1:32 Supermarine Spitfire Mk.IX

The version that gave the Spitfire back its edge

When German fighters with a radial engine appeared over the Channel, the Spitfires of the day found themselves at a disadvantage. The answer was to combine the proven airframe with a two-stage supercharged engine, and that is what the Mk.IX version came from. At the altitudes where British aircraft had previously run out of breath, they kept pace again, and so they saw service on every European front from Malta to north-western Europe.

Eight aircraft each with its own history

The sheet offers the markings of aircraft flown by pilots with famous names. Among them are the aircraft of the most successful British fighter pilot serving with a wing in south-east England, the aircraft of the Canadian ace famous for the fighting over the island in the middle of the Mediterranean, two aircraft from Canadian squadrons, one from a Norwegian unit and others from units operating over Algeria and Italy. Each option gives the serial number, the pilot's name, the squadron number and the year.

Recommended procedure

A large scale makes greater demands on decals, because every cloudy patch shows. Polish the surface and go over it with a gloss clear coat, lay the motifs down one at a time and press the water out from under them with a soft cloth from the center toward the edges. Let lettering with fine type dry overnight and only then seal it with a matte clear coat. Anyone building an aircraft with markedly faded paint can go lightly over the edges of the markings so that they do not look new. Aircraft from the fighting in the Mediterranean also faded quickly in the sun and the dust, so even strong marking colors lost their strength there within a few weeks.