1:72 Hawker Typhoon Ib

The machines of squadron commanders from 1943

What makes this sheet interesting is not the number of options but whom the aircraft belonged to. All three carried the letters of a squadron commander and all three were flown by men whose names come up again and again in the history of the Royal Air Force.

EK273 coded JE-DT was led by Don Taylor of No. 195 Squadron from the Norfolk airfield of Ludham in June 1943. EK270 with the markings EL-X belonged to Denis Crowley-Milling of No. 181 Squadron operating from the field airstrip at Appledram; the same pilot had earlier fought in the Battle of Britain with Bader's No. 242 Squadron and ended his career with the rank of Air Marshal. The third machine, R7752 coded PR-G, flew in February 1943 with No. 609 Squadron under Roland Beamont, who after the war became the test pilot of the Canberra and the Lightning.

In 1943 the Typhoons of these units did mainly two things: low-level attacks on transport in France and interceptions of German fast bombers trying to slip across the Channel at low altitude. That is also where the machine's reputation as a hunter down at wave height comes from.

The sheet is intended for a 1:72 model; before applying the markings it pays to let the gloss coat harden properly, otherwise the edges of the decal sink into the soft surface and can no longer be moved.

Advanced landing grounds of the type Appledram belonged to had a metal runway, and machines took off from them dusty right up to the tailplanes. A weathered surface with a coating of dust is historically supported for these options and suits a model better than a perfect gloss.