A2a p-40

[jankees]

No A2A P-47 or Warbirdsim P-51 yet, so back to the good old P-40...
Who can tell me more about this aircraft?

 

[IanP]

Well "FR" was the USAAF 525th BS/379th BG, who had it on B-17F/Gs, the US Army 936th FA Bn, who had it on L-4s and Station Flight Mansion, who were never known to use it... So, umm... No idea?

...oh, and "FRC" was a personal code, but no mention of FR-G...

Nice repaint though!

 

[robcap]

it was the first model kit I glued together
R.

 

[ICDP]

Excellent work jankees.

 

[jankees]

No Ian,

AH873 FR-G flew with 1683 Bomber Defense Training Flight at Bruntingthorpe, and later Market Harborough in '42 and '43. They staged mock attacks on bomber fligthts to give the bomber crews practice at leading and tracking fighters, a bit like the repaint I did for you.

 

[Epsillon]

Very nice work, Jan!
I like the 'FROG' on the left side...

Stephan

 

[jankees]

Very nice work, Jan!
I like the 'FROG' on the left side...

Stephan

Thought you would...

 

[IanP]

According to all the lists I have, FR was never used by the RAF, but Combat Codes gives a number of examples on US aircraft. Flying Units of the RAF does additionally assign it to 348 Squadron, which never formed (and which I used when trying to write a wartime story a while back, which is why I recognised the code! )

According to Flying Units of the RAF, 1683 BDTF were formed 5th June 1943 at Bruntingthorpe, assigned FP with no evidence of use, flew with no code letters using Tomahawks and Hurricane IICs, then disbanded at Market Harborough on 1st August 1944.

Combat Codes gives a Tomahawk IIa somewhere in 1943-1944 belonging to 1683 BDTF AH899 FP-F.

I doesn't bother me at all, I'll fly it anyway. I only looked it up because you asked what we knew about it.

Thanks! :ernae:
Out of interest, my sources are:
Flying Units of the RAF:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Flying-Unit...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233650694&sr=8-1

Combat Codes:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Combat-Code...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233650756&sr=1-1

RAF Squadrons:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/RAF-Squadro...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233650794&sr=1-1

 

[jankees]

Ah cool, someone who knows what he is talking about! Great info, Ian.
I'm at work now, but will dig up a picture of this aircraft tonight.
Apparently, they had at least one aircraft registered FR, but I could be wrong about that, could also have been FP..
Catch you later,

Jan Kees

 

[jankees]

Here's the source of my inspiration. It's from Curtiss P-40 in action, no 26 from the squadron signal publications.
Ian, you could be right, I got the FR from the caption, but in the bottom pic, it could also be FP.....shall I change it?
Anybody interested in the Canadian aircraft that are on top? If so, what are the serials? The front aircraft is AH8??

 

[IanP]

It's entirely up to you whether you change it or not - as I said, I'm quite happy to use it whether it should be a P or an R... I'm not a rivet counter really, I just sometimes play one on TV.

Regarding the "Canadian" Tomahawk, I have info on that exact aircraft, but according to both Flying Units of the RAF and Combat Codes, 403 Squadron were a RAF unit, not RCAF.

From FUotRAF:

403 (WOLF) SQUADRON
Formed 19th February 1941 at Baginton

KH:
Tomahawk I AH758, IIA AH896 KH-H; Spitfire I R6611 KH-N, IIA P7756 KH-U, Vb BL707 KH-C, IXb MJ480 KH-R, XVI TB340.

Also used:
Magister L6919; Tiger Moth II T7402; Auster III MZ181

Disbanded 30th January 1945 at B.154 (Reinsehlen), Germany.

Combat Codes lists more Spitfires, but also gives a Tomahawk IIa between 3.41 and 7.41 registered as AH882/KH-R.

I'll leave you to make of that what you will... Interested in a 403 repaint? Umm... It's me and a Tomahawk. You need to ask?

Cheers.