The Wooksta!: Not a Spitfire Blog - comments thread.

[The Wooksta!]

I've done a rough chop to the resin halves after cleaning them up (laughs sarcastically) to get the two seater in.  About 4/5 mm back front the cockpit on the kit.  Matchbox pit goues in nice, especially if the intake grooves are aligned with the top of the 1121 fuselage.

Need to grout out the exhaust section and then I can glue it together.  Some parts are decidedly thin, a holdover from the terrible mould, but superglue and baking soda will sort that out.

[Lost Cosmonauts]

Broadsword is a decent name, I was thinking Vickers Voulge might have worked if it needed a V-force alliterative name

Look forward to seeing it come together

[kitbasher]

Finish the bloody Lightning t-bird, Lee!!!!

[Rheged]

The fact that I don't comment on your blogs isn't because of a lack of interest, Lee.    I do enjoy reading them and the  introductory quotes  always make me smile.

[NARSES2]

I fancy the idea of the two seat Tempest II FAC 

[kitbasher]

'Madcap idea' 🤣🤣🤣

60 Sqn Lightning - replaces 60 Sqn Javelins in Singapore and 74 Sqn stays in the UK? 

And Lightning in Hunter training colours - you mean red, white and Light Aircraft Grey?  Chronologically makes much more sense than it would on Swifts. 

[The Wooksta!]

Wasn't 60 Sqn supposed to be out there with 74?

The Swifts in the red, white, grey was if they'd been used in the FGA role, for which they would have been rather good I think, given the performance of the FR5s, so some end up at Valley as GA trainers instead of the Hunters.

The colours started to come in from the early 70s, I think.  The Airfile book on RAF trainers has a Dominie in those colours in 1970, so a Swift isn't too much of a stretch.

[Knightflyer]

I fancy the idea of the two seat Tempest II FAC 

Something like the Hawker Hamsin then Chris ?!? 

https://www.whatifmodellers.com/index.php/topic,45487.msg814910/topicseen.html#msg814910

[kitbasher]

Wasn't 60 Sqn supposed to be out there with 74?

74 moved to Tengah in 1967, 60 disbanded there in 1968.  So maybe in your timeline 60 replaced its Javelins with Lightnings and 74 stayed in the UK?

The Swifts in the red, white, grey was if they'd been used in the FGA role, for which they would have been rather good I think, given the performance of the FR5s, so some end up at Valley as GA trainers instead of the Hunters.

229 OCU (later the Tactical Weapons Unit) operated camouflaged single-seater Hunters in the FGA training role (never say never regarding some red/white/grey examples, though), although some received red or yellow paint over camouflage (e.g. the Revell 1/72 FGA.9/FGA.58 boxing).  I've seen one photo so far of a T.7 in Light Aircraft Grey (LAG) with Dayglo panels and I think camouflaged ones with yellow trainer bands.

I don't believe 4 FTS operated Hunters in the FGA training role.  Their Hunters (F.6s and T.7s) supplemented the Gnats in the advanced training role, being used by pilots deemed too big for the Gnat.  I remember in my RAF days several fast jet pilots saying that pilots above a certain height would lose their kneecaps if they had to eject from a Gnat (assuming they could close the canopy prior to take off in the first place!).

I agree the Swift FR.5 was well-suited to the low-level role, so in an alternative timeline an 'FGA.7' could feature as a 229 OCU/TWU aircraft, maybe even an alternative to the Boscombe Down 'spray' Hunter F.6 (or was it an FGA.9)?

My first air cadet field day at RAF Woodvale was also 5 Civilian Anti-Aircraft Co-Operation Unit's last flying day prior to disbandment.  Operated a variety of Meteor T.7s, F(TT).8s and TT.20s.  Now if they'd operated Swift FR(TT).5s there's a host of colour scemes to be had, including overall LAG with Dayglo panels and fully-blown Meteor TT.20-style LAG/Dayglo/black+yellow stripes to be had!

The colours started to come in from the early 70s, I think.  The Airfile book on RAF trainers has a Dominie in those colours in 1970, so a Swift isn't too much of a stretch.

According to Scalemates, the Airfix Dominie first appeared in 1968.  The decal option is clearly a red/white/grey machine.  The recent 'Vintage series' repop includes marking for a 1968 red/white/grey 1 Air Navigation School machine.

[The Wooksta!]

Now if they'd operated Swift FR(TT).5s there's a host of colour scemes to be had, including overall LAG with Dayglo panels and fully-blown Meteor TT.20-style LAG/Dayglo/black+yellow stripes to be had!

Way too much masking for me.  I'll leave that for someone else.

[PR19_Kit]

I remember in my RAF days several fast jet pilots saying that pilots above a certain height would lose their kneecaps if they had to eject from a Gnat (assuming they could close the canopy prior to take off in the first place!).

When I had the chance to sit in the front of a Tornado GR4 at Lossiemouth (courtesy of 617 Sqdn., many thanks  ) I found the same thing. My knees were well underneath the instrument panel, and I'd have surely lost them if I had to eject from there.

The Nav's seat in the rear had a bit more room though.

[kitbasher]

I remember in my RAF days several fast jet pilots saying that pilots above a certain height would lose their kneecaps if they had to eject from a Gnat (assuming they could close the canopy prior to take off in the first place!).

When I had the chance to sit in the front of a Tornado GR4 at Lossiemouth (courtesy of 617 Sqdn., many thanks  ) I found the same thing. My knees were well underneath the instrument panel, and I'd have surely lost them if I had to eject from there.

The Nav's seat in the rear had a bit more room though.

Best fast jet cockpit I ever sat in was the F-16's. 

[PR19_Kit]

How roomy was it Dave?

[The Wooksta!]

TSR2 - Pilot and Nav.  The former was a tad snug, the latter more roomy. 

[PR19_Kit]

I've actually sat in a TSR2 front seat too. 

That was XR222 when it was at Cranfield, but it hadn't got a bang seat aboard so I was sitting on a kitchen chair. A tad prosaic for sure, but it wasn't too tight really.

The really strange thing was that I couldn't see ANY part of the airframe at all, bar the windscreen bow. The nose, the wing tips, everything else was out of the pilot's view, how ever they would have taxied it safely I've no idea.