French fighter squadron markings

[PR19_Kit]

I'm rather vainly trying to produce some 'authentic' squadron markings for my SNECMA Colibri VTOL fighter but for life of me I can't figure out what the various numbers on the nose mean.

I'm using some decals, or at least the design of them, from the Heller Mirage F1 kit which has a wonderful blue and yellow EC 2/5 scheme for the Ile de France Escadron, but the aircraft has '5-01' on the nose with the '5' in outline and the '01' solid.

Could some of our Armee de L'Aire experts please tell me what the significance of the 5-01 is and can I pick any number pairing?

[Amphion]

I googled up this answer:

Unit/Base Aircraft Code System(s):
Most AdlA aircraft carry tactical code numbers of the form xx-AA, eg: Mirage 2000D 3-XE, where the first number denotes the Escadre (Wing), the first letter indicates the Escadron (Squadron) and the second letter denotes the individual aircraft.

Allthough I think "3-xe" is a Mirage III as in this picture:


I hope it answers your question.

[PR19_Kit]

So how come the Mirage F1 in the Heller kit carries '5-01' when it's a member of EC 2/5? That nose code doesn't seem to stack up with its escadre or escadron. 

[Amphion]

I had to dig up my copy of "An illustrated guide to Aircraft Markings" to make sence of this (i hope).

In the text I copied of the internet they talk about the first letter - twice. I think it should read like this:
First number denotes the Escadre (Wing), the second letter indicates the Escadron (Squadron) and the third letter denotes the individual aircraft.

In your case you have EC 2/5 = Second Squadron, Fifth Wing.
So 5-O1 = the 5 is the wing and the O (letter, not number?) is the squadron and the 1 is the individual aircraft (why they sometimes use letters and sometimes numbers idon'know).

[PR19_Kit]

Ahah, the light dawns, thanks. 

I thought the RAF WWII squadrons codes were obscure but even they only went as far as denoting the squdron!

[Father Ennis]

As to the mixing of numbers and letters, their French. That is all the reason they need...!!! 

I have a question on French a/c markings,myself. I need to know the air unites and their markings used in the French colonies in Southeast Asia. I have the Squadron book on the AdlA,but it only covers European and African ones. I want to do my 1/48 MS406 during the brief war Burma over territory. I know they were marked in standard "Vicy" with the same as European ones.  This means I need the Squadron markings but I can't find any photos or a listing of the unites and what they flew.  I might need to do a deal with someone on the decals,too ...

[NARSES2]

Neil Robinson and Peter Scott's "Airfile - Pearl Harbour to the Coral Sea" has a small section on the French Indo China War with profiles of French, Japanese and Thai aircraft.

The Ms 406 units were :

Escadrille de Chase 2/595 with 10 aircraft and Escadrille de Chase 2/596 with 7 aircraft.

The book illustrates an aircraft from each unit. They look quite gaudy with slightly different variations on the Vichy norm and they wear their unit badges quite prominently

[Father Ennis]

Thanks,NARSES52 ... !!!   I figured someone on here could answer this question. I'll try getting a copy at my local library.  Do you happen to know where I can get decals for my ship   I don't know what the unit markings look like and how the numbers were applied. Every squadron had them but every one did it differently. My only reasouces are the box art and the very small mention in my Squadron book.  I found this a most interesting area of the war and learned some things I didn't know.

[NARSES2]

I'm not sure there are any after market transfers for aircraft that served in this theatre. However a good place to start looking for French markings is http://decals-carpena.com/intro_i.htm. Hannants stock them as well and they advertise in most of the model magazines. They do do an Indo China sheet but it's post WWII

[NARSES2]

I found this a most interesting area of the war and learned some things I didn't know.

Very much so. I find these small "side" campaigns far more fascinating sometimes then the mainstream ones

[Amphion]

Does this help:




Googled up and taken from this site:

http://pwm.org.pl/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4545

[Slerski]

In your case you have EC 2/5 = Second Squadron, Fifth Wing.
So 5-O1 = the 5 is the wing and the O (letter, not number?) is the squadron and the 1 is the individual aircraft (why they sometimes use letters and sometimes numbers idon'know).

I think (because I know the system) the right code is 5-OI (Oscar India). We don't use number because the "OI" is the last part of the French civil registration.

(Your decoration is like this one ?)

[PR19_Kit]

I think (because I know the system) the right code is 5-OI (Oscar India). We don't use number because the "OI" is the last part of the French civil registration.

(Your decoration is like this one ?)

Aaaah, even MORE light dawns! Thanks so much, I never thought that they could be letters, so dumb of me!  

And yes, it's EXACTLY that aircraft, as provided as one of six decals in the Heller 1/72 F1 kit.  

The more I look at it the more I think what a gorgeous shape the F1 is, miles better looking than its delta winged colleagues, and almost as good as my fave of the genre, the Mirage IV.

[Slerski]

I'm happy if it's help you Maybe one day I'll post a brief description of the Armée de l'Air organisation, a kind of database that all whiffers could use.

[Rheged]

Maybe one day I'll post a brief description of the Armée de l'Air organisation, a kind of database that all whiffers could use.

This would be  extremely useful to a great many people if you were able to pull the data together.  Thank you for even considering this "work of supererogation"!!