Boulton Paul Defiant NF1, No5 squadron Royal Scots Airforce

[Doug K]

Following success over London and an increase in the bombing campaign against Glasgow, Clydebank and Clydeside in general; a Squadron of Defiants, tired, a little worn but still potent were sent north to RSAF Abbotsinch. This became No5 Squadron Royal Scots Airforce and successfully defended the all-important Shipyards of the lower and upper Clyde during a concerted night-bombing campaign.

Axis forces had a secondary target, that of public morale, in the early stages of WW2, with Ireland remaining "neutral", there were voices in the Scots Parliament in favour of removing the country from the war effort and following Ireland's example. The Germans saw this as a way to split the Allies at a crucial stage of the war, however they didn't take into account the sheer bloody minded ness and than nature of the Scots in general and Clydesiders in particular. The Clydeside blitz cemented the Alliance far more strong they than they had ever imagined and by the time this aircraft was destroyed on the ground at RSAF Abbotsinch, the Luftwaffe efforts had been dented.

IMG_1400 by doug_alba, on Flickr

IMG_1399 by doug_alba, on Flickr


For those of you confused the back story is here http://www.whatifmodellers.com/index.php/topic,40383.msg754353.html#msg754353

In the real-world, the Clydeside Blitz was the worst loss of civilian life in Scotland, my mother remembers watching the glow in the sky from 30 miles away.
RAF Abbotsinch is now Glasgow International Airport and it's almost directly across the Clyde from the John Brown's shipyards in Clydebank where the Queens were built for Cunard and the mighty Hood was constructed.
In 1940 was a very, very small minority of Scots Nationalists who were pacifist in nature and naive in the extreme, thought that Scotland should declare independence and seek an armistice with the Axis powers.
The Clydeside Blitz stopped that idea in it's tracks for exactly the reasons I state in my alternate reality - of course this latter, embarrassing episode was resurrected during the Scots independence referendum.... but that  enough of that!

I have always liked the Defiant and this was a good excuse to get away from my 1/48th scale real-world Fleet Air Arm subjects (and still it's too damn cold in the garage for my RC Ships) and have a go at one. Not even a paint conversion, only decals (unfortunately hiding the wire edges of which has proven to be an impossibility).
Clears space for a Gannet for the Cold War GB........

[The Rat]

Lovely bit of work! 

[NARSES2]

Lovely bit of work! 

One has to agree 

[CammNut]

Instead of "Yin and Yang" is that roundel "Yin and Big Yin"?

[Doug K]

Instead of "Yin and Yang" is that roundel "Yin and Big Yin"?

🤣🤣

[TheChronicOne]

Slowly "making my rounds" around here to check out things I may have missed, and sure enough!!!  --This is really cool and I missed it somehow! Nicely done.      I like that it's a night fighter ,     but too bad it was blown up.     

[Doug K]

Slowly "making my rounds" around here to check out things I may have missed, and sure enough!!!  --This is really cool and I missed it somehow! Nicely done.      I like that it's a night fighter ,     but too bad it was blown up.     

We can't always have a happy ending 😬

[TheChronicOne]

Slowly "making my rounds" around here to check out things I may have missed, and sure enough!!!  --This is really cool and I missed it somehow! Nicely done.      I like that it's a night fighter ,     but too bad it was blown up.     

We can't always have a happy ending 😬