported eighteen kill markings in the form of the black swastikas in the red circle painted on the port

  side of the fuselage. The fuselage rear part still carried the traces of the invasion stripes. The nose was decorated with red and

  yellow checkerboard, spinner was in the same colors. Both were recognition markings of the 357th FG aircraft.

  Jack Junior Oberhansly was born on January 21, 1919 in the little town of Payson in Utah. He received his „wings“ on December

  21, 1941 and after further training he was posted to 48th PS. In May 1942 he was ordered to 82nd FS wich was under the 78th FG

  command and with this unit, in November 1942 he was deployed to the Great Britain. In April the unit converted from P-38 to

  Thunderbolts with which it escorted 8th AF bombers on their missions over the occupied Europe. On August 7, 1943 Jack Ober-

  hansly assumed the command of the 82nd FS and held this post until May 1944. From August 28 till December 3, 1944 he served

  as deputy commander of the whole 78th FG. On December 4, 1944 he was posted to 4th FG where he served as a deputy com-

  mander until February 26, 1945. After the end of hostilities he continued his career in the Air Force. From 1946 till August 1948

  he commanded the 191st FS of the Utah ANG. During the WWII he was credited with six kills, all while flying with 78th FG. Jack J.

  Oberhansly passed away on September 6, 1982 in San Clemente, California. Oberhansly’s aircraft sported the nose painted in red

  which was the 4th FG recognition marking, the red tails identified 334th FS airplanes.

  Native of Abilene, Texas, Huie Lamb, flew with 82nd FS since August 1944, first on Thunderbols and then, after the unit’s re-equi-

  ppment in December 1944, on the Mustangs. Huie Lamb’s first combat mission on P-51 on December 29, 1944 ended up with the

  involuntary „swimm“ in the Channel’s waves as a result of the radiator malfunction. He was rescued by the British Walrus whose

  crew had been alerted by Lamb’s wingman John C. Childs. At the end of the war Lamb’s score stood at 2.5 enemy aircraft shot

  down and three more destroyed on the ground. One of his aerial kills was Me 262 jet shot down on October 15, 1944. On March 19,

  1945 he was credited with ½ kill of the Arado Ar 234 jet. Mustangs flown by Huie Lamb were named Etta Jeanne after his youn-

  ger sister. The nose of his Etta Jeanne II (previous one ended up in the ocean) was decorated with 78th FG recognition markings

  consisting of black and white checkerboard. P-51K Mustangs manufactured in Dallas, Texas left the production line equipped

  with Aeroproducts propellers but Etta Jeanne II is demonstrably equipped with Hamilton Standard propeller.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  P-51K-1, 44-11471, Lt. Carl H. Colleps, 118th FRS, 23rd FG, 14th AF, Cheng Kung, China 1945

  P-51K-10, 44-12539, Lt. Everett Kelly, 6th FS, 1st Air Commando Group, 10th AF, Asansol, India, summer 1945

  P-51K-10, 44-12073, Lt.Col. William M. Banks, CO of 348th FG, 5th AF, Ie Shima, July 1945

  118th TRS history dates back to August 31, 1917 when the 118th Aero Squadron commenced its operations in France. In 1923 the unit was rede-

  signated as 118th Observation Squadron operating within the Connecticut National Guards. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor it was

  assigned a mission of anti-submarine patrols at the Atlantic coast. In August 1942 the unit was withdrawn from this assignment and ordered

  to prepare for the overseas deployment. In October 1943, already established as the 118th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron it was attached

  to the 23rd Fighter Group flying within 14th AF in the CBI theatre of operations (China-Burma-India). Flying P-40s its mission was initially

  to defend the airports in India out of which B-29s operated. In May 1944 another transfer followed, this time to China. There the unit flew the

  fighter and fighter-bomber sorties, the reconnaissance missions were rather rare. The unit performed these type of missions until the end of

  hostilities. After the return to the USA the unit was again integrated into the Connecticut Air National Guards. It is still active currently flying

  C-130H Hercules under the designation of 118th Airlift Squadron.

  118th TRS Mustangs recognition marking were black, yellow trimmed lightnings on the fuselage sides and smaller ones on the wingtips. The

  aircraft named Little Joe, carrying 192 numeral on the tail sports 5 Japanese flags painted under the windshield indicating five enemy aircraft

  destroyed on the ground as flown by Lt. Colleps.

  Everett Kelly took part in the air combat over Burma on October 14, 1944 within 1st Air Commando Group part of which was the

  6th Fighter Group flying P-47D Thunderbolts. During his return from his first mission, the attack at the Mingaladon airport, he

  shot down a Japanese Ki-43. He failed to score afterwards. His unit was primarily focused on attacking the ground targets. 6th

  FS commenced its conversion to P-51D/K in the second half of May 1945 at Kalaikunda airport where it gave up their beloved but

  war-weary Thunderbolts. The unit did not see combat until the end of WWII and after its return to the USA on November 3, 1945 it

  was disbanded.

  Same as the 51st FS custom already fighting in CBI, 6th FS decorated its aicraft with the checkerboard on the tail surfaces.

  Kelly’s Mustang carried the inscription „Sigh!‘ on the nose port side and „Irene“ adorned the starboard side.

  William McGowan Banks was born on September 1, 1915 in Raleigh, West Virginia. He enlisted in the Army Air Corps on March 15, 1941. After

  finishing the training he was posted to 62nd PS flying P-40s. In June he was attached to 90th FS, 80th FG. In October 1942 he was dispatched

  to New Guinea to join the 348th FG equipped with P-47s. In November 1942 he was given command of the 342nd FS. He also led this unit from

  November 1943 until May 1944. During the fighting in the area between October 1943 and February 1944 he shot down six Japanese aircraft.

  In December while attached to the 348th FG he participated in the liberation of Philippines where he scored three more kills flying P-47. On

  February 1945 the unit converted to Mustangs D and K. On June 8, 1945 he assumed the command of 348th FG. At that time the unit sortied out

  of the Ie Shima island for the raids on Japan. During a sweep flown on August 9, 1945 into the Fukuoka prefecture area Banks, leading the flight

  of four aircraft, eye witnessed the explosion of the atomic bomb dropped on the city of Nagasaki. With his flight he even circled the mushroom

  cloud billowed after the explosion. After the WWII Lt.Col. Banks continued his career in the USAAF. He retired in June 1963. He departed for

  aviatior’s heaven on May 6, 1983 in San Antonio, Texas.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 29

  KITS 09/2021

  OVERTREES

  P-51D

  Cat. No. 82102X

  1/48

  Product page

  Product page

  Cat. No. 82105-LEPT1

  Recommended for P-51K

  FE1214 P-51K seatbelts STEEL (PE

  -

  Set)

  648485 P-51D exhaust stacks (Brassin)

  648486 P-51D exhaust stacks w/ fairing (Brassin)

  648494 P-51D wheels diamond tread (Brassin)

  648495 P-51D undercarriage legs BRONZE (Brassin)

  648503 P-51D wheels oval tread (Brassin)

  648504 P-51D wheels cross tread (Brassin)

  648505 P-51D wheels block tread (Brassin)

  648511 P-51D wheels diamond tread 2 (Brassin)

  648512 P-51D wheels rhomboid treat (Brassin)

  648513 P-51D wheels pointed cross tread (Brassin)

  648514 P-51D wheels grooved (Brassin)

  648517 P-51D gun bays (Brassin)

  648555 P-51D engine (Brassin)

  648570 P-51D gun sights (Brassin)

  648571 P-51D 75gal drop tanks (Brassin)

  648572 P-51D 108gal drop tanks (Brassin)

  3DL48036 P-51K-5 SPACE (3D Decal set)

  3DL48037 P-51K-10 SPACE (3D Decal set)

  D48033 P-51D national insignia (Decal set)

  D48034 P-51D stencils (Decal set)

  Cat. No. 3DL48036 Cat. No. 3DL48037

  Cat. No. 648570

  Cat. No. 648555

  Cat. No. 648495

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 30

  KITS 09/2021

  Product page

  1/48 Cat. No. 11151

  Eduard plastic parts

  Photo-etched set

  Paiting mask

  10 marking options

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 31

  KITS 09/2021

  A

  D

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 32

  KITS 09/2021

  E

  F

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 33

  KITS 09/2021

  J4613, Capt. James Bigglesworth, No. 266 Sqn RFC, March 1917

  J1936, Capt. James Bigglesworth, No. 266 Sqn RAF, summer 1918

  B3889, Capt. Clive F. Collett, B Flight, No. 70 Sqn RFC, Poperinge, France, August 1917

  The author of the Biggles books, W. E. Johns, illustrated his first books himself and, like illustrator Howard Leigh, sometimes depicted British

  aircraft from the Great War (and not only in the Biggles stories) with blue fuselage and yellow wings. The reason for this may have been that

  they both were finding the colors of British aircraft too dull, and so were seeking inspiration in the color scheme of the US Army Air Force

  of the time. In the Biggles books, this paint scheme of the Camel has appeared in several modifications, and we have selected the one that

  accompanied the book “Biggles of the Camel Squadron”, published in 1935 by John Hamilton, Ltd, with, if nothing else, illustrations by Howard

  Leigh. As with virtually all representations of fictional Camels of a fictional pilot, the serial number is also fictional. There was no J series in

  the case of the Sopwith Camel production.

  This is a form of the "late" Biggles Camel as described in the short stories "The Fledglings" and "Biggles on the Spot". In both cases we read

  about letters drawn on the Camel's nose, similar to the practice seen on SE.5a fighters or DH.4s of the No. 55 Squadron IAF. Another clue is

  that the German pilots identified Biggles' Camel by its blue engine cowling and declared him as a most prominent enemy. The entire squadron

  painted the nose of their machines blue subsequently. In the latter story, there is also mention of the Bentley engine in Biggles' Camel. The

  serial number is again fictitious, the individual markings and the squadron markings are white, but the individual lettering on the nose is blue.

  The color of the upper surfaces is, let´s say, PC10.

  Clive Franklyn Collett was a New Zealand fighter ace with 11 victories. He joined the RFC in the first year of the war, while he underwent pilot training at a private

  flying school. In January 1915 he obtained his Royal Aero Club license No. 1057 and joined No. 11 Squadron RFC in May 1915. Two months later he was transferred

  to No. 8 Sqn, then to No. 32 Sqn and in March 1916 to No. 18 Sqn, where he began combat operations with Vickers FB.5. After an injury he returned to Great

  Britain. On July 24, 1917, he joined No. 70 Sqn, which was the first Squadron to be equipped with Camels. Three days later he achieved his first victory by shooting

  down an Albatros D.V. He added six kills during August and four more in September. After recuperation from the wound (gunshot of the arm) Collett was posted

  to No. 73 Sqn. There, on December 23 he took off for a test flight with a captured Albatros, crashed into the sea and was killed. His Camel from the successful

  period with No. 70 Sqn bore the standard livery with probably PC12 paint on the upper surfaces. The metal and wooden parts of the front fuselage were probably

  painted in the 'Battle Grey' color. The machine was built by the Sopwith factory and powered by a Clerget engine.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  KITS 09/2021

  B7190, Capt. Walter G. R. Hinchliffe, C Flight, No. 10(N) Sqn RNAS, Téteghem, France, March 1918

  B3893, Capt. Arthur R. Brown, No. 9(N) Sqn RNAS, Leffrinckoucke, France, September 1917

  N6377, Capt. Harold F. Beamish, No. 3(N) Sqn RNAS, Furnes, Belgium, September 1917

  "Hinch", as Walter Hinchliffe was called, scored six kills during World War I, all when at controls of a Camel. He shot down his second and third victims on the

  one of serial number B7190. Hinchliffe served with the artillery at the start of the Great War, only joining the ranks of the RNAS (Royal Navy Air Service) in 1916.

  He completed his pilot training and served as an instructor at the RNAS base at Cranwell afterwards. There he clocked an incredible 1,250 flight hours in thirteen

  months. It was not until January 1918 that he joined No. 10 Sqn RNAS. He scored his first kill on February 3 when he shot down an Albatros D.V., his last one

  occured on May 19. On June 3 he suffered serious head and facial injuries after a crash and lost his left eye. After the War he flew as an airline pilot. In 1928 he

  attempted to fly across the Atlantic. He took off from Cranwell Airport on March 13 with co-pilot Elsie Mackay. They have not been seen since... "Hinch's" Camel

  bore a striking livery with blue and white stripes on the nose and a blue fuselage spine. There was a drawing of a devil on the wheel discs, the German word

  DONNERWETTER behind the cockpit, possibly on both sides, and a symbol, which was, according to the only known photo of this part of the aircraft, probably

  stylized combination of the letters W and H on the ridge of the aft fuselage. Upper and sides were probably in PC10 color. Camel B7190 was built by the

  Clayton & Shuttleworth company and was powered by a Bentley B.R.1 engine.

  Canadian Arthur R. Brown became one of the most famous fighters of the Entente Powers, although he achieved "only" ten kills. The reason

  is his victory over Manfred von Richthofen. Brown achieved three kills flying this Camel during September and October 1917 (3rd to 5th kills).

  Brown became an RNAS pilot on November 24, 1915, but on May 2, 1916, he suffered a back injury in a crash and spent three months recovering.

  Further health issues prevented him from combat until April 1917, when he was assigned to No. 9(N) Sqn RNAF and changed No. 11 and No. 4

  subsequently. When back at No. 11 Sqn, he achieved his first kill on July 17. In September he returned to No. 9 Sqn. By the end of October, he

  scored five times and, after rest, returned to the unit in February 1918, adding three more victories before spotting a red “Dreidecker” attacking

  Camel of Lt. May on April 21. He shot the enemy down. As it turned out his victim was the famous "Red Baron". Brown later served as an

  instructor. On July 15 he fainted during flight, crashed, and suffered serious head injuries. It took five years for him to make a full recovery.

  Brown died of a heart attack on March 9, 1944. His Camel B3893 was a Sopwith production and had the face of comedian George Robey from

  the musical "Zig Zag!" drawn on the horizontal stabilizer. Upper and side surfaces were probably in PC12.

  New Zealander H. F. Beamish, nicknamed "Kiwi", scored eleven kills in World War I, five of them in cooperation. He joined the RNAS in June 1916 and served with

  No. 3 Sqn and No. 203 Sqn RAF (when the unit was renamed after a reorganization on April 1) from January 9, 1917, until August 17, 1918. He scored his first kill

  on April 23, 1917 (Albatros D.III) flying a Sopwith Pup and scored four more ones with this Camel. In the autumn of 1918, he went home on leave to New Zealand

  and there too the end of the War found him. After the War he farmed, living to the age of 90 years. He died on October 26, 1986. This Camel N6377 was a Sopwith

  production, powered by a Bentley engine. It bore a drawing of a green tree on its white back, the main color was probably PC12. The aircraft was later shot down

  on March 6, 1918, but its pilot, S/Cdr R. S. Dallas, was unhurt and the aircraft was also repaired. It was finally lost on April 22, 1918, when 2/Lt W. H. Easty was

  shot down with it and killed.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  Capt. Henry R. Clay Jr, 41st Aero Squadron USAAS, Colombey-les-Belles, France, October 1918

  C6713, Capt. D´Urban Victor Armstrong, No. 151 Sqn RAF, Crécy-Estrées, France, April 1918

  C1555, Capt. Francis L. Luxmoore, No. 78(HD) Sqn RFC, Hornchurch, Great Britain, January 1918

  Henry Robinson Clay was an American ace with eight victories, and a member of the first contingent of American pilots sent to gain experien-

  ce in RFC service. He was assigned to No. 43 Sqn and claimed his first victory in its ranks, but it remained unconfirmed. He was then transfe-

  rred to the 148th Aero Squadron and in the period from August 16 to September 27, 1918, achieved all of his eight victories, this time confirmed.

  On six occasions his victim was a dangerous opponent, a Fokker D.VII. At the very end of the war, Clay was appointed commander of the 41st

  Aero Squadron, where he flew this Camel of unknown serial number. The unit's emblem was a camel passing through a letter V. Upper and

  side surfaces were PC10. Before he could lead his unit into combat for the first time, the war was over. But Clay never returned home to the

  United States. He died in Coblenz, Germany, on February 17, 1919, during the third wave of the Spanish flu.

  Captain Armstrong got his unusual first name after his hometown, Durban, South Africa. He joined the RFC ranks in 1915 and a year later was assigned to No. 60

  Sqn. In its ranks he achieved his first victory on November 9, 1916. He was then sent back to the UK and served with units assigned to the home defence. Firstly

  during 1917 in the ranks of No. 44(HD) Sqn, then he became a flight commander with No. 78(HD) Sqn. Shortly afterwards he returned to the front to No. 151 Sqn,

  which became the first RAF night fighter unit in France. In its ranks he scored four kills, three of them at night (the first one occurred at 20:35 on June 29, so still

  in daylight conditions). Armstrong became a renowned acrobat, and liked to perform his Camel at low altitudes, which later proved fatal to him. Just two days

  after the end of the war, on November 13, 1918, he performed low-altitude aerobatics near Bouvincourt, crashed and died. His red Camel C6713 sported the name

  Doris and flew in this form before being sent to the front and adapted for night missions by overpainting white fields in the wing cockades and deletion of the

  fuselage cockades. Also, the lights were added. The C6713 was produced by British Caudron company and powered by a LeRhone 9J engine.

  A pilot with three kills to his credit, Francis L. Luxmoore was an aviation enthusiast and wanted to join the RFC as soon as possible after its

  formation. He did succeed in 1916, and from August that year served in the ranks of No. 46 Sqn. He had to wait until June 4, 1917 for his first

  victory, when, after separating from the rest of the patrol, he was attacked by a trio of Albatroses and shot down one of them in the ensuing

  battle. After being sent back to the Great Britain, he served with No. 78(HD) Sqn, flying this Camel equipped with lights for night flying. He then

  returned to the front with No. 54 Sqn after a rest. In its ranks he shot down another Albatros on February 18, 1918 and scored a third kill on

  March 13, 1918. Five days later he took part in a dogfight involving more than ninety aircraft, his Camel was damaged in the fight, Luxmoore had

  to make an emergency landing and was taken POW. After the war, he remained in the RAF ranks until 1928 and stayed in touch with aviation in-

  dustry. His Camel from the period of service with No. 78(HD) Sqn sported a coat of azure blue paint on the canvas fuselage parts and on upper

  wing surfaces. Luxmoore did not achieve any kills with it. It was a Hooper production Camel and was powered by a LeRhone.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 36

  KITS 09/2021

  OVERTREES

  Sopwith F.1 Camel

  Cat. No. 82171X

  1/48

  Product page

  Product page

  Cat. No. 11151-LEPT1

  F1471, 185th Aero Sqn USAS, Colombey-les-Belles, France, March 1919

  The 185th Aero Squadron of USAAC was established on November 11, 1917, at Kelly Field, Texas, by transferring some personnel from the 24th

  Aero Squadron. The entire unit then embarked aboard the RMS Adriatic in late January 1918 and arrived in Liverpool on February 16. After the

  personnel undergo training, they moved to France on August 12 to the American Rest Camp No. 2 at Le Havre. From there they proceeded to

  St. Maxient Replacement Barracks for ground training and then to Colombey-les-Belles for further aerial training. However, due to the need

  to resupply other units, seventeen pilots with completed training were transferred elsewhere. The 185th Aero Squadron itself did not receive

  its Camels until September 12 after moving to Rembercourt airfield. At the same time, it was the first U.S. unit designated for night fighter duty.

  However, the pilots were not trained for such a task, nor did the equipment of the airfield and aircraft were sufficient for it. This Camel was

  delivered to the unit two days after the Armistice and remained in the unit's inventory even after it moved back to Colombey-les-Belles and

  changed their Camels for Spads XIII in February 1919. This Camel received a coat of white paint on the fuselage during this period. Upper sides

  of wings remained in PC10. The squadron emblem, a black bat in an orange circle, was painted on the aircraft after the war. The F1471 Camel

  was manufactured by Boulton & Paul and was powered by a Gnome engine.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 37

  KITS 09/2021

  Recommended for Sopwith Camel

  FE1215 Sopwith Camel seatbelts STEEL (PE

  -

  Set)

  644116 Sopwith Camel LööK (Brassin)

  648657 Sopwith Camel wheels type 1 (Brassin)

  648658 Sopwith Camel wheels type 2 (Brassin)

  648659 Sopwith Camel seat (Brassin)

  648660 Sopwith Camel Vickers Mk.I gun (Brassin)

  648674 Sopwith Camel Rotherham air pumps (Brassin)

  3DL48038 Sopwith Camel SPACE (3D Decal set)

  648662 Sopwith Camel 20lb bomb carrier (Brassin) release 10/2021

  648676 Sopwith Camel Clerget engine (Brassin) release 10/2021

  648677 Sopwith Camel Bentley engine (Brassin) release 10/2021

  Cat. No. 644116

  Cat. No. 648659

  Cat. No. 648660

  Cat. No. 648676

  Cat. No. 648674

  Cat. No. 648662

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 38

  KITS 09/2021

  Product page

  1/72 Cat. No. 2140

  Hasegawa plastic parts

  Photo-etched set

  Brassin: wheels

  Paiting mask

  10 marking options

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 39

  KITS 09/2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  KITS 09/2021

  B-25J-10-NC, 43-35982, 428th BS, 310th BG, 12th AF, Ghisonaccia, Corsica, France, April 1945

  B-25J-1-NC, 43-27716, 445th BS, 321st BG 12th AF, Solenzara, Corsica, France, April 1945

  The 310th Bombardment Group was activated in March 1942 and designated as a medium bomber Group consisting of four squadrons. De-

  livered in June 1944, the 43-35982 ship nicknamed “Angel of Mercy” was flying with the 428th bomb squadron. She was one of 15 aircraft of

  the unit to fly the mission to the Rovereto on April 19, 1945. She was hit by shell fragments from AA fire and badly damaged prior to the bomb

  dropping. Pilot-in-command, 1/Lt. W. S. McMillan managed to keep the ship on course with help of his co-pilot W. D. McLean, enabling the

  bombardier to drop the bombs on the target, the railroad bridge. The hits knocked out the hydraulic system and main gear, rear gunner A. S.

  Hatfield was wounded. The crew decided not to risk the overseas flight to the home base at Corsica and opted for another base of the 310th BG

  at Fano, Italy, where they managed to land the ship with only nose landing gear open. The “Angel of Mercy” ship was left in natural metal finish,

  so it had the horizontal band on the vertical tail surfaces separated by black bands. The colors for 310th BG as well as for the 428th BS were

  yellow. The propeller spinner and the front of the engine covers were of the same color. The nose art of the nurse with a bomb under her arm

  was not accompanied by mission symbols on this aircraft.

  Constituted as 321st Bombardment Group (Medium) on June 19, 1942 and activated on June 26, the crews of the unit prepared for overseas duty

  with B-25s. The 43-27716 ship got rather amusing nickname “Shit house mouse” and had the missions marked by black mice. On the engine

  cowl there was an inscription “Quaketown” (the town in Pennsylvania). The pilot of the ship and the Airplane Commander was 1/Lt. R. S. Elmer

  from December 1, 1944, to March 29, 1945. On the March 30 Elmer overhanded her to 1/Lt. R. G. Rice, who brought “Shit house mouse” to the end

  of the war. Until its 73rd mission the aircraft had only the Roman numeral I on the tail, after then Latin number 7 was added on the vertical fin

  on December 14, 1944. The ship sported Olive Drab color over the upper and side surfaces, as was a common practice. Other surfaces were left

  in natural metal finish. The outhouse was of brown color.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  KITS 09/2021

  B-25J-10-NC, 43-28152, 501st BS, 345th BG, 5th AF, Luzon, Philippines, February 1944

  B-25J-1-NC, 43-27708, 488th BS, 340th BG, 12th AF, Corsica, France, 1945

  The 345th Bomb Group was first activated at Columbia Army AB in November 1942 and was christened the “Air Apaches” in July 1944. It was

  the first Air Force Combat Group to be sent to the Pacific in WWII. The group consisted of four squadrons, as usual with the medium bomber

  groups, one of them, the 501st squadron, had the nickname “Black Panthers”. The 43-28152 was assigned to the unit on October 22, 1944, and

  shortly afterwards nicknamed “Apache Princess” and assigned to pilot Roman Ohnemus. The ship was lost on May 27, 1945, when piloted by

  2/Lt Ted. U. Hart on the mission against Ensui airfield and rail yard on Formosa. Due to a navigational error and bad weather the squadron

  missed the target and attacked sugar refinery and a brick plant at Mizukami and Meiji instead. The “Apache Princess” was hit by AA fire during

  attack and her left engine caught fire. After releasing the bombs, Hart feathered the damaged engine, but the fire spread to the bomb bay and

  the aircraft crash landed into the rice field. SSgt. Robert E. Bever was fatally wounded, the rest of the crew survived and became POW. There

  is no photo evidence of the port side of the ship, it is believed the beautiful and large nose art was only on the starboard side (although the

  warbird with both sides painting of heavily modified theme exists). The original painting was a masterpiece of work of gifted Sgt. George M.

  Blackwell. The aircraft sported the older variant of the Group´s badge, the head of the Indian. It is possible it might be already replaced by later

  simplified badge at the time it reached its sour end.

  The 340th Bomb Group was the “home” of Joseph Heller´s famous Catch 22 novel as the author flew with the unit during the wartime

  as a bombardier. The group was activated on August 20, 1942 and arrived in the Mediterranean theater in March 1943. Assigned to the 9th AF

  and later to the 12th AF. On March 30, 1945, the 43-27708 ship named “Battli´n Betty” was flying the mission to bomb the Ora Rail Diversion

  Bridge in northern Italy. Overflying the Brenner Pass just some 400 ft over the hills, the ship was hit by flak. The shells damaged right engine

  and bomb bay doors and knocked out the electrical release system. Unable to drop the bombs and with one engine stopped the pilots just

  managed to maneuver the ship to the Venice area, where all the crew of 1/Lt Emett W. Hughes bailed out and became POW. After captured by

  Italians they were handed over to Germans and forced to march 225 miles (!) to the Stalag Luft 7A in Moosburg, Germany. The “Battli´n Betty”

  and nice nose art of the woman with the javelin on the starboard side of the fuselage. Originally in natural metal finish the upper and side sur-

  faces were overpainted in Olive Drab. The areas of the vertical fins with unit code and serial number were also left in bare metal, at least for

  some time. Joseph Heller flew several missions with this ship.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  B-25J-1-NC, 43-3890, 82nd BS, 12th BG, 10th AF, Fenny, India, December 1945

  B-25J-10-NC, 43-36020, 501st BS, 345th BG, 5th AF, Tacloban, Philippines, April 1945

  Constituted as 12th Bombardment Group (Light) on November 20, 1940, the unit was activated on January 15, 1941. The crews trained with

  B-18, B-23 and PT-17 aircraft and patrolled the west coast after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour. The group was redesignated as

  Medium in December 1941 and started flying the B-25s early in 1942. After spell with 9th AF in Mediterranean theater the group, nicknamed

  “Earthquakers”, moved to India in February 1944 and was assigned to 10th AF. The 43-3890 was nicknamed “Milk Run” with paintings of five

  small, adorable bulldogs. Bulldog was a squadron´s mascot, the term “Milk Run” was used for easy, low-risk missions and several other

  aircraft were named similarly. The painting was a job of Capt. Norman L. Harms, one of the second pilots of the unit. The “Milk Run” ship was

  painted in standard camouflage of Olive Drab upper and side surfaces with Neutral Gray from bottom.

  One of the paintings of Sgt. George M. Blackwell, who decorated several other aircraft of 345th Bomb Group, was the “Reina del Pacifico”

  (Queen of the Pacific), the B-25J-10-NC of serial number 43-36020. The large nose art was one of the most stunning paintings on the B-25s.

  Blackwell started this painting at the end of November, finishing it at the beginning of December 1944. The ship was shot down during the

  mission over Saigon on April 28, 1945, when 2/Lt. M. R. Esty and 2/Lt M. E. Miller were in the pilot seats. All five crewmembers were killed in

  the subsequent crash. The ship had the paint scheme of the Olive Drab on upper and side surfaces with Neutral Gray undersides and sported

  the earlier variant of the Indian emblem on the vertical fins. It is not known whether or not the newer, simplified version of the Air Apaches

  emblem was painted on the vertical fins prior to the crash of the Reina del Pacifico.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  KITS 09/2021

  B-25J-1-NC, 43-27559, 380th BS, 310th BG, 12th AF, Peretola, Italy, April 1945

  B-25J-11, 43-36001, 75th BS, 42nd BG, 13th AF, Philippines, 1945

  The 43-27559 Mitchell nicknamed “She´s Engaged” was veteran of more than 100 missions. The ship was left in bare metal and sported pain-

  ting of beautiful sitting lady in summer dress painted according to one of paints of famous pre-war artist Alberto Vargas (as were many other

  nose arts). The original Vargas´s painting was later published in the Esquire calendar of January 1946. The ship was assigned to Sgt. Elton T.

  Larsen as a crew chief and to Lt. John W. Allen as a pilot. The identification band on the vertical fins consisted of the upper yellow one (310th

  BG colour) and lower blue one (color of the 380th BS). As with other bare metal ships in 310th BG, the bands were separated by black lines.

  The engine nacelles had Olive Drab upper insides; the same color was painted in front of the windshield (anti-glare panel). The Olive Drab was

  also used as a background for the bomb marks.

  The 42nd Bombardment Group (Medium) was activated on January 15, 1941, from the 7th BG (Heavy) at Fort Douglas, Utah. It was later nickna-

  med “Crusaders”. The 43-36001 ship was niocknamed “Nasty Nancy” and got painting of beautiful and scanty suited girl riding a torpedo.

  On April 10, 1945, the “Nasty Nancy” was assigned rather specific job. During the mission No. 48 of 42nd BG she was to fly a route over the

  city of Saigon in broad daylight at the height of 10,000 ft as a decoy for Japanese fighters. The plan was to lure the enemy into a trap as there

  were P-38s waiting for them above and ready to attack after the code sentence “Little friends, come down and play" was sent over the radio

  by the crew of Lt. Joseph Wright. Apart of the kills by P-38s, four Japanese fighters were shot down by gunners of the “Nasty Nancy”. The rear

  gunner, Sgt. William Outlaw even used his .45 caliber pistol to shoot at the enemy fighters after his machine guns jammed. The ship had its

  nose art painted on the starboard side of the front fuselage, the color scheme was usual in Olive Drab and Neutral Gray with yellow wingtips

  and top of the vertical stabilizer and rudder. The groups´s badge was also painted on the vertical fins.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  KITS 09/2021

  B-25J-5, 43-27952, 823rd BS, 38th BG, 5th AF, Morotai, Indonesia, November 1944

  B-25J-1-NC, 43-27540, 487th BS, 340th BG, 12th AF, Alesani, Corsica, France, March 1945

  The 38th Bombardment Group (Medium) was constituted on November 20, 1940, and activated on January 15, 1941, at Langley Army Air Base,

  Virginia. The initial personnel were transferred from the 22nd Bombardment Group. The 38th BG consisted of four squadrons, but two of them

  were assigned to the 42nd BG after the Battle of Midway. The 823rd Bomb Squadron was constituted and assigned to the 38th BG in New Gui-

  nea on April 20, 1943, as well as the 822nd BS, the two bringing the 38th BG to the full strength of four squadrons again. The 823rd BS adopted

  the name „Terrible Tigers“ and started to decorate their aircraft correspondingly. It was also the case of the No. 952 ship, which was one of few

  with glass cockpit left, as many B-25Js of the 38th BG were either original strafers with solid nose or modified with the glass nose painted

  over. The “952” was assigned to Lt. John W. Lupardus as a pilot. The tiger´s head was partly painted over the glass part of the nose of the ship,

  the camo colors were standard Olive Drab and Neutral Gray. The lower part of the fin was either green or blue. The blue was assigned to the

  squadron, but the green was also used on some aircraft as it did not intervene with markings of other squadrons (the 405th BS used also

  green color, but on the upper part of the fins

  One of the most famous squadrons within the 37th Bombardment Wing at the end of the war were the Dogfaces, the 478th BS. It was decided

  one of the squadrons of the 37th Bomb Wing should honor the bravery and misery of the soldiers on the ground, and it was decided by the

  personnel to do it by means of paintings of the characters of the famous cartoons of Bill Mauldin. Mauldin himself sketched twelve characters

  based on his often-featured infantrymen Willie and Joe. The 43-27540 ship was nicknamed “Watch Copier” according to the painting of the

  soldier checking his watches. Other known ships decorated in the honor of the infantrymen were for example “Uncle Willie”, “Supper Unit Ra-

  tion K” or “G. I. Joe”. These impressive paintings were made by Sgt. Greg Moore and Sgt. Durley Bratton with assist of sergeant Gavette during

  January of 1945. The ship with code 7E was flown by several pilots most frequently by Lieutenants C. Cook and B. O. Lyons. The “Watch Copier”

  ship was painted in Olive Drab/Neutral Gray finish, supplemented with blue spinner and front of the engine nacelles. At the end of the war, she

  had 142 missions flown.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 45

  KITS 09/2021

  OVERTREES

  B-25J glass nose

  Cat. No. 2140X

  1/72

  Product page

  Product page

  Cat. No. 2140-LEPT1

  Recommended for B-25J

  72424 B-25J exterior (PE

  -

  Set)

  72425 B-25J bomb bay (PE

  -

  Set)

  73007 Ammunition Belts US Cal.0.50 (PE

  -

  Set)

  672038 US 250lb bombs (Brassin)

  672039 US 500lb bombs (Brassin)

  672092 M-2 Browning guns (Brassin)

  672244 US 1000lb bombs (Brassin)

  Cat. No. 672092

  Cat. No. 672038

  Cat. No. 73007

  Cat. No. 672244

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 46

  KITS 09/2021

  1/48 Cat. No. 84177

  Eduard plastic parts

  4 marking options

  Product page

  eduard

  46

  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 47

  KITS 09/2021

  MiG-21M, 1st Squadron, 4th Fighter Air Regiment, Pardubice air base, Czechoslovakia, June 1989

  MiG-21MF, No. 23+15, Jagdgeschwader 1, Holzdorf, Germany, 1990

  The relaxing of the political strictness through 1989, along with the disbandment of Pardubice’s 4th slp, gave rise to something

  as yet unheard of. Two more or less clothed ladies graced the noses of a MiG-21M. Greater scorn was provoked by the markings

  denoting ‘Pardubice’ and ‘4.slp’ (translator’s note: typically, the period behind the number is the equivalent to the English ‘st’, ‘th’

  or ‘nd’, so that the 4. is equivalent to 4th , the 1. to the 1st, and so on), since these bits of information were still strictly classified.

  The inspiration for the artwork on ‘1113’ was pin up on B-24 „Barbara Jean“ from the Second World War. The image was projected

  and transferred onto the aircraft with the use of a Meotar apparatus, and this aircraft made it into the air at least once with the

  pin-up in place.

  These aircraft were updated to MF standard likely during their general overhaul in 1987. They were given the rear view periscope

  mounted in the canopy and had the small wing fences added adjacent to the auxiliary air intake doors. The R-13 power egg was

  added already during the midlife upgrade. Aircraft after general overhauls in April 1986, retained their original look without paint,

  the wheel wells were a grey-green color, and the air brake interiors were painted their usual dense yellow color.

  After the reunification of Germany in 1990, all assets of the National Peoples' Army were absorbed into the Bundeswehr. In the

  case of combat aircraft, this included the MiG-21, -23, -29 and Su-22. Due to basic incompatibilities, the MiG-21 did not last long

  in the Luftwaffe. In 1990, the MiG-21MF served in the ranks of JG 1 and with one Staffel of JG 3. JG 1 was based at Holzdorf. It was

  here that MiG-21MF 23+15 (ex 510 of the East German Air Force) received the sharkmouth along with the other colourful mar-

  kings.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  KITS 09/2021

  MiG-21MF, No. 9107, Mjr. Dariusz Pacek, CO of 10. Pułk Lotnictwa Myśliwskiego, Łask, Poland, 2000

  MiG-21MF, No. 1019, 1st Lt. Sadik, No. 11 Squadron, Al Rasheed Air Base, Iraq, 1980

  On May 7th, 1974, MiG-21MF, serial number 969107, was handed over to the Polish Air Force, along with another example. Up until

  January 9th, 1990, it served with the 41st PLM, after which it served with the 10th PLM. On the occasion of the fifty-fifth anniver-

  sary of the end of the Second World War, the upper and side surfaces were painted in gold. The author of this scheme was the

  crewchief, st.chor. Piotr Polit. In 2007, the aircraft was transferred to the Polish Air Force museum in Krakow.

  The gold paint on the upper and side surfaces was complimented by a commemoration of the anniversary together with the 1st

  Squadron unit marking, and the emblem of the 10th PLM on the nose. The lower surfaces remained in natural metal.

  MiG-21MF numbered 1019 took part in the Yom Kippur War when it served as part of the expeditionary force with No. 11 Squadron

  when it was sent to Syria. On October 22nd, 1973, according to Arab sources unconfirmed by Israeli ones, Namiq Saadallah shot

  down an Israeli Mirage III. Seven years later, in the war with Iran, 1st Lt. Sadik shot down an Iranian F-4E Phantom II with an

  R-13M missile flying this airplane.

  The front of the aircraft carried the Arabic numerals 1019 and below the windscreen was a record of the kills achieved in this

  aircraft.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 49

  KITS 09/2021

  48702 MiG-21MF exterior (PE

  -

  Set)

  48704 MiG-21 ladder (PE

  -

  Set)

  FE952 MiG-21MF seatbelts STEEL (PE

  -

  Set)

  FE1216 MiG-21MF Weekend (PE

  -

  Set)

  644048 MiG-21MF LööK (Brassin)

  644055 MiG-21MF early LööK (Brassin)

  644087 MiG-21MF early LööKplus (Brassin)

  644088 MiG-21MF LööKplus (Brassin)

  648025 Rocket launcher UB-16 and UB-32 (Brassin)

  648026 MiG-21 wheels (Brassin)

  648030 MiG-21 seat late (Brassin)

  648036 MiG-21MF interior late (Brassin)

  648040 RS-2US / AA-1 Alkali (Brassin)

  648049 MiG-21 wheel wells (Brassin)

  648064 MiG-21 late airbrakes (Brassin)

  648080 MiG-21 undercarriage legs BRONZE (Brassin)

  648125 R-3S / AA-2 Atoll-A (Brassin)

  648126 OFAB-100 Soviet bombs (Brassin)

  648127 OFAB-250 Soviet bombs (Brassin)

  648490 MiG-21 F.O.D. (Brassin)

  648445 R-13M missiles (Brassin)

  3DL48034 MiG-21MF SPACE (3D Decal set)

  EX337 MiG-21MF Weekend (Mask)

  EX526 MiG-21MF w/ canopy seal (Mask)

  EX636 MiG-21MF TFace (Mask)

  Recommended for MiG-21MF

  Cat. No. 644048

  Cat. No. 648445

  Cat. No. 648049

  Cat. No. 648080

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 50

  KITS 09/2021

  Product page

  Re-release

  1/48 Cat. No. 8185

  Eduard plastic parts

  Photo-etched set

  Paiting mask

  6 marking options

  eduard

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 51

  KITS 09/2021

  Fw 190D-11, WNr. 2200XX, Ltn. Karl-Heinz Hofmann, Platzschutzschwarm of JV 44, München – Riem,

  Germany, May 1945

  Fw 190D-11, WNr. 2200XX, VFS des G. d. J., Bad Wörishofen, Germany, March - April 1945

  Fw 190D-11, WNr. 220014, VFS des G. d. J., Bad Wörishofen, Germany, April 1945

  The most famous unit which flew the Fw 190D is JV 44. Up to this time, five Focke-Wulf Fw 190Ds are known to have been used

  by JV 44, part of the so-called 'Sachsenberg Schwarm'. Fancy, red lower surfaces with white stripes were used as a recognition

  feature to prevent friendly AA fire. These Doras protected Me 262 Schwalbe jets from JV 44 during their most vulnerable phase

  of flight – take-off and landing. 'Red 4', with the 'Der nächste Herr – die selbe Dame' inscription is documented as being flown by

  Lt. Karl-Heinz Hofmann. The inscription can be translated as 'different man, same woman'. This Dora ended her life at München-

  -Riem airfield.

  Based on the post-war pictures, it is clear that Fw 190D-11 'Red 4' from the famous 'Sachsenberg Schwarm' was previously used

  by Verbandsführerschule des G. d. J. under the designation '< 58' at Bad Wörishofen. This school unit offered specialized training

  for fighter unit leaders. As this unit was a pilot school, the white spinner spiral, typical for frontline fighters, was not present.

  Verbandsführerschule des General der Jagdflieger was founded in September 1944, by Adolf Galland in Königsberg in der

  Neumark (located in western Poland nowadays), where it was based until February 1945. The beginning of February 1945, saw

  the unit at Bad Wörishofen, and the VFS des G. d. J. had operated from this airfield till April 27, 1945, when it was disbanded. This

  Dora, WNr. 220014, was found at this airfield along with other D-11s used by VFS des G. d. J. The gun covers and upper part of

  engine cowling are unusually camouflaged with RLM 82.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 52

  KITS 09/2021

  Fw 190D-13, WNr. 836016, V./EJG 2(?), Pilsen – Bory, Protektorat Böhmen und Mähren, May 1945

  Fw 190D-13/R11, WNr. 836017, Stab./JG 26, Flensburg-Weiche, Germany, May 1945

  Fw 190D-13/R11, WNr. 836017, Flensburg – Weiche, Germany, summer 1945

  Only two Fw190D-13s are currently photographically documented. This one was found at Pilsen – Bory airfield with the engine

  dismantled at the end of the war. The Black Stab marking on the fuselage shows that this particular aircraft was flown by the

  Gruppenkommandeure. The exact operator of this Dora is not known, and V./EKG 2 formed from I./EKG(J) is one of the possibi-

  lities. If this theory is correct, then this Dora was flown by Hptm. Walter Grasemann. Nevertheless, thanks to confusion during

  final days of the war, this aircraft could also have been flown by other units, such as JG 2 or JG 6. The series of at least fifteen

  Fw 190D-13s was manufactured by Weser Flugzeugbau in March and April, 1945.

  This aircraft had belonged to JG 26 and was captured by the RAF at Flensburg–Weiche airfield on May 5, 1945. It is highly possible that this

  aircraft was flown by Major Franz Götz, CO of JG 26 (Ritterkreuz holder, 63 victories). Yellow '10' is said to be Götz´s lucky number. The small

  Ace of Spades badge on both fuselage sides refers to his career in the role of III./JG 53 'Pik As' commanding officer. The small inscription on

  the lower part of the cowling is not accurately known – the most often mentioned likelihood is 'Kontrolliert', seen on other German aircraft. The

  R11 designation indicates installation of the PKS 12 autopilot, and the letter 'R' stands for Rüstsatz ('additional set' in German). The WFG factory

  camouflage scheme was darkened using RLM 81 and RLM 82 colours.

  This Dora was captured by the Royal Air Force at Flensburg-Weiche airfield. The German national insignia was overpainted with

  a dark blue-grey colour by British personel with strangely positioned small white stars on the fuselage and wings. The inscrip-

  tion 'USA 14' was handpainted on the starboard side of the tail also. This aircraft took part in two mock dogfights with a Hawker

  Tempest Mk.V on July 25, 1945. The Dora was flown by German pilots – Maj. Heinz Lange (former Kommodore of JG 51, Ritter-

  kreuz holder, 70 victories) a Oblt. Günther Josten (former Kommandeure of IV./JG 51, 178 victories). Based on this evaluation,

  both aircraft were considered to be nearly equal except for speed at height where the Dora was better. This Dora was handed

  over to the Americans and shipped overseas via Cherbourg, France, aboard the British aircraft carrier HMS Reaper to the U.S.A.

  It was restored and found its way to the Museum of Flight in Seattle, WA. Unfortunately, the reconstruction of the camouflage

  scheme is not accurate.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 53

  KITS 09/2021

  OVERTREES

  OVERTREES

  Fw 190D-11

  Fw 190D-13

  Cat. No. 8185X

  Cat. No. 8186X

  1/48

  1/48

  Product page

  Product page

  Product page

  Cat. No. 8185-LEPT1

  Recommended for Fw 190D-11/13

  Cat. No. 3DL48035

  481066 Fw 190D-11/13 (PE

  -

  Set)

  FE1211 Fw 190D-9 seatbelts STEEL (PE

  -

  Set)

  648150 Fw 190 wheels late (Brassin)

  648356 Fw 190A wingroot gun bays (Brassin)

  3DL48035 Fw 190D-11/13 SPACE (3D Decal set)

  Cat. No. 648150

  Cat. No. 648356

  Cat. No. FE1211

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 54

  KITS 09/2021

  Product page

  Re-release

  1/48 Cat. No. 8284

  Eduard plastic parts

  Photo-etched set

  Paiting mask

  6 marking options

  eduard

  54

  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 55

  KITS 09/2021

  F Mk.VIII, JF330, AVM Harry Broadhurst, Africa, 1943

  F Mk.VIII, JF470, 308th FS, 31st FG, 12th AF, Fano Air Base, Italy, 1944 – 1945

  F Mk.VIII, JF404, No. 32 Squadron RAF, Foggia Air Base, Italy, Early 1944

  Harry Broadhurst joined the RAF in 1926. He became an outstanding display pilot and was promoted to CO of various units. He

  took part in the Battle of Britain and managed to shoot down two Bf 109s on July 2, 1941. Unfortunately, he was downed by AA fire

  during the same combat sortie. Five days later, Broadhurst´s aircraft was damaged yet again, the successful pilot on the German

  side being Hptm. Josef Priller, the JG 26 fighter ace. By August 19, 1942, Broadhurst was credited with 13 confirmed kills,

  7 probable kills and 10 damaged enemy aircraft. He was promoted to Air Vice Marshall and took command of the Desert Air For-

  ce in January 1943. As the commanding officer he had the right to use his initials as his aircraft code. The AVM pennant appeared

  under the windscreen. The aircraft was desert camouflaged and was equipped with extended wingtips.

  The 31st Fighter Group flew Spitfire Mk.Vs, Mk.VIIIs and Mk.IXs from June 1943 till March 1944. The Group was subsequently re-

  -equipped with P-51 Mustangs but a few Spitfires were retained as hacks. Mustangs flown by this FG had red-yellow stripes on

  the wing tips. The red color was closer to the wingtips, but it is not clear if the red color position was the same on this Spitfire.

  The wingtip appears to be yellow in available photos. The camouflage is probably that for high altitude fighters and consists of

  Medium Sea Grey on upper and PRU blue on lower surfaces. Note the clipped wings.

  The high altitude fighter camouflage scheme adorned this Spitfire as well. In accordance with regulations, red-blue cockades

  were painted on the fuselage and upper sides of the wings. No national insignia was applied on the bottom of the wings. A photo

  of this aircraft shows that the GZ code letters did not adhere to regulations on the right side of the fuselage.

  The aircraft was equipped with extended wingtips.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 56

  KITS 09/2021

  LF Mk.VIII, MD280, F/Lt. Paul Ostrander, No. 155 Squadron RAF, Burma, 1945

  LF Mk.VIII, MT714, F/Lt A. W. Guest, No. 43 Squadron RAF, Ramatuelle Air Field, France, August 1944

  HF Mk.VIII, W/Cdr Robert Gibbes, CO of No. 80 Fighter Wing, Dutch East Indies, 1945

  Paul Ostrander, a Canadian from Winnipeg, joined No. 155 Squadron in India in May 1944 and flew Spitfire Mk.VIIIs from July of

  the same year and successfully completed his combat tour in May, 1945. Ostrander´s Spitfire wore white identification stripes

  on the wings and tail. It is not clear if a white stripe on the fin is present but this stripe would have been part of the prescribed

  standard. Both possibilities are possible in this kit. The badge on the nose is based on the Chindits marking – troop units active

  against the Japanese armed forces in the jungle behind enemy lines.

  Fifteen Spitfire Mk.VIIIs were delivered to No. 43 Squadron RAF, in July 1944. Squadron pilots flew them till October of the same

  year from Calvi Air Field, Sardinia, and from various bases located in Southern France. This Spitfire wore the day fighter ca-

  mouflage scheme. It was accepted by the RAF in June 1944 and assigned to No. 43 Squadron on July 13, 1944. MT714 was written

  off on March 14, 1946.

  The Spitfire Mk.VIII flown by W/Cdr Bobby Gibbes, a fighter ace credited with 12 kills (2 shared), carried the marking of No. 457

  Squadron, RAAF. The kill marks under the canopy are inclusive of Gibbes´ score from the Mediterranean Theatre of Operati-

  ons. He served with No. 3 Squadron RAAF at that time. The quick identification marking composed of white leading edges of the

  wings, appeared on Australian Spitfires in mid 1943 for the first time and No. 80 Fighter Wing subsequently adopted them.

  At least two versions of the sharkmouth were painted on this Spitfire, and we offer up the earlier style. Note the up-side down

  oriented ace of spades on the rudder.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 57

  KITS 09/2021

  OVERTREES

  Spitfire Mk.VIII

  Cat. No. 8294X

  1/48

  Product page

  Product page

  Cat. No. 8284-LEPT1

  Recommended for Spitfire Mk.VIII

  49708 Spitfire Mk.VIII (PE

  -

  Set)

  648099 Spitfire exhaust stacks fishtail (Brassin)

  648115 Spitfire wheels - 4 spoke (Brassin)

  648118 Spitfire wheels - 4 spoke w/pattern (Brassin)

  648120 Spitfire - radio compartment (Brassin)

  648199 Spitfire Mk.VIII cockpit (Brassin)

  648200 Spitfire Mk.VIII engine (Brassin)

  648201 Spitfire Mk.VIII gun bays (Brassin)

  648338 Spitfire Mk.VIII top cowl (Brassin)

  648380 Spitfire Mk.VIII / IX cockpit door (Brassin)

  648589 Spitfire Mk.I undercarriage legs BRONZE (Brassin)

  3DL48039 Spifire Mk.VIII SPACE (3D Decal set)

  D48048 Spitfire Mk.VIII over Europe (Decal set)

  D48049 Spitfire Mk.VIII over Pacific (Decal set)

  Cat. No. 648120

  Cat. No. 648199

  Cat. No. 648200

  eduard

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 58

  09/2021

  LööK set - Brassin pre-painted dashboard

  and STEEL seatbelts for Me 163B in 1/48 scale.

  Easy to assemble, replaces plasc parts.

  Recommended kit: Gaspatch Models

  Set contains:

  - resin: 2 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: yes, pre-painted

  - painng mask: no

  LööK set - Brassin pre-painted dashboard

  and STEEL seatbelts for Sopwith Camel in 1/48

  scale. Easy to assemble, replaces plasc parts.

  Recommended kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 2 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: yes, pre-painted

  - painng mask: no

  644117

  Me 163B LööK

  1/48 Gaspatch Model

  644116

  Sopwith Camel LööK

  1/48 Eduard

  Product page

  Product page

  eduard

  58

  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 59

  Brassin set - the gun bays for Tempest Mk.II

  in 1/48 scale. The set consists of the gun

  bays for both wings.

  Recommended kit: Eduard/Special Hobby

  Set contains:

  - resin: 24 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: yes

  - painng mask: no

  LööK set - Brassin pre-painted dashboard

  and STEEL seatbelts for Lancaster B Mk.I

  in 1/48 scale. Easy to assemble, replaces

  plasc parts. Recommended kit: HKM

  Set contains:

  - resin: 4 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: yes, pre-painted

  - painng mask: no

  648638

  Tempest Mk.II gun bays

  1/48 Eduard/Special Hobby

  644118

  Lancaster B Mk.I LööK

  1/48 HKM

  BRASSIN 09/2021

  Product page

  Product page

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 60

  BRASSIN 09/2021

  Brassin set - the undercarriage wheels

  for Sopwith Camel in 1/48 scale. Easy to

  assemble, replaces plasc parts.

  Recommended kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 2 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: no

  - painng mask: yes

  Brassin set - the undercarriage wheels

  for Lancaster B Mk.I in 1/48 scale. The

  set consists of the main wheels and a tail

  wheel. Easy to assemble, replaces plasc

  parts. Recommended kit: HKM

  Set contains:

  - resin: 3 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: no

  - painng mask: yes

  648657

  Sopwith Camel wheels type 1

  1/48 Eduard

  648656

  Lancaster B Mk.I wheels

  1/48 HKM

  Product page

  Product page

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 61

  Brassin set - the pilot seat for Sopwith Camel

  in 1/48 scale. Easy to assemble, replaces plasc

  parts. Recommended kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 1 part

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: yes, pre-painted

  - painng mask: no

  Brassin set - the undercarriage wheels for

  Sopwith Camel in 1/48 scale. Easy to assemble,

  replaces plasc parts.

  Recommended kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 2 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: no

  - painng mask: yes

  648659

  Sopwith Camel seat

  1/48 Eduard

  648658

  Sopwith Camel wheels type 2

  1/48 Eduard

  BRASSIN 09/2021

  Product page

  Product page

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 62

  BRASSIN 09/2021

  Brassin set - the undercarriage wheels for Spiire

  Mk.V in 1/48 scale. The set consists of the main

  wheels and a tail wheel. Easy to assemble, repla-

  ces plasc parts. Recommended kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 3 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: no

  - painng mask: yes

  Brassin set - the Vickers Mk.I guns for Sopwith

  Camel in 1/48 scale. The set consists of two guns.

  Easy to assemble, replaces plasc parts.

  Recommended kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 4 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: yes

  - painng mask: no

  648664

  Spitre Mk.V wheels

  1/48 Eduard

  648660

  Sopwith Camel Vickers Mk.I gun

  1/48 Eduard

  Product page

  Product page

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 63

  Brassin set - the gun bays for Spiire

  Mk.Vb in 1/48 scale. The set consists

  of the gun bays for both wings.

  Recommended kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 28 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: yes

  - painng mask: no

  Brassin set - the gun bays for Spiire

  Mk.Vc in 1/48 scale. The set consists of the

  gun bays for both wings. Recommended

  kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 52 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: yes

  - painng mask: no

  648665

  Spitre Mk.Vb gun bays

  1/48 Eduard

  648666

  Spitre Mk.Vc gun bays

  1/48 Eduard

  BRASSIN 09/2021

  Product page

  Product page

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 64

  BRASSIN 09/2021

  Brassin set - the exhaust stacks for Spiire

  Mk.V in 1/48 scale. Easy to assemble,

  replaces plasc parts.

  Recommended kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 2 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: yes

  - painng mask: no

  Brassin set - the exhaust stacks for Spiire

  Mk.V in 1/48 scale. Easy to assemble,

  replaces plasc parts.

  Recommended kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 2 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: no

  - painng mask: no

  648668

  Spitre Mk.V three-stacks exhausts shtail

  1/48 Eduard

  648667

  Spitre Mk.V three-stacks exhausts rounded

  1/48 Eduard

  Product page

  Product page

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 65

  Brassin set - the undercarriage legs for Spiire

  Mk.Va and Mk.Vb in 1/48 scale. The set consists

  of the main undercarriage legs and wheel well

  doors. The legs are made of bronze. Easy to

  assemble, replaces plasc parts.

  Recommended kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 2 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: no

  - painng mask: no

  - bronze: 2 parts

  Brassin set - the undercarriage legs for

  Spiire Mk.Vc in 1/48 scale. The set con-

  sists of the main undercarriage legs and

  wheel well doors. The legs are made of

  bronze. Easy to assemble, replaces plasc

  parts. Recommended kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 2 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: no

  - painng mask: no

  - bronze: 2 parts

  648670

  Spitre Mk.Va/b undercarriage legs BRONZE

  1/48 Eduard

  648671

  Spitre Mk.Vc undercarriage legs BRONZE

  1/48 Eduard

  BRASSIN 09/2021

  Product page

  Product page

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 66

  BRASSIN 09/2021

  Brassin set - the undercarriage wheels for

  Sabre F.4 in 1/48 scale. The set consists of

  the main wheels and a nose wheel. Easy

  to assemble, replaces plasc parts.

  Recommended kit: Airx

  Set contains:

  - resin: 5 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: no

  - painng mask: yes

  648673

  Sabre F.4 wheels

  1/48 Airx

  Product page

  Brassin set - the oil pumps for Sopwith

  Camel in 1/48 scale. The set consists of 6

  pumps. Easy to assemble, replaces plasc

  parts. Recommended kit: Eduard

  Set contains:

  - resin: 6 parts

  - decals: no

  - photo-etched details: yes

  - painng mask: no

  648674

  Sopwith Camel Rotherham air pumps

  1/48 Eduard

  Product page

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 67

  Collection of 4 sets for B-17F in 1/48 scale. Recommended kit: HKM.

  - LööK set (pre-painted Brassin dashboard & Steelbelts)

  - TFace painting mask

  - superchargers

  - undercarriage wheels

  644114

  B-17F LööKplus

  1/48 HKM

  BRASSIN 09/2021

  Product page

  eduard

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 68

  BRASSIN 09/2021

  Collection of 4 sets for Tempest Mk.II in 1/48 scale.

  Recommended kit: Eduard/Special Hobby.

  - LööK set (pre-painted Brassin dashboard & Steelbelts)

  - TFace painting mask

  - exhaust stacks

  - undercarriage wheels

  644115

  Tempest Mk.II LööKplus

  1/48 Eduard/Special Hobby

  Product page

  eduard

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 69

  Product page

  Collection of 4 sets for Fw 190F-8 in 1/48 scale.

  Recommended kit: Eduard

  - undercarriage legs BRONZE

  - cockpit

  - PE landing aps

  - undecarriage wheels

  All sets included in this BIG SIN are available separately,

  but with every BIG SIN set you save up to 30%.

  SIN64877

  Fw 190F-8 ESSENTIAL

  1/48 Eduard

  BRASSIN 09/2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 70

  SPACE 09/2021

  for 1/48 kit Eduard

  for 1/48 kit Eduard

  for 1/48 kit Eduard for 1/48 kit Eduard

  MiG-21MF SPACE

  Fw 190D-11/13 SPACE

  P-51K-5 SPACE P-51K-10 SPACE

  Product page

  Product page

  Product page Product page

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 71

  for 1/48 kit Eduard

  for 1/48 kit Eduard

  for 1/48 kit Tamiya

  Sopwith Camel SPACE

  Spitfire Mk.VIII SPACE

  F-4B SPACE

  Product page

  Product page

  Product page

  SPACE 09/2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 72

  PHOTO-ETCHED September 2021

  IDF Shot Kal 1/35 Amusing Hobby (36468)

  IDF Shot Kal turret boxes 1/35 Amusing Hobby (36469)

  IDF Shot Kal

  1/35 Amusing Hobby

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 73

  PHOTO-ETCHED 09/2021

  Sd. Kfz.2 Keenkrarad 1/35 Tamiya (36467)

  Sd. Kfz.2 Kettenkraftrad

  1/35 Tamiya

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 74

  PHOTO-ETCHED 09/2021

  Marder I on FCM 36 base 1/35 ICM (36470)

  Marder I on FCM 36 base

  1/35 ICM

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 75

  PHOTO-ETCHED 09/2021

  F-4B 1/48 Tamiya (491212)

  F-4B 1/48 Tamiya (FE1212) (Zoom)

  F-4B seatbelts STEEL 1/48 Tamiya (FE1213) (Zoom)

  F-4B 1/48 Tamiya (EX802) (Mask)

  F-4B TFace 1/48 Tamiya (EX803) (Mask)

  F-4B

  1/48 Tamiya

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 76

  PHOTO-ETCHED 09/2021

  F-4E 1/72 Fine Molds (73747)

  F-4E 1/72 Fine Molds (SS747) (Zoom)

  F-4E 1/72 Fine Molds (CX603) (Mask)

  F-4E

  1/72 Fine Molds

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 77

• Page 78

  Cat. No. D32013

  P-51D-5 "8th AF"

  1/32 Tamiya/Revell

  Product page

  DECAL SETS 09/2021

  44-13660, Lt. Kenneth A. Skinner,

  79th FS, 20th FG, 8th AF, King´s Cliffe,

  Northamptonshire, Great Britain, Autumn 1944

  44-13619, Lt. Robert W. Graham,

  487th FS, 352nd FG, 8th AF, Bodney,

  Norfolk, Great Britain, July 1944

  44-13410, Col. Thomas J. J. Christian, 375th FS, 361st FG, 8th AF,

  Bottisham, Cambridgeshire, Great Britain, July 1944

  44-13760, Capt. Glenn M. Webb,

  79th FS, 20th FG, 8th AF, Northamptonshire,

  King´s Cliffe, Great Britain, October 1944

  44-13471, Capt. Evan M. Johnson, 505th FS,

  339th FG, 8th AF, Fowlmere, Cambridgeshire,

  Great Britain, May 1944

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 79

  44-13660, Lt. Kenneth A. Skinner,

  79th FS, 20th FG, 8th AF, King´s Cliffe,

  Northamptonshire, Great Britain, Autumn 1944

  44-13619, Lt. Robert W. Graham,

  487th FS, 352nd FG, 8th AF, Bodney,

  Norfolk, Great Britain, July 1944

  Cat. No. D72034

  B-25J stencils

  1/72 Hasegawa

  Cat. No. D32014

  Italian smoke rings camouage

  1/32

  Cat. No. D72035

  Su-7 stencils

  1/72 Modelsvit

  Product page

  Product page

  Product page

  DECAL SETS 09/2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 80

  32468 F-100C exterior 1/32

  32473 F-100C interior pt.2 1/32

  32989 F-100C interior 1/32

  33285 F-100C seatbelts STEEL 1/32

  JX277 F-100C 1/32

  32469 F-100C slats 1/32

  32470 F-100C air brake 1/32

  32471 F-100C undercarriage 1/32

  32472 F-100C gun bay 1/32

  481056 B-17F ammo feed chutes 1/48

  491182 B-17F radio compartment 1/48

  491201 B-17F wooden oors & ammo boxes 1/48

  BIG33136 F-100C PART I 1/32 Trumpeter

  BIG33137 F-100C PART II 1/32 Trumpeter

  BIG49300 B-17F part III 1/48 HKM

  All sets included in this BIG ED are available separately,

  but with every BIG ED set you save up to 30%.

  Product page

  Product page

  Product page

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 81

  491192 Ju 87D 1/48

  FE1193 Ju 87D seatbelts STEEL 1/48

  EX089 Ju 87D/G Stuka 1/48

  49103 Remove Before Flight STEEL

  491194 F/A-18E 1/48

  FE1195 F/A-18E seatbelts STEEL 1/48

  EX786 F/A-18E 1/48

  491196 IA-58A Pucara 1/48

  FE1197 IA-58A Pucara seatbelts STEEL 1/48

  EX788 IA-58A Pucara 1/48

  BIG49301 Ju 87D 1/48 Hasegawa/ Hobby 2000

  BIG49302 F/A-18E 1/48 Meng

  BIG49303 IA-58A Pucara 1/48 Kinetic

  All sets included in this BIG ED are available separately,

  but with every BIG ED set you save up to 30%.

  Product page

  Product page

  Product page

  eduard

  81

  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 82

  MASKS 09/2021

  EDUARD MASK IT FITS!

  EX800 Fw 190D-11/13 TFace 1/48 Eduard

  EX801 P-51K TFace 1/48 Eduard

  EX802 F-4B 1/48 Tamiya

  EX803 F-4B TFace 1/48 Tamiya

  EX804 Ar 234B TFace 1/48 Hasegawa/ Hobby 2000

  CX604 Vulcan B.2 1/72 Airx

  CX605 F-14B 1/72 GREAT WALL HOBBY

  CX606 A-4E 1/72 FUJIMI/Hobby 2000

  CX606

  CX606

  EX800

  EX802 EX802

  EX803

  EX804

  CX604

  CX605

  CX605

  CX605

  CX604

  CX604

  EX804 EX804

  EX803

  EX803

  EX800 EX800

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 83

  KITS

  82105 P-51K 1/48 ProPACK

  2140 ANGEL OF MERCY 1/72 Limited edition

  11151 CAMEL & Co. 1/48 Limited edition

  84177 MiG-21MF 1/48 Weekend edition

  8185 Fw 190D-11/13 (reedice) 1/48 ProPACK

  8284 Spitre Mk.VIII (reedice) 1/48 ProPACK

  PE-SETS

  53269 SMS Szent István 1/350 Trumpeter

  53270 SMS Szent István railings 1/350 Trumpeter

  53271 SMS Szent István ags STEEL 1/350 Trumpeter

  36467 Sd.Kfz.2 Kettenkraftrad 1/35 Tamiya

  36468 IDF Shot Kal 1/35 Amusing Hobby

  36469 IDF Shot Kal turret boxes 1/35 Amusing Hobby

  36470 Marder I on FCM 36 base 1/35 ICM

  36471 Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf.G 1/35 Tamiya

  481061 Lancaster B Mk.I bomb racks 1/48 HKM

  481062 Lancaster B Mk.I undercarriage 1/48 HKM

  481066 Fw 190D-11/13 1/48 Eduard

  491212 F-4B 1/48 Tamiya

  73747 F-4E 1/72 Fine Molds

  73749 F-14B 1/72 GREAT WALL HOBBY

  73750 A-4E 1/72 FUJIMI/Hobby 2000

  73751 Bf 109E-1 1/72 Special Hobby

  ZOOMS

  FE1212 F-4B 1/48 Tamiya

  FE1213 F-4B seatbelts STEEL 1/48 Tamiya

  FE1214 P-51K seatbelts STEEL 1/48 Eduard

  FE1215 Sopwith Camel seatbelts STEEL 1/48 Eduard

  FE1216 MiG-21MF Weekend 1/48 Eduard

  SS747 F-4E 1/72 Fine Molds

  SS749 F-14B 1/72 GREAT WALL HOBBY

  SS750 A-4E 1/72 FUJIMI/Hobby 2000

  MASKS

  EX800 Fw 190D-11/13 TFace 1/48 Eduard

  EX801 P-51K TFace 1/48 Eduard

  EX802 F-4B 1/48 Tamiya

  EX803 F-4B TFace 1/48 Tamiya

  EX804 Ar 234B TFace 1/48 Hasegawa/ Hobby 2000

  CX604 Vulcan B.2 1/72 Airx

  CX605 F-14B 1/72 GREAT WALL HOBBY

  CX606 A-4E 1/72 FUJIMI/Hobby 2000

  BIGEDs

  BIG33136 F-100C PART I 1/32 Trumpeter

  BIG33137 F-100C PART II 1/32 Trumpeter

  BIG49300 B-17F part III 1/48 HKM

  BIG49301 Ju 87D 1/48 Hasegawa/ Hobby 2000

  BIG49302 F/A-18E 1/48 Meng

  BIG49303 IA-58A Pucara 1/48 Kinetic

  BRASSINY

  644116 Sopwith Camel LööK 1/48 Eduard

  644117 Me 163B LööK 1/48 Gaspatch Model

  644118 Lancaster B Mk.I LööK 1/48 HKM

  648638 Tempest Mk.II gun bays 1/48 Eduard/Special Hobby

  648656 Lancaster B Mk.I wheels 1/48 HKM

  648657 Sopwith Camel wheels Type 1 1/48 Eduard

  648658 Sopwith Camel wheels Type 2 1/48 Eduard

  648659 Sopwith Camel seat 1/48 Eduard

  648660 Sopwith Camel Vickers Mk.I gun 1/48 Eduard

  648664 Spitre Mk.V wheels 1/48 Eduard

  648665 Spitre Mk.Vb gun bays 1/48 Eduard

  648666 Spitre Mk.Vc gun bays 1/48 Eduard

  648667 Spitre Mk.V three-stacks exhausts rounded 1/48 Eduard

  648668 Spitre Mk.V three-stacks exhausts shtail 1/48 Eduard

  648670 Spitre Mk.Va/b undercarriage legs BRONZE 1/48 Eduard

  648671 Spitre Mk.Vc undercarriage legs BRONZE 1/48 Eduard

  648673 Sabre F.4 wheels 1/48 Airx

  648674 Sopwith Camel Rotherham air pumps 1/48 Eduard

  LookPLUS

  644114 B-17F LööKplus 1/48 HKM

  644115 Tempest Mk.II LööKplus 1/48 Eduard/Special Hobby

  BRASSIN

  SIN64874 Fw 190F-8 ESSENTIAL 1/48 Eduard

  DECAL SETS

  D32013 P-51D-5 "8th AF" 1/32 Tamiya/Revell

  D32014 Italian smoke rings camouage 1/32

  D72034 B-25J stencils 1/72 Hasegawa

  D72035 Su-7 stencils 1/72 Modelsvit

  SPACE

  3DL48034 MiG-21MF SPACE 1/48 Eduard

  3DL48035 Fw 190D-11/13 SPACE 1/48 Eduard

  3DL48036 P-51K-5 SPACE 1/48 Eduard

  3DL48037 P-51K-10 SPACE 1/48 Eduard

  3DL48038 Sopwith Camel SPACE 1/48 Eduard

  3DL48039 Spire Mk.VIII SPACE 1/48 Eduard

  3DL48040 F-4B SPACE 1/48 Tamiya

  September 2021

  September releases

• Page 84

  BUILT

  Product page

  Built by Martin Jirkal

  Cat. No. 11151

  Camo D

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 85

  BUILT

  B7190, Capt. Walter G. R. Hinchliffe, C Flight, No. 10(N) Sqn RNAS, Téteghem, France, March 1918

  "Hinch", as Walter Hinchliffe was called, scored six kills during World War I, all when at controls of a Camel. He shot down his second and third

  victims on the one of serial number B7190. Hinchliffe served with the artillery at the start of the Great War, only joining the ranks of the RNAS

  (Royal Navy Air Service) in 1916. He completed his pilot training and served as an instructor at the RNAS base at Cranwell afterwards. There he

  clocked an incredible 1,250 flight hours in thirteen months. It was not until January 1918 that he joined No. 10 Sqn RNAS. He scored his first kill

  on February 3 when he shot down an Albatros D.V., his last one occured on May 19. On June 3 he suffered serious head and facial injuries after

  a crash and lost his left eye. After the War he flew as an airline pilot. In 1928 he attempted to fly across the Atlantic. He took off from Cranwell

  Airport on March 13 with co-pilot Elsie Mackay. They have not been seen since... "Hinch's" Camel bore a striking livery with blue and white

  stripes on the nose and a blue fuselage spine. There was a drawing of a devil on the wheel discs, the German word DONNERWETTER behind

  the cockpit, possibly on both sides, and a symbol, which was, according to the only known photo of this part of the aircraft, probably stylized

  combination of the letters W and H on the ridge of the aft fuselage. Upper and sides were probably in PC10 color. Camel B7190 was built by the

  Clayton & Shuttleworth company and was powered by a Bentley B.R.1 engine.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 86

  BUILT

  Product page

  Built by Pavel Zimandl

  Cat. No. 11151

  Camo J

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 87

  BUILT

  F1471, 185th Aero Sqn USAS, Colombey-les-Belles, France, March 1919

  The 185th Aero Squadron of USAAC was established on November 11, 1917, at Kelly Field, Texas, by transferring some personnel from the 24th

  Aero Squadron. The entire unit then embarked aboard the RMS Adriatic in late January 1918 and arrived in Liverpool on February 16. After the

  personnel undergo training, they moved to France on August 12 to the American Rest Camp No. 2 at Le Havre. From there they proceeded to

  St. Maxient Replacement Barracks for ground training and then to Colombey-les-Belles for further aerial training. However, due to the need

  to resupply other units, seventeen pilots with completed training were transferred elsewhere. The 185th Aero Squadron itself did not receive

  its Camels until September 12 after moving to Rembercourt airfield. At the same time, it was the first U.S. unit designated for night fighter duty.

  However, the pilots were not trained for such a task, nor did the equipment of the airfield and aircraft were sufficient for it. This Camel was

  delivered to the unit two days after the Armistice and remained in the unit's inventory even after it moved back to Colombey-les-Belles and

  changed their Camels for Spads XIII in February 1919. This Camel received a coat of white paint on the fuselage during this period. Upper sides

  of wings remained in PC10. The squadron emblem, a black bat in an orange circle, was painted on the aircraft after the war. The F1471 Camel

  was manufactured by Boulton & Paul and was powered by a Gnome engine.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 88

  BUILT

  1/48

  Dual Combo

  The Spitfire Mk.V Flown by U.S. Pilots in the RAF and USAAF

  Product page

  Built by Jan Novotný

  Cat. No. 11149

  Camo L

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 89

  BUILT

  Spitfire Mk.Vc Trop, Lt. Richard Alexander, 2nd FS, 52nd FG, 12th AF, Borgo, Corsica, early 1944

  Richard Alexander was one of the original Eagle Squadron pilots and his service fairly reflects the story of all Americans fighting on Spitfires.

  His teethed QP

  -

  A was one of the last “Fives” finishing their service with 2nd FS at Borgo airport in Corsica, still in the beginning of 1944. In June

  1943, when 2nd FS was still stationed at La Sebala airport in Tunisia, its members gave the unit the nickname “American Beagle Squadron”,

  a play with words on the account of the more famous Eagle squadrons. The American Beagle Squadron marking was painted on several 2nd

  FS Spitfires and was also carried on Alexander’s aircraft together with some other emblems on various locations of the fuselage. It needs to

  be stated, that the achievements of the whole 52nd FG on both Spitfires as well as Mustangs after the integration into 15th AF, did not fall short

  of achievements of their more famous colleagues from 8th AF and made its mark in the history of the American aviation.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 90

  BUILT

  1/48

  Dual Combo

  The Spitfire Mk.V Flown by U.S. Pilots in the RAF and USAAF

  Product page

  Built by Patrik Pěcha

  Cat. No. 11149

  Camo E

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

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  BUILT

  Spitfire Mk.Vb, BL255, Lt. Dominic S. Gentile, 336th FS, 4th FG, 8th AF, Debden, Essex,

  United Kingdom, August 1942

  The third and last Eagle squadron, 133rd formed in July 1941 at RAF airbase Coltishall, was in 1942 the first American squadron re-equipped

  with Spitfires Mk.IX. However, the unit lost its twelve „Nines“ in only three days before Eagle squadron was transferred under the USAAF

  command, during the B-17 escort over Morlaix. After its inclusion into 8th AF USAAF on September 29, 1942, it continued flying the good old

  Spitfires Mk.Vb as it was transformed from No. 133 (Eagle) Squadron RAF into 336th FS, 4th FG. The BL255 Spitfire, nicknamed “Buckeye Don”,

  was the personal aircraft of Don Gentile, the future most successful fighter pilot of the 8th AF with 19 kills, 3 damaged and 6 on the ground

  destroyed enemy aircraft. He was credited with two more kills during the combat over Dieppe on August 19, 1942, while he was still serving

  with RAF. The same nose art as on BL255 was later sported on the famous P-51B Shangri La and it was also

  incorporated into 334th FS insignia.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 92

  Built by Jan Novotný

  Cat. No. 82124

  Camo F

  Product page

  BUILT

  Tempest Mk.II

  Early version

  1/48

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  MW423, No. 33 Sqn, RAF Changi, Singapore, August 1949

  No. 33 Squadron was stationed in Germany after the war. From there it was

  shipped aboard HMS Ocean to the Far East in early July 1949. The unit operated

  in the region until 1970, flying sorties against Communist guerrillas in Malaya

  until 1960. It was also the last RAF operational unit to fly Tempests Mk.II. Its pilots

  made last sortie with them on June 6, 1951, then started to exchange them for de

  Havilland Hornet F.3s.

  Originally allocated to No. 26 Sqn, MW423 was transferred

  to No. 33 Sqn in April 1949 and was also one of seven early

  production Mk.IIs converted to the "full tropical" standard

  for the RAF. Interestingly, it featured an escape panel

  warning marking on the port side of the fuselage (usually

  only seen on the starboard side). The top of the fin was

  decorated with the unit's emblem of a deer head and with

  the simple motto "Loyalty". It was in use until January 20,

  1950, when an undercarriage failure made a “wheels-up”

  landing necessary. Although repaired it saw no further

  active service.

  BUILT

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 94

  BUILT

  Built by Jan Baranec

  Cat. No. 11146

  Camo B

  1/48

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 95

  BUILT

  P7666, flown by S/Ldr Donald O. Finlay, CO of No. 41 Squadron,

  RAF Hornchurch, Great Britain, November 1940

  Donald Finlay was a famous British athlete. He was the European champion in the 110 metre hurdle in 1938. He won the bronze medal at the

  1932 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, and the silver medal at the 1936 Summer Olympic Games in Berlin, both in the 110m hurdle event.

  After the war, he was British team captain at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, where he was chosen to take the Olympic Oath. He joined

  the RAF in 1935. He led No. 54 Squadron in the Battle of Britain, and he was shot down over Ramsgate on August 28th and was wounded.

  After recovering, he took command of No. 41 Squadron and he achieved four kills during the BoB. His aircraft here illustrates the camouflage

  scheme and markings of Fighter Command aircraft in late 1940 and early 1941. The black painted (Night) left wing, Sky fuselage band and Sky

  spinner were ordered by the Air Ministry on November 27th, 1940.

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 96

  BIG5360 USS Langley CV-1 1/350 Trumpeter

  BIG5361 USS Langley AV-3 1/350 Trumpeter

  BIG33138 AH-1G 1/32 ICM

  BIG49304 F-84F 1/48 Kinec

  BIG49305 Mi-24P 1/48 Zvezda

  644120 Z-226 Trener LööK 1/48 Eduard

  644121 Mi-24D LööK 1/48 Eduard/Zvezda

  648644 B-17 wheels oval tread 1/48 HKM

  648662 Sopwith Camel 20lb bomb carrier 1/48 Eduard

  648663 Spiire Mk.V cockpit 1/48 Eduard

  648672 Bf 109G-10 propeller 1/48 Eduard

  648675 Falanga 9M17P missiles 1/48 Eduard/Zvezda

  648676 Sopwith Camel Clerget engine 1/48 Eduard

  648677 Sopwith Camel Bentley engine 1/48 Eduard

  648679 Z-126/226 Trener wheels 1/48 Eduard

  648682 F-4B wheels 1/48 Tamiya

  648683 F6F exhaust stacks 1/48 Edurad

  648684 Me 163B wheels 1/48 Gaspatch Model

  648685 Mi-24D wheels 1/48 Eduard/Zvezda

  672274 Tornado GR.1 cockpit 1/72 Eduard/Revell

  644122 Sabre F.4 LööKplus 1/48 Airx

  644123 Lancaster B Mk.I LööKplus 1/48 HKM

  BIG ED (October)

  BRASSIN (October)

  LöökPlus (October)

  BIG5361

  BIG5360

  BIG49305

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  OCTOBER 2021

  BRASSIN

  644120 Z-226 Trener LööK 1/48 Eduard

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 97

  644121 Mi-24D LööK 1/48 Eduard/Zvezda

  648644 B-17 wheels oval tread 1/48 HKM

  BRASSIN

  OCTOBER 2021

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  PRELLIMINARY IMGAES

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 98

  648662 Sopwith Camel 20lb bomb carrier 1/48 Eduard

  648663 Spitre Mk.V cockpit 1/48 Eduard

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  BRASSIN

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 99

  648672 Bf 109G-10 propeller 1/48 Eduard

  648675 Falanga 9M17P missiles 1/48 Eduard/Zvezda

  BRASSIN

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 100

  648676 Sopwith Camel Clerget engine 1/48 Eduard

  648677 Sopwith Camel Bentley engine 1/48 Eduard

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  BRASSIN

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 101

  648682 F-4B wheels 1/48 Tamiya

  648679 Z-126/226 Trener wheels 1/48 Eduard

  BRASSIN

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 102

  648683 F6F exhaust stacks 1/48 Eduard

  648684 Me 163B wheels 1/48 Gaspatch Model

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  BRASSIN

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 103

  672274 Tornado GR.1 cockpit 1/72 Eduard/Revell

  648685 Mi-24D wheels 1/48 Eduard/Zvezda

  BRASSIN

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 104

  644122 Sabre F.4 LööKplus 1/48 Airx

  Collection of 3 sets for Sabre F.4 in 1/48 scale.

  Recommended kit: Airx

  - LööK set (pre-painted Brassin dashboard & Steelbelts)

  - TFace painting mask

  - undercarriage wheels

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  BRASSIN

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 105

  644123 Lancaster B Mk.I LööKplus 1/48 HKM

  Collection of 3 sets for Lancaster B Mk.I in 1/48 scale.

  Recommended kit: HKM

  - LööK set (pre-painted Brassin dashboard & Steelbelts)

  - TFace painting mask

  - undercarriage wheels

  BRASSIN

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 106

  PE-SETS

  53272 USS Intrepid CV-11 pt.1 1/350 Trumpeter

  53273 USS Intrepid CV-11 pt.2 1/350 Trumpeter

  36472 Ferdinand 1/35 Amusing Hobby

  36473 TOR M-2 / SA-15 Gauntlet 1/35 Zvezda

  481067 Mi-24D cargo interior 1/48 Eduard

  481068 Mi-24D upgrade set 1/48 Eduard

  481069 Mirage 2000D exterior 1/48 Kinec

  491217 Ar 234B 1/48 Hasegawa/Hobby 2000

  491221 Mirage 2000D 1/48 Kinec

  72715 Vulcan B.2 bomb bay 1/72 Airx

  72716 Vulcan B.2 undercarriage 1/72 Airx

  72717 Hurricane Mk.IIc landing aps 1/72 Zvezda

  73748 Vulcan B.2 1/72 Airx

  73752 Ki-54 1/72 Special Hobby

  73753 Hurricane Mk.IIc 1/72 Zvezda

  ZOOMS

  FE1217 Ar 234B 1/48 Hasegawa/Hobby 2000

  FE1218 Ar 234B seatbelts STEEL 1/48 Hasegawa/Hobby 2000

  FE1219 Z-126/226 seatbelts STEEL 1/48 Eduard

  FE1220 Mi-24D seatbelts STEEL 1/48 Eduard/Zvezda

  FE1221 Mirage 2000D 1/48 Kinec

  FE1222 Mirage 2000D seatbelts STEEL 1/48 Kinec

  FE1223 Spiire Mk.XVI seatbelts STEEL 1/48 Eduard

  FE1224 MiG-21R seatbelts STEEL 1/48 Eduard

  SS748 Vulcan B.2 1/72 Airx

  SS753 Hurricane Mk.IIc 1/72 Zvezda

  SS754 F6F-3 Weekend 1/72 Eduard

  MASKS

  EX805 Z-226 TFace 1/48 Eduard

  EX806 Mi-24D TFace 1/48 Eduard/Zvezda

  EX807 Mirage 2000D TFace 1/48 Kinec

  EX808 Spiire Mk.XVI TFace 1/48 Eduard

  CX607 Hurricane Mk.IIc 1/72 Zvezda

  CX608 Ki-54c 1/72 Special Hobby

  DECAL SET

  D32015 P-51D stencils 1/32 Revell/Tamiya

  D48091 Mi-24D stencils 1/48 Zvezda

  D48092 Z-226 stencils 1/48 Eduard

  D48093 F-4B NAVY 1/48 Tamiya

  D48094 F-4B stencils 1/48 Tamiya

  D72036 Hurricane Mk.I stencils 1/72 Arma Hobby/Revell/Airx

  SPACE

  3DL48041 Spiire Mk.XVI SPACE 1/48 Eduard

  3DL48042 MiG-21R SPACE 1/48 Eduard

  3DL48043 Mi-24D SPACE 1/48 Eduard/Zvezda

  3DL48045 Z-226 SPACE 1/48 Eduard

  PE-Sets, Masks and Decal sets

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 107

  HIND D

  STAVEBNICE

  ČERVENEC 2021

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  KITS

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  1/48

  Cat. No. 11150

  OCTOBER 2021

  Mi-24D, 0151,2 Sqn, 51 Helicopter Regiment, Prostějov,

  flight Prostějov – Kbely and back, August 18, 1992

  Mi-24D, 4009, 11 Helicopter Regiment,

  Plzeň-Bory, 1985

  Mi-24D, 0220, 231 Helicopter Sqn, 23 Helicopter Base,

  Přerov, Gilze-Rijen (NL), July 6, 2002

  Mi-24D, 4011, 331 Attack Helicopter Sqn,

  33 Helicopter Base, Přerov, RIAT Fairford (UK),

  July 24, 1995

  Mi-24D, 0219, 1 Sqn, 51 Helicopter Regiment, Prostějov,

  Kit Show Zlín, Kunovice, May 2, 1992

  Mi-24D, 4011, 1 Sqn, 51 Helicopter Regiment,

  Prostějov, April 13, 1994

  Mi-24D, 0222, 1 Sqn, 4 Helicopter regiment,

  Air Base Prešov, 2009

  Mi-24D, 4011, 331 Attack Helicopter Sqn, 33 Helicopter Base,

  Přerov, Pardubice Airshow, June 1, 1997

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 108

  HURRISTORY: Hurricane Mk.I

  KITS

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  1/ 72

  N2359, P/O L. W. Stevens, No. 17 Squadron,

  Debden, Great Britain, July 1940

  P3120, F/O Z. Henneberg, No. 303 (Polish) Squadron,

  Northolt, Great Britain, September 1940

  P3576, Fl/Lt J. B. Nicolson VC, No. 249 Squadron,

  Boscombe Down, Wiltshire, Great Britain, August 1940

  P3395, S/Ldr A. V. Clowes, No. 1 Squadron,

  Wittering, West Sussex, Great Britain, autumn 1940

  OCTOBER 2021

  Cat. No. 2138

  Dual Combo

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 109

  HURRISTORY: Hurricane Mk.I

  KITS

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  P2961, F/O W. L. McKnight, No. 242 Squadron,

  Coltishall, Norfolk, Great Britain, December 1940

  V6864, S/Ldr R. R. S. Tuck, No. 257 (Burma) Squadron,

  North Weald, Essex, Great Britain, winter 1940

  P3612, No. 312 (Czechoslovak) Squadron, Speke,

  Great Britain, January 1941

  V7544, F/O J. E. Storrar, No. 73 Squadron,

  El Adem, Libya, February 1941

  Capt. J. E. Frost, No. 3 Squadron SAAF, Jigiga,

  Abyssinia (Ethiopia), March/April 1941

  W9200, S/Ldr J. W. C. Simpson, No. 245 Squadron,

  Aldergrove, Antrim, Northern Ireland, Great Britain,

  end of May 1941

  W9266, Fl/Lt D. S. G. Honor, No. 274 Squadron,

  Gerawla, Egypt, May 1941

  Z4244 or Z4245, Lt. H. P. Allingham, Royal Navy Fighter Squadron, Western Desert, August 1941

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 110

  F6F-3

  1/ 72

  Cat. No. 7457

  KITS

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  VF-38, Munda Airfield, New Georgia,

  Solomon Islands, autumn 1943

  Lt. Cdr. D. McCampbell, CO of CAG-15,

  USS Essex, June 1944

  BuNo. 40994, Lt. Alexander Vraciu, VF-16,

  USS Lexington, June 1944

  VF-27, USS Princeton, October 1944

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 111

  Air Test Department, Czech Air Force,

  Caslav Air Base, Czechoslovakia, 1994

  32nd Tactical Reconnaissance Air Regiment,

  Polish Air Force, Sochaczew-Bielice Air Base,

  Poland, early 1980s

  353rd Reconnaissance Air Squadron, Yugoslav Air Force,

  Zelyava Air Base, Yugoslavia, 1971

  263rd Independent Reconnaissance Air Squadron,

  Soviet Air Force, Kabul Airfield, Afghanistan, 1981

  Cuban Air Force, 1980s – 1990s

  STAVEBNICE

  ČERVENEC 2021

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  MiG-21R

  Cat. No. 8238Re-release

  1/48

  KITS

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 112

  STAVEBNICE

  ČERVENEC 2021

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  Spitfire Mk.XVI

  Cat. No. 8285 Re-release

  1/48

  KITS

  ON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACHON APPROACH

  TD138, No. 317 (Polish) Squadron RAF,

  Ahlhorn Air Base, Germany, spring – summer 1946

  SL549, No. 17 Squadron RAF, Farnborough Air Base, 1950

  TB702, Cpt. P. G. J. Albertin, No. 340 (Free French)

  Squadron RAF, B105 Airfield (Lingen/Drope),

  Germany, May 1945

  RW393, No. 601 Squadron RAuxAF, 1949

  TE199, Air Officer Commanding, No. 21 Group RAF, Swindersby Air Base, Great Britain, 1948

  OCTOBER 2021

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021

• Page 113

  CAMEL IN KRAKOW

  So, after two years I finally went on holiday.

  It was a vacation with a mask and a vaccinati-

  on certificate, but it was a vacation. My friends

  and I agreed to do a tour of military museu

  -

  ms in northern Germany and Poland. After

  a week and 2,400 kilometers, I felt like I had

  been run over by a steamroller, but I had had

  many wonderful museum experiences.

  The last stop, and for me the definite highli

  -

  ght of the whole trip, was the Polish Aviation

  Museum in Krakow. It was my first time visi

  -

  ting, I had heard a lot about the WWI collecti-

  ons there and was really curious to see how

  I would feel as a visitor. In addition, our Polish

  illustrator Piotr Forkasiewicz accompanied

  us, and his wife baked us a cake.

  Long story short, I was thrilled. Krakow has

  a really diverse collection of machines from

  Polish and foreign production. It was possi

  -

  ble to approach most of them without restric-

  tions. The museum staff was unobtrusive but

  attentive. Visitors were respectful, no one

  touched what they shouldn't have, and I was

  able to see aviation technology like I have in

  no other museum I have visited so far. And

  I touched what I was allowed to touch, so I got

  to experience what it was like to fire an Ame

  -

  rican half-inch machine gun in a B-17 bomber.

  I was surprised by the "Polish" F-105 Thun

  -

  derchief, and I was excited about the Finnish

  Caudron C.714, which was to be flown by Po

  -

  lish pilots on the Finnish side in the Winter

  War. I was amazed with the PZL M-15 Belphe

  -

  gor, which was a crop dusting biplane with

  a fixed undercarriage and a jet engine. If you

  haven't seen it yet, look up information on it,

  you'll be amazed too! It had the same engine

  as the Aero L-39 Albatros.

  I was very excited to see the Sopwith Camel

  B7280, which was restored and displayed few

  years ago. I was a bit disappointed that the li

  -

  ghting in the hall was dim. Hopefully this will

  be improved in the future. The Kraków machi

  -

  ne is one of eight surviving Camels and the

  last time I saw one of these legendary fighters

  was over twenty years ago in Brussels.

  After returning home, I looked up what is

  written about the B7280 on the internet and

  there are a few things I would like to correct

  and add. The machine is known to have been

  built by Clayton & Shuttleworth Works in

  Lincoln. From March 30, 1918, it served with

  No. 1 Squadron RNAS and later with No. 210

  Squadron RAF. It is reported to have achieved

  11 victories and even helped to score to two

  fighter aces.

  The first one was Canadian James Henry For

  -

  man of Kirkfield, Ontario. He was born in 1896

  to a father who was from near Lincolnshire,

  England and a mother who was born in Cana

  -

  da. He became a teacher, but the First World

  War made him a Captain who went on to serve

  with four squadrons, winning nine victories

  and being awarded the DFC. On Camel B7280,

  he scored with No. 201 Sq. RAF two kills, a Fo

  -

  kker Dr.I on April 12, 1918, and added an Alba-

  tros fighter on May 9. Forman's luck deserted

  him on September 4, 1918, when his formation

  of twelve Camels from No. 70 Sq. RAF en

  -

  gaged with fighters from JG III led by Bruno

  Loerzer. Only four British machines made it

  back to base, and this was the highest combat

  loss recorded by a Camel unit during the enti

  -

  re war. Among the captured airmen was For-

  man. He returned home after the war, conti-

  nued his military service during World War II,

  and died in 1972 in Santa Barbara, California.

  The second pilot with ace status to score vic

  -

  tories in the B7280 was Captain Herbert An-

  drew Patey. He was born in London in 1898

  and, after serving in Egypt and fighting at Ga

  -

  llipoli, was sacked from the Royal Naval Di-

  vision because it was discovered that he was

  only sixteen years old! In March 1917 he was

  back in service, this time with the Royal Naval

  Air Service and after completing his training

  was posted to No. 10 (Naval) Squadron in Ja

  -

  nuary 1918 which became No. 210 Squadron

  RAF in April. He achieved a total of eleven vic

  -

  tories, and it is stated that nine of these were

  fought on the B7280. In fact, there were only

  six and, in all cases, they were the dangerous

  Fokkers D.VII.

  Edwin Swale, DFC (17 v.), also flew with Ca

  -

  mel B7280 once and remembered Patey as

  a tall, well-built man, a good formation leader

  and a brave and attack-on-sight type. Swale

  witnessed the end of Patey's flying career and

  that of Camel B7280. This occurred in the early

  evening of September 5, 1918, while escorting

  DH.9 bombers near Roulers. Patey's forma

  -

  tion swooped down on seven enemy fighters

  and followed them up to an altitude of 1,000

  ft above Courtrai. However, the Germans of

  Jasta 56 emerged victorious from the battle.

  Formation commander Lt. Ludwig Beckmann

  shot down Patey and Uffz. Ludwig Jeckert

  (4 v.) shot down New Zealander Lt. L. Yerex.

  Both Camel pilots were captured and the

  B7280 was subjected to a thorough inspecti

  -

  on. It later found its way to a museum in Berlin

  from where its journey led to Krakow where it

  is on display in its September 1918 form.

  Patey returned home on Christmas Day 1918,

  but after some time contracted the Spanish

  Flu and died on February 18, 1919. While in cap

  -

  tivity, the London Gazette published a quote

  from his DFC award on September 21, 1918.

  Presumably this refers to his fight on August

  6, 1918:

  „Whilst leading his flight on an offensive

  patrol eight enemy machines were encounte-

  red. Captain Patey was cut off from his patrol

  by two of the enemy who got on his tail and

  continued in that position until within 2,000

  feet of the ground, at which point his machi

  -

  ne was hit in the petrol tank. Notwithstanding

  his serious handicap, he turned four times on

  his pursuers, destroying one, and driving the

  remainder away. On previous occasions this

  officer has destroyed two enemy machines

  and brought down two more out of control,

  and, in company with other pilots, he has as

  -

  sisted in destroying or bringing down out of

  control five additional enemy aircraft.“

  Jan Bobek

  Photo: Piotr Forkasiewicz

  Photo: Piotr Forkasiewicz

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  INFO Eduard - September 2021