Re: Spinners' Strike Fighters Thread

[SPINNERS]

Grumman A-6N Intruder - No.1 Squadron, Belgian Air Force, 1984













Early update today as we're off to the cinema tonight. This is the TRAM equipped A-6E with a SEA Camo (for a fictional RAAF Intruder) and Belgian markings by me.

[SPINNERS]

Yakovlev Yak-37 'Fatfrog-A' - Soviet Air Force, Afghanistan, 1981













The YA-9A is proving quite adaptable and following the 1946-era A-28B it now masquerades as the Soviet's equivalent of the A-10! I'm grateful to 'drakkodj' for giving me the template and being a bit short on time tonight I thought I'd give it the Spinners leafy splinter treatment.

[SPINNERS]

Hawker Hurricane Mk.1 - 1st American Volunteer Group ('Flying Tigers') China, 1941












(Prop stopped to show the Watts two-bladed wooden propeller)

It's nice to be back in action after a busy week with real life and my other hobby. Anyway, 'Raven' over at Combat Ace has done some excellent work on the Hurricane and P-40 families and this AVG Hurricane merges a bit of the two! The Hurricane is a new model and is an absolute beauty!

[SPINNERS]

Supermarine Spitfire F.24 - 1st American Volunteer Group, China, 1947





From one end of the British single-engined monoplane fighter spectrum to the other!* Only two shots as it's not too clever as it uses a skin meant for the Mark IX so it's best not to look too close!

* Hawker Sea Fury fans - I hear you bro!

[SPINNERS]

McDonnell Douglas A-4K Skyhawk - 1 Smaldeel, Belgian Air Force, 1986

In early February 1968 the outgoing Belgian Paul Van den Boeynants announced that the Dassault Mirage 5 was to be purchased as the desperately needed Thunderstreak replacement for the Belgian Air Force. However, within days, massive student unrest and questions of discrimination against the ethnic Flemish population led to the bringing down of the Van den Boeynants government and a new incoming government led by Gaston Eyskens. The new government immediately cancelled the order for the Mirage 5BA and instead purchased the American A-4K Skyhawk in a reduced purchase of 48 A-4K single-seaters and 12 TA-4K two-seat trainers.















The A-4K is one of Third Wire's DLC add-on aircraft and comes with four RNZAF schemes. My Belgian Skyhawk uses the stock Mirage 5BA serial numbers and I've set the pylons to allow French weapons like the SAMP 400kg retarded bomb and Magic missiles to appear.

[SPINNERS]

McDonnell Douglas A-4K Skyhawk - 2 Smaldeel, Belgian Air Force, 1976







No real time to play tonight so I've done a quick 'Comet' squadron Skyhawk.


Now available for download at Combat Ace!

[SPINNERS]

Henschel Hs299 'Skorpion' - Luft' 46













This is the previously shown A-9A by 'drakkodj' and I've simply imported a mottled layer to the template and added some basic Luftwaffe markings.

[SPINNERS]

Douglas AD-6/A-1H Skyraider - Belgian Naval Aviation, 1961



















I'm not sure what sent me in this direction but I came across a really nice AD-4 skin for the stock Third Wire A-1H and thought I'd continue the Belgian theme. The stingray badge on the cowling is complete fiction and I have no idea what squadron number a Belgian Skyraider would have! Sorry about the number of piccies but I wanted to show it on and around the carrier, plus the two side views with different languages and also the unfortunate MiG-15 who just happened to drift across my sights. Tonight Boris sleeps with the fishes!

[SPINNERS]

Fokker T.VII - 2-VLG-V, Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force, 1938









This is the lovely Avia B-71 by 'Monty CZ' masquerading as the Fokker T.VII twin-engined pre-war bomber. If you think the B-71 looks familiar it's because it was a licence-built Soviet Tupovlev SB-2 (I didn't realise that myself).

[SPINNERS]

Rockwell-BAe Baltimore B.1 - No.617 Squadron, RAF Strike Command, 1986

aka Reagan gives Thatcher a bone 

















I've done the Baltimore before and was just moving it from an old archive disc into my install and thought I'd give it a go. It's an awesome 3D model but I don't really like the bigger aircraft in 'Strike Fighters'.

[SPINNERS]

North American Mustang IV - No.17 Squadron, RAF South East Asia Command, 1945









There's been a bit of Mustang fever in the world of 'Strike Fighters' with the revamp of the third-party P-51B and P-51C (and also the A-36 Apache) and a tweaking of the stock P-51D including a gorgeous RAF Camo scheme which I've adapted into a SEAC machine.

[SPINNERS]

North American P-51D Mustang - No.350 Squadron, Belgian Air Force, 1946











I've recoloured the spinner the same shade of yellow as in the Belgian roundel and knocked up some new 'Type C' Belgian roundels and matching fin flash. The game has Belgian Spitfire 14's (within AI Plane Pack 2) so with a couple of simple edits the game has generated the codes and serial numbers.

[SPINNERS]

North American Mustang IV - No.322 Squadron, Royal Netherlands Air Force*, 1947

No.322 (Dutch) squadron disbanded at Wunstorf in Germany in October 1945 but reformed at Twente Airbase during September 1946 as 322e Jachtvliegtuig Afdeling of the Royal Netherlands Air Force equipped with ex-RAF Mustang IV's donated by the US Government. In addition, the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force received 40 P-51Ds from US stocks and flew them during the Indonesian National Revolution.

RNLAFP-51DMUSTANG01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RNLAFP-51DMUSTANG02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RNLAFP-51DMUSTANG03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RNLAFP-51DMUSTANG04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RNLAFP-51DMUSTANG05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RNLAFP-51DMUSTANG06 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

Whilst the Dutch did actually operate the P-51D (the second part of my short backstory is true) I wanted them to have ex-RAF Mustang IV's to use the lovely camo scheme to which I've simply added a blue spinner and basic markings. I could have done a better job by using the stock RNLAF Spitfire codes and getting 'Polly Grey' on there somewhere!

* The Royal Netherlands Air Force officially became an independent part of the Dutch armed forces during 1953.

[SPINNERS]

North American Mustang IV - No.4 Squadron, Royal Indian Air Force, 1947

IAFP-51DMUSTANG01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IAFP-51DMUSTANG02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IAFP-51DMUSTANG03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IAFP-51DMUSTANG04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

Desperately short of time tonight (Wednesday night is film night!) so just a quick hack of the P-51D into Mustang IV's handed over to India at time of partition and almost immediately used in Kashmir although I have used a new marking for me - the Ashoka Chakra, also seen in different colours.

[SPINNERS]

Douglas A-4E Skyhawk - No.322 Squadron, Royal Netherlands Air Force, 1965

RNLAFA-4GSKYHAWK01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RNLAFA-4GSKYHAWK02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RNLAFA-4GSKYHAWK03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RNLAFA-4GSKYHAWK04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RNLAFA-4GSKYHAWK05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RNLAFA-4GSKYHAWK06 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

This is the Aussie A-4G (necessary as the Third Wire 3D model allows for 4 x Sidewinders) with a skin I made last night by combining an old A-4E template (meant for the old SF1 model) with a homemade template that copies the Aussie Camo pattern but with RAF Camo colours including light grey undersurfaces. There's a few unresolved mapping issues but it's good enough to create a 'Benelux Bantam Bomber'! Stock Starfighter codes are used.