Re: Spinners' Strike Fighters Thread

[SPINNERS]

Sukhoi Su-5 - Soviet Air Force, 1946

SOVIET Su-5 FISHPAN-A.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

SOVIET Su-5 FISHPAN-A.02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

SOVIET Su-5 FISHPAN-A.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

SOVIET Su-5 FISHPAN-A.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

SOVIET Su-5 FISHPAN-A.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

SOVIET Su-5 FISHPAN-A.06 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

This is the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation CA-15 Kangaroo masquerading as a Soviet prop fighter in a Luft'46 timeline! I'm surprised to learn that the CA-15 was actually designed around the use of a radial engine which would have given it a totally different look.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAC_CA-15

[SPINNERS]

Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation CA-15 Kangaroo - No.805 Squadron, Royal Australian Navy, 1950

RAN CA-15 KANGAROO.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAN CA-15 KANGAROO.02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAN CA-15 KANGAROO.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAN CA-15 KANGAROO.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

I mentioned the radial engined CA-15 above and low and behold a 3D model exists and comes with this RAN skin! No input from me on this one apart from taking the screenshots.

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Vickers Valiant B.1 - No.35 Squadron, RAF Far East Air Force, 1955

RAF VALIANT B1.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF VALIANT B1.02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF VALIANT B1.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF VALIANT B1.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF VALIANT B1.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

A quick and dirty skin this created by identifying the lower surfaces on the skin bitmaps and inverting the colour... simples! It's a bit rough (so don't look too close) but does have the look of a Tiger Force Valiant, although the colour of the roundels and finflash is something I'll play around with.

[SPINNERS]

BAC Thunderstrike S.1 - No.617 Squadron, RAF Far East Air Force, 1970

RAF THUNDERSTRIKE S1.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF THUNDERSTRIKE S1.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF THUNDERSTRIKE S1.06 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF THUNDERSTRIKE S1.07 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF THUNDERSTRIKE S1.08 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF THUNDERSTRIKE S1.09 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF THUNDERSTRIKE S1.11 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF THUNDERSTRIKE S1.10 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

Her Majesty's Needle-Nosed Wonder Bird in Tiger Force colours   

[SPINNERS]

North American Warblade FGA.3 - No.31 Squadron, RAF Near East Air Force, 1991

RAF F-107K ULTRA SABRE.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF F-107K ULTRA SABRE.02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF F-107K ULTRA SABRE.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF F-107K ULTRA SABRE.08 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF F-107K ULTRA SABRE.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF F-107K ULTRA SABRE.07 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF F-107K ULTRA SABRE.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF F-107K ULTRA SABRE.06 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

A homemade skin this one but with a bit of a speed cheat used to give a hint of panel lines. When I get back to SF2 I'll try to get a proper template made as this a 'what if' I can come back to over and over again despite not actually liking the shape of the F-107! Wiki tells me that the F-107 was never given an official name but that the intake position resulted in the nickname of 'Man-eater' 

[SPINNERS]

North American F-107D Ultra Sabre - 726 Eskadrille, Royal Danish Air Force, 1970

RDAF F-107D ULTRA SABRE.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RDAF F-107D ULTRA SABRE.02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RDAF F-107D ULTRA SABRE.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RDAF F-107D ULTRA SABRE.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RDAF F-107D ULTRA SABRE.06 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RDAF F-107D ULTRA SABRE.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

The RDAF were, of course, a real-world user of the F-100D and later used them in this matt green colour scheme. The semi-recessed tank is from the F-15A!

[SPINNERS]

Hawker Siddeley Buccaneer S.2H - No.300 Squadron, Indian Naval Air Service, 1970

INAS BUCCANEER S2H.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

INAS BUCCANEER S2H.02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

INAS BUCCANEER S2H.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

INAS BUCCANEER S2H.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

INAS BUCCANEER S2H.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

INAS BUCCANEER S2H.06 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

There are two excellent Buccaneer 3D models available for 'Strike Fighters' and this was the first to be released and it's by the DAT group. I've overpainted the RN roundels directly onto the skin bitmaps and used new decals for the remainder and added 'SOVIET' to the weapons stations so as to carry FAB250 bombs and FAB500 bombs in the rotary weapons bay.

[SPINNERS]

Supermarine Swift FR.51 - No.25 Squadron, Pakistan Air Force, 1965

PAF SWIFT FR51.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

PAF SWIFT FR51.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

PAF SWIFT FR51.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

PAF SWIFT FR51.06 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

PAF SWIFT FR51.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

PAF SWIFT FR51.07 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

Quite a simple one this as the lovely Swift FR.5 comes with a blank silver skin to which I've added some Pakistan markings including the No.25 Squadron Eagle disc and just used stock USNATTACKNUM serials. In the real world No.25 squadron were formed in 1966 and were equipped with Chinese-built MiG-19's.

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North American B-25J Mitchell - Israeli Air Force, 1952

IDF B-25J MITCHELL.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IDF B-25J MITCHELL.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IDF B-25J MITCHELL.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IDF B-25J MITCHELL.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IDF B-25J MITCHELL.02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IDF B-25J MITCHELL.06 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IDF B-25J MITCHELL.07 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

I had to double-check on whether the Israeli Air Force really did operate the B-25 as it just seems like a natural. Anyway, my Israeli B-25J uses a bit of a 'cut and shut' technique to combine elements of three different skins to create this skin (necessary as all available skins already have markings on them in a variety of positions meaning I could only use the areas without markings although there are other methods I've used like simple overpainting). There are a couple of B-25's available but who wouldn't want to use the fully-loaded B-25J?!!

[SPINNERS]

Vultee P-34A Victor - 48th Pursuit Squadron, United States Army Air Corps, 1941

After American Airlines expressed serious interest in their six-passenger V-1 design, Gerard "Jerry" Vultee and Vance Breese formed the Airplane Development Corporation in early 1932 but all 500 shares of stock in the company were soon acquired by Errett Lobban Cord to create the Airplane Development Corporation (a Cord subsidiary) as part of the larger AVCO group. On January 1st 1936 the Vultee Aircraft Division became an autonomous subsidiary of AVCO with Jerry Vultee becoming vice president and chief engineer. Vultee and Breese had redesigned the V-1 to beome the eight-passenger V-1A but whilst American Airlines bought 11 V-1A's the aircraft ultimately failed due to safety concerns about it's single-engine in the new era of twin-engine Douglas DC-2's and DC-3's.

Vultee redesigned the V-1 into the V-11 attack aircraft for the United States Army Air Corps but it only received lukewarm interest so, in 1937, he turned his attention to the design and production of a monoplane fighter for the United States Army Air Corps and for possible export orders. By the Spring of 1937 Vultee's fighter design had evolved into a low-wing monoplane featuring a welded steel tube fuselage structure partially fabric covered and with fabric covered flight control surfaces. Powered by the Wright R-1820 Cyclone 9 radial engine, Vultee's design was thoroughly modern in having a fully enclosed cockpit. But, rather conservatively, Vultee chose a fixed (spatted) undercarriage although this was at a time when the United States Army Air Corps was still equipped with open cockpit biplanes. Vultee gambled on his design being relatively inexpensive, sturdy and quick to produce and with war clouds looming the design soon attracted the full interest of the United States Army Air Corps and in September 1937 funds were allocated for Vultee's design to be produced for evaluation as the XP-34.

On January 29, 1938 tragedy struck when Jerry Vultee and his wife Sylvia died when the plane he was piloting crashed in a snowstorm near Sedona, Arizona. AVCO hired Dick Palmer (from Hughes) to take Jerry Vultee's place and the Vultee Aircraft Division performed miracles in pressing ahead with the XP-34 whilst concurrently working on the  BT-13, BT-15, and SNV Valiant trainers as well as the V-72 Vengeance. A successful first flight took place on March 31st, 1938 and further testing showed the XP-34 to be tough and manoeuvrable but slower than most contemporary fighters and especially when compared to the new breed of monoplane fighters with retractable undercarriages. Nevertheless, a production order for 300 P-34A's was received and Vultee showed a flair for innovation in becoming the first company to build aircraft on a powered assembly line.

Entering service in August 1939 with the 48th Pursuit Squadron as part of the 15th Pursuit Group based at the newly completed Hickam Field on Hawaii the unit enjoyed a quiet period of conversion to the new type which came to an abrupt end on December 7th 1941 when the Imperial Japanese Navy attacked Pearl Harbor. One element of the first wave of attacking Japanese aircraft, consisting of 43 Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" fighters, bombed and strafed Hickam in an attempt to eliminate air opposition and thus prevent U.S. planes from following them back to their aircraft carriers. Hickam Field suffered extensive damage and aircraft losses but Lt. Secombe of the 48th Pursuit Squadron found an intact P-34A and bravely took off alone in a desperate attempt to defend Hickam Field from further damage. Lt. Secombe engaged 3 Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighters and managed to shoot down one Zero before being overwhelmed by more Japanese fighters and, with his P-34A badly damaged, Lt. Secombe returned to Hickam Field to make an emergency landing between bomb craters.

USAAF P-34A VICTOR.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

USAAF P-34A VICTOR.02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

USAAF P-34A VICTOR.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

USAAF P-34A VICTOR.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

USAAF P-34A VICTOR.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

USAAF P-34A VICTOR.06 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

USAAF P-34A VICTOR.07 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

I'm sure you'll recognise the Fokker D.XXI masquerading as the Vultee P-34A. The 3D model is quite nice for an oldie and I gave it a new skin and decals. Regarding Lt. Secombe, whilst writing the backstory 'The Goon Show' came on the radio...

[SPINNERS]

Mitsubishi Ki-99 'Beryl' - 762nd Flying Group, Imperial Japanese Army Air Service, 1946

IJAAF Ki-100 BEAGLE.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IJAAF Ki-100 BEAGLE.02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IJAAF Ki-100 BEAGLE.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IJAAF Ki-100 BEAGLE.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

IJAAF Ki-100 BEAGLE.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

Quite a simple one this as the grey/green skin already existed (albeit in a tiny 256 x 256 size) so I added the yellow leading edge strips to the skin and then some basic decals including yellow serial numbers based on the Hasegawa box art.

[SPINNERS]

Hawker Siddeley Harrier Mk.50 - 302nd Hikotai, Japan Air Self Defense Force, 1972

JASDF HARRIER GR50.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

JASDF HARRIER GR50.02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

JASDF HARRIER GR50.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

JASDF HARRIER GR50.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

JASDF HARRIER GR50.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

JASDF HARRIER GR50.06 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

JASDF HARRIER GR50.07 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

I know the USMC's AV-8A was the Harrier Mk.50 but, rather oddly, the Mk.51 seems to be for the much later Sea Harrier FRS.51 so I see this as an identical build for Japan.

[SPINNERS]

Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR.50 - 204th Hikotai, Japan Air Self Defence Force, 1980

JASDF HARRIER GR50.13 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

JASDF HARRIER GR50.11 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

JASDF HARRIER GR50.12 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

JASDF HARRIER GR50.08 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

JASDF HARRIER GR50.09 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

JASDF HARRIER GR50.10 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

The early 'Wings Over Europe' game has the early 1970's RAF Camo and also the late 1970's 'wraparound' camo schemes and I've used both here.

[SPINNERS]

McDonnell Douglas Eagle F.2 - No.19 Squadron, RAF Germany, 1978

RAF EAGLE F2.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF EAGLE F2.02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF EAGLE F2.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF EAGLE F2.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF EAGLE F2.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

I'm as big a fan of the Lightning as the next man person but the two squadrons equipped with the Lightning F.2A had a tough job on the central front in the 1970's and should have got the F-15A Eagle to conserve the Phantoms for UK Air Defence.

[SPINNERS]

Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR.1 - No.92 Squadron, RAF Germany, 1972

RAF HARRIER GR1.01 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF HARRIER GR1.02 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF HARRIER GR1.03 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF HARRIER GR1.04 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF HARRIER GR1.05 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

RAF HARRIER GR1.06 by Spinners1961, on Flickr

I was going to do a No.92 Squadron Eagle but I thought I'd ring the changes and do a Harrier in RAFG Lightning colours. Perhaps NATO's top brass declared the Lightning F2/F2A's as being unsuitable and with the German Air Force's F-4F's coming on stream the two RAFG Lightning squadrons were re-roled to ground-attack. Sacrilege I know! BTW after taking these screenshots I realised that I've omitted two of the GR.1's nose cameras so perhaps this should be the Harrier FGA.1?