Aces High Bulletin Board

General Forums => Aces High General Discussion => Topic started by: Guppy35 on September 07, 2005, 01:08:57 AM

Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Guppy35 on September 07, 2005, 01:08:57 AM: Figured the BK Blue Spitfire V drivers might appreciate this.

There is an organization called "Merlins over Malta" that is working to get a Spitfire V and Hurricane II back to Malta to commemorate the defense of the Island in WW2.

Earlier in the summer I was asked to do a profile of the proposed paint scheme for the Spitfire V that would be going.

When I was in England at the Legends Airshow I got to meet the folks behind the plan and was able to get up close to the Spit in question.

Well the blue paint is finally on it and they're going to be headed to Malta this month. Link is to photos of the Spit V being painted to match the profile.

http://www.diecast-aviation.co.uk/

including one of the profiles I did for it, just cause I'm kind of proud of it :)

(http://www.onpoi.net/ah/pics/users/169_1126072943_maltaspitvb.jpg)(http://www.diecast-aviation.co.uk/assets/images/IMG_9367.JPG)
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: BigR on September 07, 2005, 02:43:06 AM: awesome man...great job! :aok
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: mars01 on September 07, 2005, 08:17:52 AM: Sweet!! Thanks!
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: eilif on September 07, 2005, 08:34:11 AM: Way cool!
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Dead Man Flying on September 07, 2005, 10:40:58 AM: :aok
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Grits on September 07, 2005, 11:10:11 AM: This has probably been covered already somewhere, but why were they blue? Was it a photo-recon plane?
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Guppy35 on September 07, 2005, 11:19:33 AM: Quote
Originally posted by Grits
This has probably been covered already somewhere, but why were they blue? Was it a photo-recon plane?

They were going to be flying over water a lot while based on Malta. The batch of Spitfire Vc's that were transported on the USS Wasp, initially went on the carrier in desert brown and tan camo. While on Wasp they were repainted in the blue scheme with paint available on the carrier.

Not all Malta Spits wore that camo.
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: CHECKERS on September 07, 2005, 11:23:14 AM: Very Cool :cool:

~~CHECKERS~~
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: icemaw on September 07, 2005, 11:30:59 AM: The profile looks great but the paint on the right is all wrong. The panel lines dont match. Where is the weathering? And the guy with the paint can has got the font all wrong.
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Stang on September 07, 2005, 11:44:36 AM: Woot! Sweet!

:aok
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: hubsonfire on September 07, 2005, 06:46:10 PM: She's teh purdy. :aok
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Morpheus on September 07, 2005, 07:05:37 PM: NICE!
Thanks!:aok
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Howitzer on September 07, 2005, 09:22:17 PM: That is t3h sw33tn3ss! =)

Thanks!
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Kev367th on September 08, 2005, 12:42:39 PM: The big argument has always been which blue they used!!! Consensus seems to favor USN Deck Blue as it would have been available aboard ship.

Dan - One slight error in your profile, the rudder was not painted blue but left in the desert camo color. They were worried about another layer of paint affecting handling. On some aircraft this applies to the ailerons also.
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: DipStick on September 08, 2005, 12:46:26 PM: Purdy Dan. Always wondered why the Seafire wasn't the blue one.
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Delirium on September 08, 2005, 02:47:31 PM: Yea, the BKs and their blue Spit5s... same color as their balls.

(http://www.thespud.com/cards/images/blue_balls_cereal_box-300x400.jpg)

All in jest, gents. Except for that Leviathn, they are all good guys.

:D
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Howitzer on September 08, 2005, 03:28:19 PM: Quote
Originally posted by Delirium
Yea, the BKs and their blue Spit5s... same color as their balls.

(http://www.thespud.com/cards/images/blue_balls_cereal_box-300x400.jpg)

All in jest, gents. Except for that Leviathn, they are all good guys.

:D

You should take this up with my wife, not me... I swear its not my fault =)

You are also right when you say Levi is a n00b =)
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Guppy35 on September 08, 2005, 05:07:02 PM: Quote
Originally posted by Kev367th
The big argument has always been which blue they used!!! Consensus seems to favor USN Deck Blue as it would have been available aboard ship.

Dan - One slight error in your profile, the rudder was not painted blue but left in the desert camo color. They were worried about another layer of paint affecting handling. On some aircraft this applies to the ailerons also.

Actually more then one error if I was doing an actual Spitfire Vc.

This was done to show the guys who were going to paint the present day Spit as well as the Corgi guys who were putting out a special edition diecast Spit to help raise funds.

BM597 wasn't going to be over detailed as the paint is washable and just for this occasion so they wanted the Corgi diecast bird and BM597 to look the same. So the profile was done to fit that.

BM597 is a Vb not a Vc as well, which the real Wasp Spit Vs were.

Once the Spit returns to England from Malta it will be going back to it's regular camo.

At Legends we debated the blue again. Clive Denny, who is the pilot of BM597 and also the guy doing the painting favors this look. Peter Arnold, Spit historian, isn't sure, but then again no one is :)

I kinda figure it had to match the colors being used on US Navy birds at the time as that is what would have been available. That or insignia blue from the US markings.

Since Mr. Denny ultimately made the call, this is how the profile was done.
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Grits on September 08, 2005, 06:03:27 PM: I does look very close to the "deck blue" that the USN painted the flight decks at that time. I noticed that because I always thought the blue they used early in the war was a little too "blue" if you know what I mean, like that Spit.
Title: Blue Spitfires
Post by: Blixen on September 08, 2005, 07:35:02 PM: ty dan u are th3 man:aok