DONE +++ 1:72 Supermarine Spitfire LF.16e; "QV-J/NR761" of RAF XIX Sq., 1946

Dizzyfugu · June 10, 2022, 05:28:18 AM

As things will start moving tomorrow, I post the obligatory "ingredients" picture for my 2022 1WGB project - very straightforward.

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, personal mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

A tactical choice. This is what would at warthunder.com be called a "semi-authentic" whif. The inspiration came when I found a leftover decal sheet from the classic Matchbox P-51D/K Mustang kit, which offers the famous and pretty 'Dooleybird' KM 272 as a painting option from May 1945. I wondered how long the aircraft had carried this bright livery, and eventually found out that RAF No. 19 Squadron operated the Mustang only for a couple of months after the end of WWII, replaced by Spitfire LF.16s in early 1946. This became the simple concept for this whif: what would such a Spitfire successor have looked like?

The Wooksta! · June 10, 2022, 08:32:39 AM

19 Sqn's LF.16Es were all camouflaged as per the kit box art, but with the Sky tailband. They didn't have them long either as they were replaced with Hornets by early October, 1946.

If you are going for the overall silver look, use the black serial in the Heller kit (RW396)*, keep the wartime fishtail exhausts as the rounded ones are dreadful, plus if you've any other Spitfire kit with the four spoke wheels (Fujimi's are really nice and all the AZ kits have them as standard), use those as the Heller ones are a odd combination of post 1950 3 spoke hub but with a smaller wartime tyre.

The Matchbox decals should hold together, but the roundels look dreadful. If the Heller ones are better, use those where possible.

Somewhere in a box is an MB5 I did with those markings. I did it again with an Xtrakit Spitfire F22, but it's awful and will be replaced with an Airfix one in due course. May be able to do it soon.

*I don't know if your example even has the post war option. The box art definitely has the wrong upper roundels for a wartime aircraft.

Dizzyfugu · June 11, 2022, 02:00:44 AM

For the kit I went for Heller's venerable Spitfire LF.16 kit: it is pretty cheap and still a decent representation of the last Merlin-powered type, despite some flaws. I also was happy that I could build the model basically OOB, without major modifications, I just implanted a styrene tube adapter for the propeller with a longer axis.

However, the Heller kit has its weaknesses: surface details are raised (yet quite fine), the cockpit interior is complete with bulkheads and a separate seat, but highly simplified. The same goes for the landing gear wells and the radiators: they are molded into the main parts. Detail freaks will certainly wrinkle their noses, but for the kit's typical price it's O.K. and there are certainly worse Spitfire kits in 1:72 around!

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) - WiP by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Dizzyfugu · June 11, 2022, 05:49:43 AM

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) - WiP by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

A fundamental problem of Heller's Spitfire LF.16: The overall material thickness is rather poor, what causes troubles when you glue the fuselage halves together and when inserting the wing section into its respective hull opening: aligning and simply attaching everything is hazardous, the wings are later so wobbly that their seams frequently break up! $:-\$

The Wooksta! · June 11, 2022, 06:40:51 AM

It depends on which boxing you get. Anything post 2000 is a lottery, as the black plastic is prone to warping and twisted fuselages are common. I binned several projects (not literally, they were reduced to spares). If you can get a Black box Heller release or the later photo top one with the Humbrol logo, you're generally safe.

The decals are always rubbish.

For many years, it was the gold standard late Merlin Spitfire.

Oh, if it's not too late, the radiators will need shortening as they're too deep for Merlin. A straight saw cut and then reattach, as the saw cut takes out the requisite amount of plastic.

Dizzyfugu · June 12, 2022, 12:30:36 AM

Quote from: The Wooksta! on June 11, 2022, 06:40:51 AM
If you can get a Black box Heller release or the later photo top one with the Humbrol logo, you're generally safe.

The decals are always rubbish.

Good to know - there are so many boxings of this kit around, and those I have built molded in black have been troublesome. Agree with the decals, too - even though they appear to be printed well, the Sky for the tactical code is rather a deep, bright green!

Still fighting with the hull of the model, the wings are so wobbly, it's horrible. The main landing gear is also very flimsy. Why the mold designers decided to use only half of the already super-tiny locator pins as attachment points in wee and shallow holes is beyond my understanding. The legs are so wobbly that they hardly hold the model up – I had to support them with superglue! Too late for the radiators, but I think that it's not too obvious.

The Wooksta! · June 12, 2022, 06:23:32 AM

The u/c has always been a pain with that kit. It's almost scale thickness, whereas the tailwheel is as wide as a railway sleeper in that scale. The pins are handed, but the legs rarely fit properly and are worse with the black plastic ones.

I've never found the fit of the wing to the fuselage to be an issue. But the wing does have a distressing tendency to pop a seam on the leading edge rather too much.

It's the one Spitfire kit that I think I've had the most experience with. Must have built about fifty or so all told.

Dizzyfugu · June 13, 2022, 05:20:11 AM

Painting and markings are quite challenging, and I have the impression that the original RAF KM 272 and its livery are just as elusive and speculative as Indian Air Force C992, a MiG-21FL that carried a spectacular tiger stripe livery – often offered as a painting option in kits or depicted in artwork, but these are only based on blurry b/w pictures that do not reveal the aircraft's actual colors and do not show details like the underside. The 'Dooleybird' seems to be a similar affair, and the more you try to find out about the aircraft, the more controversial the details become – esp. under the light that the aircraft apparently operated only for a couple of months in this livery in peacetime, so there cannot have been many variations.

For instance: what's the color of the anti-glare panel? US-style olive drab or black? Or was it even dark blue? And how would this translate onto a later Spitfire? The cheatline under the anti-glare panel is controversial, too: Matchbox and some others depict it as dark blue (reflecting the white-and-blue spinner and the checkered collar behind it, No. 19 Squadron's unit colors), while Airfix offers deep yellow with its recent 1:48 kit. Well, I do not believe in the latter, because a b/w picture of KM 272 at Airfix' website that is used as reference for the model(!) shows the cheatlines in a relatively dark color, while the yellow wing leading edges are much lighter.

Even when you consider different angles and light reflections of the respective area, I do not buy the yellow trim on the fuselage – so I stuck with the blue, which IMHO also looks better and more plausible. I coupled this with a black anti-glare panel; typical post-war Spitfires did not feature such a panel at all and were all-silver, but to replicate KM 272's looks on the different airframe I kept it. As s side benefit, the dark panel stretches the Spitfire LF.16's elegant lines with its low rear section even further.
Another dubious detail: the color of the codes. The Matchbox kit shows them in black, but roundel blue could have been an option, too. And even the 'Dooleybird' tag in red is not 100% certain: I have found an aftermarket decal sheet that shows it in blue! The more you look, the more confused you get... :-/

Painting started with an overall coat with a tone called "White Aluminum" from the rattle can, which yields a nice metallic shine. The cockpit was, typical for late WWII RAF aircraft, painted in a very dark grey (Revell 09 Anthracite), with dry-brushed details in a slightly lighter grey – but the cockpit is so tight that hardly anything can be discerned. The interior of the landing gear wells and of the radiators was painted with Humbrol 56 (Aluminum Dope), a more greyish silver tone.

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) - WiP by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

PR19_Kit · June 13, 2022, 05:35:58 AM

Quote from: Dizzyfugu on June 13, 2022, 05:20:11 AM

The more you look, the more confused you get... :-/

Thank goodness this is WhiffWorld, eh?

The Wooksta! · June 13, 2022, 07:24:48 AM

If you've got an Eduard or Hasegawa Spitfire 8 in the stash, nick the fixed tailwheel from it to replace the Heller one.

Some post war silver Spitfires did have the anti glare panel, some didn't. Not sure if there's a hard and fast rule. I got for whatever suits the markings.

Dizzyfugu · June 14, 2022, 09:05:44 AM

More progress. The blue on the spinner and for the cheatlines is probably "Oxford Blue" (Humbrol 104), the same as the color used on the roundels, but I used a slightly lighter mix with some Humbrol 25, in an attempt to match the print color from the decals.
As mentioned above, the anti-glare panel became deep black. Since the contrast between the black and the blue was very weak I experimented with a white 0.5 mm demarcation line between the colors, but that looked weird and reduced the contrast even more, so that I eventually stuck to the original (Matchbox) design.

To liven up the silver airframe the fabric-covered surfaces on the tail were painted with Humbrol 56, too, and single panels all over the hull were painted with Revell 99 (Aluminum) for a light contrast. Then the model received a light black ink washing to emphasize the recessed surface details (esp. around the rudders/flaps), and some light post-panel-shading with Humbrol 27001 (Matt Aluminum Metallizer), slightly lighter than the overall White Aluminum, was done for an even more "uneven" surface.

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) - WiP by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) - WiP by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

The decals came next, and this took some improvisation. Roundels were, after some consideration, taken from the Matchbox sheet – even though these left me uncertain, too. These are still Type C roundels from the WWII period, but they are shown with a relatively bright red that was AFAIK officially introduced in 1947 with the post-war Type D roundels? Or did KM 272 still use wartime "Identification Red (dull)"? I decided to stick with the brighter option, even if it was wrong, because it matches the aircraft's overall rather bright complexion, and this is a what-if model, after all.

Fitting the checkered collar behind the propeller was quite challenging – from former builds of the Matchbox 'Dooleybird' many years ago I remembered that the decals already did not fit well around the original kit's front end, and despite carrying a Merlin, too, the Spitfire's cowling is quite different from the Mustang's. To have more flexibility, I trimmed down the carrier film and cut each half of the ring into four segments and tried to apply them evenly – not perfect, but I think that I could not expect more.
The yellow ID markings on the outer wings' leading edges were created with decal sheet material – again I was uncertain how long these would have been worn after WWII? KM 272 still had them, a successor one year later maybe not – but I kept them, too, to stay close to the original 'Dooleybird' and for the additional color on the airframe.

The serial number of this Spitfire, NR 761, is fictional and was AFAIK not assigned to an active RAF aircraft. To give the Spitfire a post-war look I decided to use a more modern font: all serial numbers on the fuselage and under the wings were created with material for respective decals from an Xtradecal BAC Lightning sheet. As an adaptation to the different underwing space due to the radiators I placed the large code letters in two lines instead of just one (as seen on KM 272, where the codes extend over the landing gear covers).
The tactical code on the flanks was created with single black 8 mm DIN font letters from TL Modellbau, which is similar to the RAF font but slightly bolder. Again, I was not certain how long the WWII practice with a pair of unit letters and a single letter for the individual aircraft had been kept by RAF units – but RAF Tempests in Europe were marked this way until at least mid-1946, and overseas even until 1949.

Once the decals were in place, the model received a light rubbing with graphite to apply an additional metallic shine and to emphasize the raised panel lines. Slightly more graphite was added behind the exhaust stubs. Finally, the model was sealed with semi-gloss acrylic varnish (Italeri), except for the anti-glare panel and the propeller blades, which became matt.

The Wooksta! · June 14, 2022, 02:45:00 PM

Matchbox got the colours wrong. The Type C roundels Dooleybird wore would be the wartime dull red.

The cockpit colour doesn't go aft of the cockpit bulkhead. It should be the same as the rest of the rear fuselage as the canopy goes on last.

Dizzyfugu · June 16, 2022, 03:07:12 AM

Thanks to a bank holiday, the fake Dooleybird has been finished this morning.

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Some background:
No. 19 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps was formed on 1 September 1915, from members of No. 5 Squadron, at Castle Bromwich training on a variety of aircraft before being deployed to France in July 1916 flying Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.12 and re-equipping with the more suitable French-built SPAD S.VIIs. From November 1917, the squadron started to receive Sopwith Dolphins to replace its SPADs, it being fully equipped with the Dolphin during January 1918, flying its first operational patrol with the new fighter on 3 February. In 1917, the squadron was re-equipped with Sopwith Dolphins, flying escort duties.

No. 19 Squadron was disbanded after the First World War on 31 December 1919. On 1 April 1923, the squadron was reformed at RAF Duxford with the Sopwith Snipe, initially operating as part of No. 2 Flying Training School (No. 2 FTS). After becoming independent No. 2 FTS, No. 19 Squadron remained at Duxford flying number of different fighters such as the Gloster Grebe, Armstrong Whitworth Siskin Mk. IIIa and the Bristol Bulldog Mk. IIa. In May 1935, the unit became the first squadron to be equipped with the Gloster Gauntlet which they flew until March 1939. In 1938, No. 19 Squadron became the first squadron in the RAF to operate the Supermarine Spitfire Mk. I, when K9789 was delivered on 4 August. The squadron lost its first Spitfire when K9792 crashed on landing at RAF Duxford on 20 September 1938, having only been delivered on 16 August.

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

After the outbreak of World War 2, No. 19 Squadron was stationed at RAF Duxford in September 1939, and was part of No. 12 Group, RAF Fighter Command. In May and June 1940, the squadron helped provide air cover over the Dunkirk beaches. In June 1940, No. 19 Squadron began the receive Spitfire Mk. Ibs, which were armed with the Hispano cannon, however due to reliability issues the unit soon reverted to the Spitfire Mk. Ia. No. 19 Squadron formed part of the Duxford Wing, No. 12 Group's 'Big Wing' formation during the Battle of Britain.
Later versions of Spitfires were flown until the arrival of North American Mustang Mk. IIIs for close-support duties in early 1944. After D-Day, No. 19 Squadron briefly went across the English Channel before starting long-range escort duties from RAF Peterhead, Scotland, for Coastal Command off the coast of Norway. The Squadron converted to the Mustang Mk. IV in April 1945 while based at RAF Peterhead.

Just as the Mustang transformed USAAF fighter escort operations on missions deep into Germany, so the RAF would use the impressive range of the aircraft to provide fighter cover for strike aircraft which would previously have operated autonomously. These missions included anti-shipping strikes by Beaufighters and Mosquitos along the coastline of Norway, which could last almost six hours in duration, with most of the flying time taking place over the vast, unforgiving expanse of the North Sea. Ensuring German units in Norway were never in a position to threaten the eastern coast of Britain and importantly, keeping significant forces occupied in the region and unable to reinforce units further south, these dangerous long-range operations continued right up until the eventual end of hostilities in Europe and in their own way, were as demanding as any flown by pilots serving through WWII. As Bomber Command decided to re-commence daylight strike operations from 1944, the European Theatre witnessed the unusual situation of both RAF and USAAF Mustangs providing bomber protection cover in the same airspace at the same time and as the Luftwaffe finally began to crack under the unrelenting pressure, Allied Mustangs were free to hunt for anything they deemed a suitable target. At this time, there must have been hundreds of Mustangs flying in European skies, both British and American, and all manner of production variants – even the first Allison powered Mustang Is were used right until the final stages of the War in Europe.

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Flight Lieutenant Arthur S 'Joe' Doley joined the Royal Air Force during the Second World War and went on to fly Spitfires and Hurricanes with Nos 610 and 87 Squadrons, in Britain, North Africa and Italy. He later joined No19 Squadron at Peterhead in February 1945, where he was introduced to the Mustang IV and long-range operations over the North Sea, very different form the shorter-range combat operations he had been used to in North Africa and Italy. Even at this late stage of the war, Doley was kept extremely busy on these shipping strike protection missions and undertook at least 12 of these missions during the last few weeks of WWII, with several further missions aborted due to various technical issues. Following the end of hostilities, No.19 Squadron relocated to RAF Acklington on 13th May 1945, where it continued its association with the Mustang, even though the aircraft looked very different from their appearance during the final weeks of the war. The rather disheveled camouflage appearance associated with aircraft operating over large expanses of ocean had gone, to be replaced with a handsome natural metal presentation, which really suited the striking profile of the magnificent Mustang. It was during this time that Flt. Lt. Doley began his association with a particularly striking Mustang and one which must be considered one of the most distinctive piston-engine fighter aircraft to see service with the Royal Air Force. Mustang IV KM272 (QV-V) was resplendent with its blue and white spinner and front engine cowling, but also carried name 'Dooleybird' in large red letters on the port side of the fuselage.

After WWII, No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron soon exchanged their Mustangs for Spitfire Mk. XVIs. The original 'Dooleybird' was exchanged for a Spitfire LF.16, too (with NR761, to be specific), but the lively livery of KM 272 was taken over and to honor the pilot the machine was assigned the individual code letter 'J', for A. S. Doley's nickname 'Joe'.
The Spitfire Mk. XVI was the same as the Mk. IX in nearly all respects except for the engine, a Merlin 266. The Merlin 266 was the Merlin 66 and was built under license in the USA by the Packard Motor Company. The "2" was added as a prefix in order to avoid confusion with the British-built engines, as they were built with metric gauges that required different tooling in both production and maintenance, so that units would only exclusively use either type of engine and not mix it with other Spitfire variants. Because of a slightly taller intercooler and rearranged accessories on the Packard Merlins a new, bulged upper cowling was introduced which also appeared on late production IXs. Production commenced in September 1944 with the first aircraft reaching No.443 Sqn. Royal Canadian Air Force in January 1945. However, problems with the license-built engines limited the Mk. XVI's introduction to front-line squadrons for several months, so that this version saw only limited use during the last months of WWII in Europe. A total of 1,054 Mk. XVIs were built at Castle Bromwich near Birmingham, with the last delivery taking place in August 1945. Spitfire Mk. XVIs equipped 36 RAF squadrons, including eight squadrons of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force after the war, these serving until 1951.

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

All Mk. XVI aircraft produced were of the Low-Altitude Fighter (LF) variety. This was not determined by the length of the wings (clipped wings were fitted to most LF Spitfires, though), but by the engine, which had been optimized for low-altitude operation. All production Mk. XVIs had clipped wings for low altitude work and were fitted with the rear fuselage fuel tanks with a combined capacity of 75 gal. Many (but not all) XVIs featured cut-down rear fuselages with bubble canopies, and on these aircraft the rear fuselage tank capacity was limited to 66 gal.

Armament for most Mk. XVIs (re-designated LF.16 soon after the war) consisted of 2× 20 mm Hispano II cannon and 2× 0.50" caliber Browning machine guns in the so-called "E" wing. 1× 500 lb (227 kg) bomb or an auxiliary tank could be carried under the fuselage on a central hardpoint, and 1× 250 lb (114 kg) bomb could be slung under each wing.

After their introduction in mid-1945, the Spitfire LF.16's service with RAF No. 19 Squadron was only short and lasted only several months. In October 1946, the unit moved again, from Northumberland southward to RAF Wittering at the boundary between Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. There, the Spitfires were retired or handed over to RAuxAF units. NR 761 was handed over to No. 614 (County of Glamorgan) Squadron where it served until July 1950 (replaced with D. H. Vampires), and No. 19 (F) Squadron converted to the de Havilland Hornet Mk. I, which were operated for about five years until January 1951 when the Squadron received their first jet aircraft, the Gloster Meteor F.4.

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

General characteristics:
Crew: one pilot
Length: 31 ft 2 in (9,55 m)
Wingspan: 32 ft ½ in (9,93 m)
Height: 11 ft 5 in (3.86 m)
Wing area: 242.1 sqft (22.48 m²)
Airfoil: NACA 2209.4(tip)
Empty weight: 5,065 lb (2,297 kg)
Loaded weight: 6,622 lb (3,000 kg)
Max. takeoff weight: 8,731 lb (3,946 kg)

Powerplant:
1× Rolls-Royce Merlin 266 liquid-cooled V12 engine with a two speed, two-stage supercharger,
rated at 1.470 hp (1.096 kW) at 9.250 ft (2.820 m), maximum output of 1.710 hp (1,276 kW),
driving a 4 blade constant speed Rotol airscrew with Jablo or Hydulignum wood blades

Performance:
Maximum speed: 415 mph, (364 kn, 669 km/h)
Combat radius: 411 mi (360 nmi, 662 km)
Ferry range: 1,135 mi (991 nmi, 1,827 km)
Service ceiling: 40,500 ft (13,265 m)
Rate of climb: 2,600 ft/min (13.2 m/s)
Wing loading: 27.35 lb/sqft (133.5 kg/m²)
Power/mass: 0.22 hp/lb (0.36 kW/kg)

Armament:
2x 20mm Hispano Mk II cannon (120 RPG)
2x 0.5 in (12,7 mm) Browning machine guns (250 RPG)
Three hardpoints (1 ventral, 1 under each outer wing) for up to 1.000 lb (454 kg)

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Supermarine 'Spitfire' LF.16e; aircraft 'QV-J (NR 761)' a.k.a. 'Dooleybird' of the Royal Air Force No. XIX (Fighter) Squadron, mount of Flight Lieutenant Arthur S. 'Joe' Doley; RAF Acklington (Northumberland, UK), 1946 (What-if/Heller kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

A project with many question marks – despite the simple idea. However, despite some twists and turns, the result looks very attractive, the fictional 'Dooleybird' successor is a real eye-catcher, esp. when you expect a Mustang at first glance behind the masquerade. 😉 Besides, I have plans to build the real 'Dooleybird' in 1:72, too, but based on the Academy P-51D/K and with some detail improvements to better match the real aircraft (which had, for instance, uncuffed propeller blades). We'll see...

PR19_Kit · June 16, 2022, 03:21:41 AM

That's REALLY good Thomas, and confusing too.

You think you know it, and then you see the wing shape and the smooth underside, and you realise you don't.

Dizzyfugu · June 16, 2022, 03:39:42 AM

Thank you, glad you like it, Kit, despite the clipped wings.