Anglo- Iraqi War

[tigercat]

An opportunity to portray aircraft from a less well known conflict and also familar aircraft  in unusual colour schemes as well as from several different countries


http://mogggy.org/iraq/iraq.htm

[PR19_Kit]

Is that an addon to a computer game, or.....?

My Dad was at Habbaniya during that 'misunderstanding' and has told some lurid tales of how they had to operate during the siege. These included flying from the playing fields on the opposite side of the hangars to main airfield so the aircraft weren't shelled from the Heights south of the airfield. Also they flew bombed-up Audaxes out to the desert at night, landing behind enemy lines, and flying back to Habbaniya in the dawn at ultra low level over the heights and dropping their bombs. They were then able to land on the playing fields in the confusion generated by the bombing!

He was only there by accident, having flown up from one of the Canal Zone airfields earlier and was then trapped by the siege as it developed. The Station Commander promptly seconded him to 4 FTS, as he'd flown Audaxes before the war, and he was there till the siege was lifted.

[tigercat]

I think it is but it's also got some good pics of the aircraft involved.

It's an amazing story I'm just reading a book about it all Hitlers Gulf War from the library .
outnumbered , out gunned and with the enemy having the high ground and more modern weapons and equipment. The relief column included hire buses and taxis the drivers of which had to be chivvied up as some of them had been hired by the day and were trying to make more money.

[PR19_Kit]

Just remembered another of Dad's tales of the siege.

They had a couple of Vickers Valentia/Vernon/Victoria transports on charge, used normally to fly supply missions back and forth to the Canal Zone, but the ones at Habbaniya were converted into bombers (!) by fitting the spare bomb racks from the Audaxes in multiple.

Not only that, they also built one complete aircraft from spare and scrap parts they had 'in stock' although they weren't sure what to call it as it had a mixture of fuselage, wings and engines, none of which Vickers had ever put together before! 

[Gondor]

Maybe it should have been called a Bitsa

Bitsa this and Bitsa that....

Gondor

[tigercat]

Vickers Various

I don't believe theres a model but you could start with a Vimy as the base possibly and scratch the fuselage ?

[Geoff]

This would make a good GB. I like the idea of Italian Bredas with Iraqi markings.

[jcf]

This would make a good GB. I like the idea of Italian Bredas with Iraqi markings.

Iraqi marked Breda Ba 65s aren't a Whif.

http://www.michael-reimer.com/CFS2/CFS2_Profiles/MTO_AXIS_Iraq.html

[PR19_Kit]

Vickers Various

I don't believe theres a model but you could start with a Vimy as the base possibly and scratch the fuselage ?

Magic! I wish Dad was alive still, he'd have laughed his socks off at that! 

Someone did a vacform fuse for the Frog Vimy to make a Vimy Commercial some years ago (it looked like a barrage balloon...) maybe Formaplane? And there was a complete Vimy Commercial kit in 1/144 as well.

[Fulcrum]

hmmm... Iraqi ME 109
            Iraqi FW-190A-D
            Iraqi Me-262
            Iraqi Ju-87

good amount of possibilities.

[tigercat]

De Haviland Tiger Moth Bomber

Iraqi Hs 123
Iraqi Hs 126

There was a large amount of rivers and canals  plus I believe  a large lake so opportunities for Flybing boats maybe Either Commandeered commercial types or RAF / Iraqi

Desert Camouflage Walrus anybody?

[PR19_Kit]

Indeed, Habbaniya was one of Imperial Aiways stations for the C Class Empire 'boats en route to India etc.. The river, I think the Euphrates, went past the north side of the airfield site and Lake Habbaniya was just north of that. I've never seen photos of the flying boat base there, more's the pity.

[Geoff]

This would make a good GB. I like the idea of Italian Bredas with Iraqi markings.

Iraqi marked Breda Ba 65s aren't a Whif.

http://www.michael-reimer.com/CFS2/CFS2_Profiles/MTO_AXIS_Iraq.html

Doh! I didn't realise that - cheers. Geoff.

[jcf]

When 31 Squadron flew the troop lift from India to Iraq they made use of borrowed A-W Atlanta airliners.

Air Enthusiast Ten has a decent article on the 1941 Iraq air campaign and it mentions that while many pilots claimed
to see Me 109s, none were actually sent. The article concludes with the following:
" ... it had been the first defeat suffered by the Luftwaffe in the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern area, but one is left to wonder if the outcome of this mini-saga would not have been somewhat different had the Fligerführer Irak received the support that had
been promised."

RIAF profiles from the AE article.



Jon

[James]

Might be a way for the HP Heyford to get in on some action.

Early radar equipped, closed canopy, night intruder Heyfords