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Which BoB Spitfire I/II to do??


Which BoB Spitfire I/II to do??  

17 members have voted

  1. 1. Which BoB Spitfire I/II would YOU do?

    • Mk I, 616 Sq, RAF Kirton-in-Lindsey, P/O J.E. Johnson, DSO & DFC; #QJ G
    • Mk I, 602 Sq, RAF Tangmere, SLdr A Johnstone, DFC; #LO Q
    • Mk I, 610 County of Chester Sq, RAF Biggin Hill; #DW O
    • Mk I, 609 Sq, RAF Middle Wallop, P/O M. Appleby; #PR Q
    • Mk I, 152 Sq, RAF Warmwell, Sgt Ralph "Bob" Wolton; #UM N
    • Mk I, 603 Sq, P/O Richard HIllary; #XT M
    • Mk II, 421 Flt, RAF Hawkinge, SLdr C Greene, DSO & DFC; #L-Z I
      0
    • Mk II, "Pampero II", 65 Sq, RAF Turnhouse, Sgt P. Mitchell; #YT D
      0


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Hey everyone,

Just got the Aeromaster Battle of Britain Spitfire I/II sheet. Knowing very little about Spits so far, all 8 on this sheet look pretty much the same to me, all brown/green with black spinners. I'd love some ideas as to which plane on the sheet I might do.

Here's a view of the sheet itself along with 2 of the aforementioned profiles: http://www.scalemates.com/products/product.php?id=174771

Do any of these especially jump out at you? What would YOU do? (Maybe I should make this a poll....)

EDIT: Now coming to you as a poll! :)

Edited by Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy
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Yeah, I'm kinda likening them to USAF F-16's (non-guard). Change the letters and it's pretty much the same. Damned shame.

So, I'm wondering if there's anything out of the ordinary about the folks who flew them, or the units themselves. Really would like one that was in the middle of the action.

I'm almost leaning toward the Tangmere one (option 2), since it has a tiny red snake painted in front of the cockpit and, I *think* it's the unit Douglas Bader later commanded, isn't it?

Edited by Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy
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I think J.E.Johnson could be said to have been fairly out of the ordinary, don't you? Sandy Johnstone had a fairly good war, and Richard Hilary wrote one of the classic books of the period. I don't think Bader commanded 602 (could well be wrong), but he led 242 in the battle and a Wing Commander later. 602 is linked to Clostermann, later. Isn't DW-O the one with the fin stripes wrong way round?

It might be worth chasing up a copy of Paul Lucas's book for Guideline/Scale Aircraft Modelling on the Battle of Britain, if you are looking for variation in colours and markings. I think he overdosed on the Eau-de-Nil options, personally, but it is still a great guide.

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I think J.E.Johnson could be said to have been fairly out of the ordinary, don't you?

Honestly, I don't know a thing about any of these guys. This is my very first venture into anything British...or even into the European Theater of Operations, except for a totally generic B-24 for my Father in Law many years back. Frankly, I'm lucky to even know about Bader and Beurling....

Edited by Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy
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J.E.Johnson(often known as Johnny Johnson) was one of the top British Aces of the war (I believe the top but am doing this from memory so not positive) and became fairly famous. His Spitfire MK IX with his own initials JE-J is very often illustrated (and the included markings in the 1/72 Airfix MkIX) when he was a Wing Commander and his second plane JE-J Jr.(the plane had a small Jr. for Junior painted after the J) is often shown carrying beer kegs over to forward bases on the continent after D-Day. His later planes are well known but his plane during the B of B is not so well known so a good choice but one that can also be related to as the pilot became so well known. I vote for that plane as the pilot rather than the markings is what makes it distinctive.

Cheers

Bruce

P.S. He commanded a wing made up of three Canadian Squadrons for a good period and carried a small mapleleaf roundel on his plane despite being British himself so maybe I have a bias here. He also retired to Florida in his later years if you are looking for a U.S. connection too.

Edited by RCAFFAN
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The top British ace - arguments about Pattle's unconfirmed total aside. Look for his book "Wing Leader." Sandy Johnstone was less renowned but wrote a book called "Spitfire into Battle". Richard Hilary wrote "The Last Enemy". The first and last are classic best-sellers.

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I've been partial to 609 RAF Sq, as I like the PR codes. Also, a Canadian pilot, P/O Ogilvie, flew in that Sq. He was shot down and captured. He was part of the "Great Escape", but was re-captured and sent back to prison.

Cheers

Brad

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I voted for Johnnie Johnson. Despite being one of the most well known RAF fighter pilots from World War II, his BoB Spitfire would make a rather unique modeling project as it's not often seen as much as his other Spits. Also, should you decide to do a few more Spitfires of different Mk's, Johnson's mounts would make for a storied lineup. His BoB Spit could be the start of a nice collection.

Good luck and happy modeling!

Don.

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Just to be contrary, I voted for Richard Hillary's mount. His book " The Last Enemy" written between being shot down & his subsequent lengthy recovery from serious burns & his eventual death in a training accident 3 years later is very moving. I'd be keen to model his plane myself one of these days.

Steve.

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Honestly, I don't know a thing about any of these guys. This is my very first venture into anything British...or even into the European Theater of Operations, except for a totally generic B-24 for my Father in Law many years back. Frankly, I'm lucky to even know about Bader and Beurling....

J.E. Johnson was one of my alltime heros. Suggest you hunt up a copy of "Wing Leader" by Johnson himself. He'll introduce you to all sorts of folks in the book.

gary

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J.E. Johnson was one of my alltime heros. Suggest you hunt up a copy of "Wing Leader" by Johnson himself. He'll introduce you to all sorts of folks in the book.

gary

I second hunting down a copy of Johnson's "Wing Leader". I have read it a few times and have enjoyed it each time. Like "ChesshireCat" above, Johnson is/was my favorite fighter pilot from World War II. I have two paintings hanging on my wall with his autograph on them and they are among my most prized possessions. So...I am biased towards Johnson... :rolleyes:

Happy modeling!

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I know it's not on your list, but what about the Spitfire hanging in the stairwell in Chicago? It has a pretty good history, and FSM did a full research on it in one of their very first issues. Had all the different paint schemes called out, as well as all the different markings. Plus it was a BOB veteran. Also, I could be wrong, but I think Doug Bader flew a Hurricane in the BOB as well.

gary

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The AM sheet has markings for eight Spitfires. I think R6690 is a good candidate, but L1004 and X4277 would work.

Research revealed that X4330 flew for about a month, crashed, and was probably not flown by J.E. Johnson.

http://hyperscale.com/2007/features/spitfireiaws_1.htm

L1004 was a more interesting Spitfire. It was converted into a PRXIII and then a Seafire MkIII before it expired.

I wouldn't do the 610 Sqdn Spitfire (DW@O) because that's too much like the Airfix kit version.

P7531 is interesting because it should have some kind of PR canopy and can't be built OOB from a kit.

UM@N is a bit of mystery. Found a picture of it crashed with the wing torn off. A non-starter.

P7754 is another model requiring a modification--in this case "glare shields" implying that it was a night-fighter.

X4277, XT@M, was the aircraft of Australian ace Richard Hillary.

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