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P47 Thunderbolt in RAF service ....colours were ?

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Steve - 23 May 2009 00:17 GMT
Hi, what were the official names of the colours used on P47's in RAF service
WW2 ?
Hopefully it will be obvious from the colour names where they were used on
the aircraft.
I read on the net they were all in Burma, is that true ?
Steve
Bruce Burden - 23 May 2009 03:53 GMT
: Hi, what were the official names of the colours used on P47's in RAF service
: WW2 ?

    From a quick google search, it looks like they were painted
   olive drab and medium grey on the upper surfaces, and the belly
   was painted light cream/off white color.

    Upper surfaces remind me of Tiffies in the paint colors and
   patterns.

                            Bruce
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 "I like bad!"                         Bruce Burden    Austin, TX.
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Mad-Modeller - 23 May 2009 06:05 GMT
>: Hi, what were the official names of the colours used on P47's in RAF
>: service WW2 ?
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
>
>                                    Bruce

I'm fairly certain that most Thunderbolts in RAF CBI service were repainted
with Dark Brown over the grey.  I remember painting one up in a very neat
grey and green scheme only to find out here that few served that way.

Bill Banaszak, MFE Sr.
Steve - 23 May 2009 12:13 GMT
Thanks for the gen, so it looks like they would be RAF Dark Green (as that
is the only Green for fighters the RAF used) and RAF Dark earth (again the
only Brown used on fighters). Light Earth and Light Green looking at my WW2
RAF colours chart being for lower wings on biplanes I recall.
Underside a cream or off white ...thats a little surprising as one would
think in the Far East the skies were also blue, more so than ours ;-)

Steve

>>: Hi, what were the official names of the colours used on P47's in RAF
>>: service WW2 ?
[quoted text clipped - 14 lines]
>
> Bill Banaszak, MFE Sr.
Curt - 23 May 2009 13:59 GMT
> Hi, what were the official names of the colours used on P47's in RAF service
> WW2 ?
> Hopefully it will be obvious from the colour names where they were used on
> the aircraft.
> I read on the net they were all in Burma, is that true ?
> Steve

The best resource I've found on the subject is "Royal Air Force Thunderbolts" by Geoff Thomas. That may be hard to find but "P-47 Thunderbolt" by Richard J. Caruana, Famous Aircraft of the World, Squadron Signal / Periscopio Publications, has good info. For such a relatively small number of aircraft, this can get  pretty involved. Most RAF Thunderbolts went to South East Asia Command (Burma, India, etc...) but several went to England for test and evaluation. A number of others served in Egypt as an Operational Training Unit. AFAIK, all combat operations were in the SEAC.

Most were delivered in the U.S. equivalents of the standard RAF day fighter camouflage; Olive Drab, Sea Gray and Light Gray. The ANA numbers are, respectively, 613, 603 and 602. When the aircraft arrived in India, they were stripped (not always completely) and repainted in the standard RAF Temperate Land Scheme of Dark Green, Dark Earth and Medium Sea Grey with Sky code letters. At some point they were delivered in bare metal (KL288 being the first) and were not repainted in-theater.

Thunderbolts were badly needed and there is evidence some may have seen action in the factory camouflage, at least until they could be repainted. It is also possible some were stripped of their camouflage in India and not re-painted. Thomas mentions that the RAF paints came from a variety of mostly local sources and so, when combined with the usual field-applied constraints, there was considerable variation. One interesting note is that the Dark Earth, being applied over the Sea Gray, was sometimes described as dirty or "purple-ish" as it weathered.

In addition to Sky, the code letters were also applied in many variations of locally mixed paint.

Curt
KVPS
Steve - 23 May 2009 21:21 GMT
Curt.
This is great feedback,
Thank you all repliees so far.
In the absence of finding the books mentioned this will still allow a
representational scheme to be created, books give actual schemes or
interpretation thereof, my friend who needs this info, armed only with a
japanese kit instruction leaflet scheme but no english translations is most
grateful for the help received.
I am glad to have been able to help him via your help.
I couldnt see any schemes on the net, a little surprised there is nothing
there, www still has gaps to fill.
Steve

> Hi, what were the official names of the colours used on P47's in RAF
> service
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> I read on the net they were all in Burma, is that true ?
> Steve

The best resource I've found on the subject is "Royal Air Force
Thunderbolts" by Geoff Thomas. That may be hard to find but "P-47
Thunderbolt" by Richard J. Caruana, Famous Aircraft of the World, Squadron
Signal / Periscopio Publications, has good info. For such a relatively small
number of aircraft, this can get  pretty involved. Most RAF Thunderbolts
went to South East Asia Command (Burma, India, etc...) but several went to
England for test and evaluation. A number of others served in Egypt as an
Operational Training Unit. AFAIK, all combat operations were in the SEAC.

Most were delivered in the U.S. equivalents of the standard RAF day fighter
camouflage; Olive Drab, Sea Gray and Light Gray. The ANA numbers are,
respectively, 613, 603 and 602. When the aircraft arrived in India, they
were stripped (not always completely) and repainted in the standard RAF
Temperate Land Scheme of Dark Green, Dark Earth and Medium Sea Grey with Sky
code letters. At some point they were delivered in bare metal (KL288 being
the first) and were not repainted in-theater.

Thunderbolts were badly needed and there is evidence some may have seen
action in the factory camouflage, at least until they could be repainted. It
is also possible some were stripped of their camouflage in India and not
re-painted. Thomas mentions that the RAF paints came from a variety of
mostly local sources and so, when combined with the usual field-applied
constraints, there was considerable variation. One interesting note is that
the Dark Earth, being applied over the Sea Gray, was sometimes described as
dirty or "purple-ish" as it weathered.

In addition to Sky, the code letters were also applied in many variations of
locally mixed paint.

Curt
KVPS
tomcervo - 24 May 2009 14:44 GMT
> Curt.
> This is great feedback,
[quoted text clipped - 50 lines]
> Curt
> KVPS

http://hsfeatures.com/features04/p47d72cb_1.htm

http://www.hyperscale.com/galleries/p47d32sp_1.htm
Steve - 26 May 2009 18:36 GMT
Thanks tomcervo.
Interesting the very small wing roundels, as if to not compromise
camouflage, then someone decided to kill the camouflage effect and add white
panels.
Nice models.
At least Hyperscale have done a little on plugging the gap, or at least
allowed us to see a modellers efforts at plugging the gap.

Steve

On May 23, 4:21?pm, "Steve" <merlin_...@REMOVETHIShotmail.com> wrote:
> Curt.
> This is great feedback,

> I couldnt see any schemes on the net, a little surprised there is nothing
> there, www still has gaps to fill.
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
> > service
> > WW2 ?

http://hsfeatures.com/features04/p47d72cb_1.htm

http://www.hyperscale.com/galleries/p47d32sp_1.htm
Mad-Modeller - 27 May 2009 04:50 GMT
> Thanks tomcervo.
> Interesting the very small wing roundels, as if to not compromise
[quoted text clipped - 29 lines]
>
> http://www.hyperscale.com/galleries/p47d32sp_1.htm 

The white panels were an ID feature.  I've seen natural metal P=47s with
black stripes in the same positions.  Check your sources for stripes on
the vertical tail surfaces too.  I've got to find that "Air
International" issue with the article on RAF P-47s.  I know there were
photos with that.

Bill Banaszak, MFE Sr.
Enzo Matrix - 27 May 2009 08:18 GMT
>> Thanks tomcervo.
>> Interesting the very small wing roundels, as if to not compromise
[quoted text clipped - 35 lines]
> International" issue with the article on RAF P-47s.  I know there were
> photos with that.

Some post-war natural metal P-47s had the ID stripes applied in roundel
blue.

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Enzo

I wear the cheese. It does not wear me.

 
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